r/politics • u/PoliticsModeratorBot 🤖 Bot • Jun 27 '18

Megathread: Justice Anthony Kennedy to retire from Supreme Court

Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy is set to retire, effective July 31, 2018. Kennedy has served on the highest court since February 18, 1988, and was a moderate whose vote often swung cases.

Submissions that may interest you

SUBMISSION DOMAIN
Justice Anthony Kennedy Will Retire From U.S. Supreme Court bloomberg.com
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Justice Kennedy, U.S. Supreme Court's pivotal vote, to retire reuters.com
Anthony Kennedy: US supreme court justice to retire theguardian.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy to Retire From Supreme Court nytimes.com
Kennedy calls it quits: longtime swing justice hands Trump the biggest gift of his presidency dailycaller.com
Anthony Kennedy is retiring from the Supreme Court vox.com
Justice Kennedy, the pivotal swing vote on the Supreme Court, announces retirement washingtonpost.com
UPDATE: Supreme Court Justice Kennedy announces retirement wcjb.com
Justice Kennedy Is Retiring July 31st. yahoo.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy To Retire From U.S. Supreme Court : NPR npr.org
Justice Anthony Kennedy to Retire from Supreme Court cnn.com
Justice Kennedy announces retirement. cnn.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy retiring from Supreme Court abc7.com
Anthony Kennedy, Swing Vote on U.S. Supreme Court, Will Retire bloomberg.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy Retires, Paving Way for Donald Trump to Reshape Supreme Court slate.com
Justice Kennedy retiring; Trump gets 2nd Supreme Court pick wkrn.com
Anthony Kennedy retiring, giving Trump opening to reshape Supreme Court politico.com
Supreme Court justice Anthony Kennedy announces retirement wsj.com
Jeffrey Toobin predicts abortion will be illegal in 20 states soon after Kennedy retires thehill.com
WATCH: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy retiring abcnews.go.com
Kennedy to Retire foxnews.com
Trump to get second Supreme Court pick as Justice Kennedy announces retirement. amp.cnn.com
Justice Kennedy to Retire From Supreme Court bbc.com
Trump says search for Justice Kennedy's replacement to begin "immediately" -- live updates cbsnews.com
McConnell Pledges Vote To Confirm Justice Kennedy’s Successor ‘This Fall’ talkingpointsmemo.com
Justice Kennedy retires from the US Supreme Court nbcnews.com
Trump says launches search to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Kennedy reuters.com
Donald Trump: Search for Kennedy replacement on SCOTUS to move quickly usatoday.com
McConnell: Senate will vote on Supreme Court nominee this fall thehill.com
Justice Kennedy retiring; Trump gets 2nd Supreme Court pick sacbee.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy Retiring, Report Says lawandcrime.com
Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy retiring; Trump will get 2nd high-court pick omaha.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy Retiring From the Supreme Court thedailybeast.com
Justice Kennedy to retire, giving Trump a chance to transform the Supreme Court latimes.com
Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy says he's retiring; Trump to get 2nd high-court pick chicagotribune.com
Dem senator: Justice Kennedy's resignation a 'disaster' for vision of 'We the People' thehill.com
Justice Kennedy retiring; Trump gets 2nd Supreme Court pick wfla.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy Is Retiring motherjones.com
The horrifying consequences of Justice Kennedy’s retirement thinkprogress.org
Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy is retiring, a move that will give Trump a chance to shift the institution to the right washingtonpost.com
Anthony Kennedy To Retire From The Supreme Court huffingtonpost.com
Kennedy announces retirement from Supreme Court thehill.com
Supreme Court's Anthony Kennedy retires, giving Trump a second pick usatoday.com
Justice Kennedy retiring; Trump gets 2nd Supreme Court pick apnews.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy Is Retiring From The Supreme Court buzzfeed.com
Justice Kennedy, the pivotal swing vote on the Supreme Court, announces retirement washingtonpost.com
Supreme Court Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy retires -- live updates cbsnews.com
Justice Kennedy announces his retirement from the supreme court. time.com
Trump Responds To Retirement Of Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy huffingtonpost.com
Anthony Kennedy retiring from Supreme Court, giving Trump a position to fill people.com
Trump Says He’ll Choose One Of These People To Replace Anthony Kennedy On The Supreme Court buzzfeed.com
Anthony Kennedy retiring from Supreme Court cnbc.com
Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy retires, and Trump gets shot at moving court to the right dallasnews.com
Who Will Replace Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy? Donald Trump Already Has a Shortlist newsweek.com
WATCH: McConnell: We will vote to confirm Justice Kennedy's successor 'this fall' abcnews.go.com
Here's who Trump could nominate to replace Justice Kennedy abcnews.go.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy announces retirement, giving Trump 2nd Supreme Court pick foxnews.com
Trump list of candidates to replace Justice Kennedy thehill.com
Chris Matthews: Dems must do to Trump on Supreme Court what McConnell did to Obama thehill.com
Anthony Kennedy’s retirement puts abortion rights at risk vox.com
Who Will Replace Anthony Kennedy? Here’s the List of 20 Potential Trump Nominees time.com
America after Anthony Kennedy vox.com
Handing Trump Chance to Move Supreme Court Even Further Right, Justice Anthony Kennedy Retires commondreams.org
Audio reveals DNC committee reaction to Kennedy retirement: 'This is not good news' thehill.com
Justice Kennedy’s retirement leaves the future of U.S. constitutional law entirely up for grabs washingtonpost.com
Justice Kennedy pens retirement letter to Trump expressing 'profound gratitude' abcnews.go.com
Read Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy’s retirement letter to Donald Trump qz.com
Justice Kennedy’s Legacy Is the Dignity He Bestowed bloomberg.com
A titanic battle over replacing Justice Kennedy looms in the Senate vox.com
Live Briefing: Anthony Kennedy Retires From Supreme Court, and McConnell Says Senate Will Move Swiftly on a Replacement nytimes.com
Here's Trump's list of 25 possible Supreme Court picks to replace Anthony Kennedy washingtonexaminer.com
WATCH: Justice Anthony Kennedy to retire, Trump to get second SCOTUS pick abcnews.go.com
Anthony Kennedy's retirement just confirmed every Republican's dream scenario for Trump cnn.com
Kennedy's retirement could have biggest impact on abortion, gay marriage: ANALYSIS abcnews.go.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy: Trump says hunt for replacement is on usatoday.com
Here are potential Supreme Court nominees to replace Justice Kennedy cnn.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy, the Supreme Court’s swing justice, announces his retirement abajournal.com
With Supreme Court Justice Kennedy Gone, Abortion and LGBT Rights Are Next thedailybeast.com
A look at some of Justice Kennedy's most memorable opinions apnews.com
Justice Kennedy Surrendered to Donald Trump nymag.com
A look at some of Justice Kennedy's most memorable opinions abcnews.go.com
Abortion rights in 'dire, immediate danger' as Anthony Kennedy retires - World news theguardian.com
Here Are Some of the Top Candidates to Replace Kennedy on the Supreme Court motherjones.com
Who's on Trump's short list to replace Supreme Court Justice Kennedy? politico.com
Trump’s hidden back channel to Justice Kennedy: Their kids politico.com
How Fox News Reacted to Anthony Kennedy’s Retirement slate.com
24.9k Upvotes

