Penna Dexter

When President Bill Clinton announced his nomination of Ruth Bader Ginsberg to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1993, he said she “cannot be called a liberal or a conservative. She has proved herself too thoughtful for such labels.” Though conservatives didn’t buy that, the Senate confirmed her, 96-3. On the Court, Justice Ginsburg was a powerful force for progressive social policy. Justice John Paul Stevens’ retirement in 2010 left Justice Ginsberg as the most senior liberal on the court. Her opinions advanced the Court’s immense power over society and her view that the Constitution is a living document that changes with the times. She had a famously close friendship with Justice Antonin Scalia, who believed courts have a limited role, to interpret law, not to impose policy preferences. When asked, in a joint interview, how the two of them could get along so well, Justice Scalia quipped, “What’s not to like except her views on the law?” Justice Ginsburg battled serious illness; 3 different cancers over 20-some years. She fended off calls to retire while Barack Obama was still president. Commentator Jonah Goldberg, shocked at the news of her death from pancreatic cancer, explained that “RBG’s previous recoveries had given her an air of invincibility.” Yes, she was tough. But, her insistence on remaining in an attempt to shape the balance of the United States Supreme Court has left the country in a precarious position. Radio host and prominent blogger Erick Erickson was scathing: “Thanks to her pride,” he wrote, “we’re going to get more riots” The hubris that characterizes the Court itself when five justices can impose their morality on the rest of us — such arrogance can also be attributed to a justice whose deathbed wish was that a future president nominate her successor. We can admire Justice Ginsburg’s work ethic, her tenacity, her wit, and her intellect. God have mercy on us as we deal with her legacy.