Posted on 07/24/2005 7:51:56 AM PDT by doug from upland
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Thanks Doug! What a great link for future research.
Thanks for this post! I wouldn't even have known where to begin to look for this information.
He was the first one to make serious news (in later centuries). But he was the fourth one to be appointed. See for yourselves.
Congressman Billybob
Execellent. Thanks Doug.
Can you give us your list, including O'Connor, of most conservative to most liberal?
Pretty cool ... its poses a multiple-choice question as to what baseball player is/way most like the selected Justice. I tried a few, from the earliest Justices), and looks like someone put some thought into matching a Justice's life and some baseball player in history
That is cool.
I have read that the mediocre Anthony Kennedy was hoping to become Chief Justice. He obviously won't get it. So, maybe when that post is filled after Rehnquest's retirement, Kennedy himself will retire. Than a more conservative Justice will replace him.
So, I shorten the labels to "Respect" and "Disrespect" for the Constitution, and here is my admittedly non-mathematical list. In each case, the first number is "Respect" and the second is "Disrespect."
And keep in mind that the numbers are skewed, especially in the case of Chief Justice Rehnquist, because he puts the greatest store on stare decisis, meaning following the precedents of the Court itself. In the last vote which would have reconsidered Roe v. Wade, the Chief Justice made it clear that were he "acting on a clean slate," he would have voted against that doctrine. But because a long line of precedents say otherwise, he voted to sustain it.
Justice Ginsburg -- 0% -- 100%
Justice Stevens -- 0% -- 100%
Justice Souter -- 5% -- 95%
Justice Kennedy -- 20% -- 80%
Justice O'Connor -- 50% -- 50% (O'Connor truly is a "swing vote," though that is bad, not good, for a Justice. The same result could have been obtained in the last ten years of her career by flipping a giant coin, as by having her allegedly decide cases on the law, and write allegedly reasoned decisions justifying her votes.)
Chief Justice Rehnquist -- 70% -- 30%
Justice Scalia -- 95% -- 5%
Justice Thomas -- 100% -- 0%
Estimate for Justice Roberts -- 90% -- 10%
This is not based on any mathematical computations. It is based on reading all the decisions of the Court for the past quarter century, and reading a few hundred pages of technical writings by and about him in his legal career.
Interesting question you raised. I hope this is useful to you and others.
Congressman Billybob
Great. Thanks for sharing your insights.
On Ginsburg: While leaning towards the liberal side of the Court's political spectrum, Ginsburg has not hesitated to vote with her conservative colleagues.
On Thomas: Since becoming a justice, Thomas has aligned closely with the far right of the Court. He votes most frequently on the same side as the conservative camp of Rehnquist and Scalia. When Thomas began his tenure on the Court, many observers perceived him as a junior version of Scalia. Since then, Thomas has emerged from Scalia's shadow offering hints at his own conservative thinking.
On Souter: Together with O'Connor and Kennedy, Souter has formed a moderate bloc in the Court that prevents domination from the conservative wing.
On Stevens: He has demonstrated considerable judicial restraint and deference to the Congress. Stevens remains something of a wildcard in the political balance of the Court.
On Rehnquist: After Chief Justice Burger retired from the Court, President Reagan nominated Rehnquist to replace him. Liberals howled in protest. Many painted Rehnquist as a racist and conservative extremist. Opponents alleged racist behavior (an old charge) when Rehnquist was a Republican official in Phoenix. Others charged that he had mishandled a family trust. In the end, however, these accusations remained unproved and the Senate confirmed Rehnquist by a solid majority.
And most interestingly, on Scalia: As Scalia's role changes from a spearhead to an anchor in the moderating Court, the ever-unpredictable justice continues to amuse, astonish, satisfy, and frighten many Court watchers .Many believe that the moderation of the Court in recent years through the nominations of President Clinton will increasingly paint Scalia into an extreme intellectual corner. His confrontational and argumentative style may also detach him further from the mainstream of the Court. However, regardless of his future role and position on the ever-changing Court, Scalia's legal genius and rhetorical powers will likely ensure that his voice and vision, if not always supported, will continue to be heard.
Still, a very interesting read.
That's very encouraging. Are there any indications whatever as to what his "opinions" are relating to the right to keep and bear arms?
This quote jumped off the page. The man said he thought Roberts was a legal conservative because he always took the approach that "words have consequences." He always read the basic documents and worked up from there. And THAT is exactly the approach of Scalia and Thomas.
Apply that thinking to the 2nd Amendment as it was originally written, and the answer is, as the Emerson case said, that the right to bear arms is "a personal right." That's an indirect, not a direct answer. But on this subject, that's the best there is.
John / Billybob
I did proofread. There are nine Justices. I had nine ratings. But I'd included an estimate for Justice Roberts and left Justice Breyer out. LOL.
So: Justice Breyer -- 5% -- 85%
And in retrospect, I'll change Souter to 10% -- 90%. (Still terrible, but not as terrible.)
John / Billybob
Yes, I know. Knowing you, I should have realized calling it respect for the Constitution, not conservative, is the correct way to frame it.
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