Justice Anthony Kennedy is retiring because things weren’t bad enough

By Cale Guthrie Weissman

June 27, 2018

For those keeping track, Supreme Court rulings have generally been decided by a 5-4 margin. Soon that margin will probably be 6-3. This is because Justice Anthony Kennedy, who was nominated by Ronald Reagan in 1988, has announced that he is retiring. His last day will be July 31.

This means that President Trump will likely choose a justice who is much further to the right, which will make his conservative legacy last even longer beyond his presidential tenure.

Kennedy is 81 years old, which is younger than Ruth Bader Ginsberg, who is 85. Perhaps Kennedy doesn’t have the exercise regimen of Ginsberg, who continues to stick it out. Let’s hope that Ginsberg can last another few years.

 

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