End of conservative Supreme Court: Clarence Thomas may be next to leave

[randomname]

Justice Clarence Thomas, a reliable conservative vote on the Supreme Court, is mulling retirement after the presidential election, according to court watchers.

Thomas, appointed by former President George H.W. Bush and approved by the Senate after a bitter confirmation, has been considering retirement for a while and never planned to stay until he died, they said. He likes to spend summers in his RV with his wife.

His retirement would have a substantial impact on control of the court. The next president is expected to immediately replace the seat opened by the death of conservative Justice Antonin Scalia, providing a one-vote edge in the court that is currently divided 4-4.

Should Thomas leave, that slight majority would continue if Donald Trump becomes president. If it's Hillary Clinton, then she would get the chance to flip two Republican seats, giving the liberals a 6-3 majority.

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And, conservatives fear, that could switch to a 7-2 majority if Republican Justice Anthony Kennedy, already a swing vote, retires. He will be 80 next year.

We recently reported that if Clinton wins the presidency, her majority liberal court could stay in power at least until 2050.

[Zippyjuan]

Ginsburg's health has not been well. She will likely be replaced by the next president. Do you take the moderate Obama has nominated or wait until next year and see if Hillary gets a more liberal nominee or whomever Trump may come up with? He said (possibly for election purposes only) that he will nominate somebody conservative but he has already backed off many things he has said during the campaign.

[openfire]

Justice Clarence Thomas, a reliable conservative vote on the Supreme Court, is mulling retirement after the presidential election, according to court watchers.

Thomas, appointed by former President George H.W. Bush and approved by the Senate after a bitter confirmation, has been considering retirement for a while and never planned to stay until he died, they said. He likes to spend summers in his RV with his wife.

His retirement would have a substantial impact on control of the court. The next president is expected to immediately replace the seat opened by the death of conservative Justice Antonin Scalia, providing a one-vote edge in the court that is currently divided 4-4.

Should Thomas leave, that slight majority would continue if Donald Trump becomes president. If it's Hillary Clinton, then she would get the chance to flip two Republican seats, giving the liberals a 6-3 majority.

Stay abreast of the latest developments from nation's capital and beyond with curated News Alerts from the Washington Examiner news desk and delivered to your inbox.

And, conservatives fear, that could switch to a 7-2 majority if Republican Justice Anthony Kennedy, already a swing vote, retires. He will be 80 next year.

We recently reported that if Clinton wins the presidency, her majority liberal court could stay in power at least until 2050.

And that is what's at stake. Kiss the US as you know it goodbye if Hillary wins. (principles)

[CPUd]

And that is what's at stake. Kiss the US as you know it goodbye if Hillary wins. (principles)

There will likely be a Democratic controlled Senate by next year, due to how badly Trump has $#@!ed the downballot races, so to save "the US as you know it", you will need to help prevent that by supporting conservative candidates in the Senate races. Trump supporters don't get this, because they don't want to get bogged down in technicalities.

[ChaosControl]

Thanks a lot Trumpettes. You blew a freebie election by nominating the biggest idiot in US history.

[juleswin]

Trump is going to get paid big time. I can image Soros writing off the millions Trump owes him when Hillary wins. You really earned your pay, what a tremendous job by the reality TV actor.

[euphemia]

Do you take the moderate Obama has nominated or wait until next year and see if Hillary gets a more liberal nominee or whomever Trump may come up with?

What moderate?

[fcreature]

Trump supporters don't get this, because they don't want to get bogged down in technicalities.

I see what you did there.

[RandallFan]

It doesn't matter. The swing vote matters.

All these idiots talking about sexist Trump ignore that Trumpkin macho logic may have stopped John Roberts & Sandra Day from the court.

Trump needs to pick alpha males who fathered children like Scalia, Alito & Thomas to the court.

Not an impotent jerk like Roberts, who is all self conscious.

[RJB]

It never was a conservative supreme court. Nor was it a liberal one for that matter. The swing vote went in favor of tyranny. The second amendment only stood because they weren't ready for civil war, yet. Everything else on the Bill of Rights has already been gutted.

[angelatc]

Ginsburg's health has not been well. She will likely be replaced by the next president. Do you take the moderate Obama has nominated or wait until next year and see if Hillary gets a more liberal nominee or whomever Trump may come up with? He said (possibly for election purposes only) that he will nominate somebody conservative but he has already backed off many things he has said during the campaign.

Moderate. Heh. I see what you did there.

[Peace&Freedom]

Older Justices are going to retire, or pass away sometime. The more urgent truth is, 4 of the 7 GOP appointed Justices of the last 35 years have turned out to be duds on the major decisions. No matter who wins in November, Republicans have to move way from this reliance on someday getting the "5 magic judges" as their only remedy for undoing the damage of the liberal decisions. They'll need to show conservatives they can also vote in Congress to outright remove the federal court's jurisdiction over certain subjects.

They should also show they can support and successfully execute secession or similar movements to contain the federal government's overreach. Whatever, they need to stop holding out the football and promising 5 magic judges to the Charlie Brown right, and show the kind of backbone and resolve that attracted voters to Trump in the first place. No more passing the buck!

[openfire]

Ginsburg's health has not been well. She will likely be replaced by the next president. Do you take the moderate Obama has nominated or wait until next year and see if Hillary gets a more liberal nominee or whomever Trump may come up with? He said (possibly for election purposes only) that he will nominate somebody conservative but he has already backed off many things he has said during the campaign.

What moderate?

^^

[Zippyjuan]

http://www.latimes.com/nation/politi...320-story.html

Garland, 63, a former federal prosecutor who supervised the Oklahoma City bombing case, is chief judge of the court of appeals for the District of Columbia. He has a record as a cautious centrist who has been deferential to executive authority.

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-us...-idUSKCN0WI03D

Obama picks centrist high court nominee; Republicans unmoved

President Barack Obama selected Merrick Garland for the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday, choosing a centrist judge meant to win over recalcitrant Senate Republicans whose leaders wasted no time in spurning the Democratic president.

A bruising political fight is brewing over the nomination, which also promises to figure in the already contentious campaign for the Nov. 8 U.S. presidential election. The Republican-led Senate's leaders have vowed not to hold confirmation hearings or an up-or-down vote on any Obama nominee.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2...inee/81529760/

He is billed as a moderate — a label that may worry liberal advocacy groups concerned about issues such as abortion rights and gun control. But the label applies more to his method of deciding cases. Like Roberts, he adopts a minimalist approach; like Kagan, he works at persuading more conservative colleagues.

“I think moderate has become kind of code for … someone who is liked by both sides,” says Danielle Gray, a former law clerk became a senior White House advisor and law firm partner.

[Anti-Neocon]

http://www.latimes.com/nation/politi...320-story.html
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-us...-idUSKCN0WI03D
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2...inee/81529760/

Garland is a "centrist" on the left-right paradigm, but a moderate he is not. He is an extremist authoritarian, combining anti-liberty authoritarian policies from the left and right.

I would much prefer a libertarian socialist, as they at least get some things right despite being very "left".

[RJB]

Wow! A headline says Garland is a centrist. It must be true!

[euphemia]

*Deferential to executive authority* is not a moderate.

*Faithful to the Consitution* is the phrase I want to see with regard to a judge.

[jbauer]

Thanks a lot Trumpettes. You blew a freebie election by nominating the biggest idiot in US history.

Well that might be going a tad far. They did nominate McCain an Rmoney.