Supreme Court justice

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Sotomayor Hits Prosecutor on Racist Comments

'I hope never to see a case like this again'

(Newser) - The Supreme Court won't be hearing a defendant's appeal in a drug case—but Justice Sonia Sotomayor made her views clear on a federal prosecutor's earlier comments, CNN reports. The prosecutor had said, "You've got African Americans, you've got Hispanics, you've got a...

Justice Thomas Speaks for 1st Time Since 2006

He appeared to have been making a joke

(Newser) - Justice Clarence Thomas did something at a Supreme Court argument today for the first time in nearly seven years—he spoke. But what Thomas said is not clear; he appears to have joked about Ivy League lawyers. The argument transcript only records four words. It quotes Thomas as saying, "...

Scalia Spars With Student on Gay Rights

Duncan Hosie asks justice how he can equate sodomy and murder

(Newser) - A Princeton freshman took Antonin Scalia to task yesterday, asking the Supreme Court justice how he can compare sodomy to bestiality and murder in his writings. "I don't think it's necessary, but I think it's effective," Scalia told the student during a question and answer...

Ginsburg: Supreme Court Will Likely Tackle Gay Marriage

Meanwhile, happy first anniversary of Don't Ask, Don't Tell repeal

(Newser) - The Supreme Court is likely to weigh in on the constitutionality of gay marriage bans sooner rather than later, Ruth Bader Ginsburg told students at the University of Colorado yesterday. When asked if the court might legalize gay marriage under the equal-protection clause, Ginsburg smiled and demurred, saying she couldn'...

2 in 3 Americans Can't Name One Supreme Court Justice

John Roberts is best-known at 20%

(Newser) - Nine people helped determine the fate of ObamaCare this year—and most Americans can't name a single one. Two-thirds of us are unable to name a Supreme Court justice, according to legal website FindLaw.com's poll of 1,000 people. Chief Justice John Roberts was the most familiar...

Scalia: You Can&#39;t Call a Penalty a Pig
 Scalia: 
 You Can't Call 
 a Penalty a Pig 
TALK SHOW ROUNDUP
Jul 29, 2012 10:59 AM CDT

Scalia: You Can't Call a Penalty a Pig

Or put lipstick on it.

(Newser) - Antonin Scalia is still fired up about the Supreme Court's refusal to overturn ObamaCare, appearing on Fox News Sunday to decry the majority opinion that the individual mandate is a tax. "You don't interpret a penalty to be a pig," he said, according to Politico . "...

Roberts Did Flip on ObamaCare: Sources

Fellow conservatives then battled for his support for entire month

(Newser) - John Roberts hadn't always planned to give ObamaCare the green light—but once he'd changed his mind, no amount of convincing from Anthony Kennedy could bring him back, sources tell CBS News in an in-depth account of the decision-making process. Kennedy—himself long seen as a potential swing...

Roberts Court Eschews Politics, Rules as One

NYT study shows court moving in unexpected directions

(Newser) - While the Supreme Court has appeared deeply divided along ideological lines in recent years, its latest term reveals a strikingly different court, often unanimous and aggressive in reviewing the other branches of government, reports the New York Times in an analysis of the last nine months of the Roberts Court....

Time to Make Souter Dissent on Citizens United Public

It could air the court's 'dirty laundry': Richard Hasen

(Newser) - The Supreme Court could soon revisit the issue of campaign finance, and it's time we heard David Souter's opinion on the matter. Souter wrote an unpublished draft dissent against Citizens United, the case that opened the door to super PACs; it was an issue dear to his heart,...

Hey, Lefties: This Supreme Court Should Scare You
Hey, Lefties: This Supreme Court Should Scare You
OPINION
Aug 14, 2011 10:25 AM CDT

Hey, Lefties: This Supreme Court Should Scare You

Obama too timid on federal nominees, with big issues coming

(Newser) - With big issues working their way toward the Supreme Court on such vital issues as health care reform, same-sex marriage, affirmative action, and police stops of undocumented immigrants, liberals need to be on guard, writes longtime court-watcher Emily Bazelon for the New York Times . Sure, there are solid progressives, such...

