Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and President Barack Obama (Jason Reed/Reuters/Lendov)
I joined BBC Radio Scotland on Saturday to discuss the legacy of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Ginsburg, and whether it can be preserved against a rush by Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to approve an arch-conservative replacement before the November 3 election.
Alongside Phillips O’Brien of the University of St. Andrews, I also consider the UK Government’s folly — through its illegal revision of the Withdrawal Agreement with the European Union — in sabotaging its hopes for a trade deal with the US.
This woman who was in her 80s was beginning to inspire not just women but men who were 60 and 70 years younger than her — “Look, we can do this. We can make this a better country. We don’t have to separate law from politics. At the same time, we don’t have to politicize the law and make this a recurring battle between conservatives v. liberals.”
The United States Supreme Court is comparable to the Guardians Council in Iran, except that its members are appointed for life and have no term limits -Ted Cruz has sensibly called for retention elections. For many Americans. Ginsburg was a hero for advancing “civil rights” but for many others she was an activist judge seeking to legislate under the guise of constitutional principles. The 9-man supreme court is seen as a council of dictators on the right who have permitted abortion and same sex marriage when the U.S Congress did not approve of either.
If the Supreme Court gets a 6-3 conservative majority, then we can see Roe v Wade overturned, the teaching of creationism/ID in schools (overturning Dover) and the annulment of all same sex marriages in red states.
Very doubtful, and very uncharacteristic of US conservatives. They’re far more likely to keep a tight check on progressives trying to advance their cause through courts, occasionally throw a scrap towards social conservatives to keep them in line, and that’s that.
Would be fun to see though.
Prayer in public schools will definitely be ruled on.