Ginsburg Not Leaving Supreme Court 'Anytime Soon'

Oldest justice says her retirement is not imminent

(Newser) - Ruth Bader Ginsburg tells the AP , in a roundabout way, that she won't be retiring from the Supreme Court "anytime soon." The significance? Ginsburg is 78 and the court's oldest justice. She's also had health problems , and Democrats' worst-case scenario is that President Obama loses...

Supreme Court's New Go-To Tool: the Dictionary

Justices citing definitions more and more in decisions

(Newser) - John Roberts may be the chief justice of the United States, but he recently pulled out a dictionary to learn the meaning of “of” for a ruling. Justices are looking more and more to dictionaries to help them settle cases—a trend that worries both legal experts and dictionary...

Supreme Court Judges Need Ethics Code: Professors

They ask Congress to clarify when justices should recuse themselves

(Newser) - More than 100 law professors want Congress to write a code of ethics for the Supreme Court to spell out for the first time when justices should recuse themselves from cases. The effort follows appearances by Justices Clarence Thomas and Antonin Scalia at political events sponsored by the billionaire conservative...

Clarence Thomas: 5 Years Without a Peep

Justice's silence mystifies court observers

(Newser) - It is a strange anniversary coming up for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas—on Feb. 22, it will have been five years since the justice has spoken during a court argument. The other justices average between six questions or remarks a case (Alito) and 25 (Scalia), and no other justice...

Kagan, Sotomayor Breathe New Wind Into Liberals' Sails

'Passionate' Sotomayor, bridge-building Kagan aren't shy during oral arguments

(Newser) - It's a bit like Mean Girls: Supreme Court Edition: After decades of the conservative tongue-lashings of Antonin Scalia dominating oral arguments as liberal justices sat on their hands, new kids Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan are unabashedly adding their voices to the melee. "Slow down from the rhetoric,"...

Justice Stevens Explains Shift on Death Penalty

Former supporter cites racism, politics, judicial activism

(Newser) - Former Supreme Court justice John Paul Stevens is making clear for the first time why he switched course on the death penalty in 2008, calling it unconstitutional, the New York Times reports. Writing in the New York Review of Books, Stevens, who supported capital punishment in 1976, reveals his revised...

Thomases Are Epic in Their Bad Judgment
 Thomases Are Epic 
 in Their Bad Judgment 
MAUREEN DOWD
Oct 24, 2010 8:05 AM CDT

Thomases Are Epic in Their Bad Judgment

Ginni's wacky phone call nothing next to political endeavors

(Newser) - Ginni Thomas, intending to very belatedly salvage her man's reputation, instead made a mockery of it, opines Maureen Dowd in the New York Times. And while "it's too late to relitigate the shameful Thomas-Hill hearings," Ginni Thomas' errant phone call is just the latest instance of "supremely...

Clarence Thomas's Ex: Anita Hill Got It Right

Allegations didn't surprise old girlfriend Lillian McEwen

(Newser) - Most definitely not what Ginni Thomas hoped would happen when she called Anita Hill seeking an apology: Now that the story's gone national, the Washington Post talks to a woman who dated Clarence Thomas in the 1980s and says the lewd behavior alleged by Hill didn't surprise her. "The...

Kagan to Miss Half of Supreme Court's Caseload

Solicitor general post presents conflicts of interest

(Newser) - Elena Kagan began her new gig as a Supreme Court justice today, but thanks to her old gig, she'll miss the action in about half the 51 cases the court has agreed to take on this term. As solicitor general, Kagan drafted briefs for the court for 14 months—exposure...

Elena Kagan Is Sworn In
 Elena Kagan 
 Is Sworn In 
Aug 7, 2010 1:15 PM CDT

Elena Kagan Is Sworn In

She becomes the fourth woman to serve on Supreme Court

(Newser) - Elena Kagan is no longer a Supreme Court nominee—she's a Supreme Court justice. Chief Justice John Roberts administered the oath to Kagan today, making her the 112th justice and fourth woman ever to serve on the court, reports AP . Kagan took the oath and then smiled broadly as friends...

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