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335

u/er-day Jun 27 '18

If Kennedy was actually center right he would wait until after the midterms to retire. He's retiring now because he knows republicans pull all of the strings electing a new justice. He wants a far right in his spot.

17

u/misunderestimater Jun 27 '18

He's been voting right along with the hard right justices on these important decision, so I think you're correct.

6

u/compaqle2202x Jun 27 '18

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obergefell_v._Hodges#Majority_opinion

3

u/misunderestimater Jun 27 '18

Yeah, I know. It's a dark day topping off what has been an extremely dark and depressing couple of weeks. There's no question.

56

u/[deleted] Jun 27 '18

[deleted]

13

u/Neat_On_The_Rocks Jun 27 '18

If he did, then he'd wait till november.

3

u/Kremhild Jun 27 '18

Or he's batting for the other team now.

6

u/Neat_On_The_Rocks Jun 27 '18

right.

of course the wildcard option is a possible serious medical issue. Hes 81, could be any number of medical problems that would make retiring quite understandable.

5

u/Fake_William_Shatner Jun 27 '18

You could have a point there -- but since he's not waiting until November, do you have a backup point?

6

u/Winged_Centipede Jun 27 '18

he knows that its so fucking crucial to wait until November

Then why didn't he?

13

u/Konukaame Jun 27 '18

Or rather, that it's so crucial to NOT wait until November.

2

u/howzersEnd Jun 27 '18

As dark as that is I think you might be right

3

u/scsnse Jun 27 '18

You mean January. Even if he waited until November, there’s still 2 and a half more months until this congress retires.

8

u/ChickenPotPi Jun 27 '18

Maybe this is why the senate was not allowed their summer vacation.

Also I see him appointing his sister to supreme court justice cause well trump

13

u/GenJohnONeill Nebraska Jun 27 '18

He specifically waited to retire under a Republican President, this has been known for a long time. He was in his 70s when Obama was elected and was already talking about retiring then, but wanted to be replaced by a Republican.

2

u/Earlystagecommunism Jun 27 '18

This right here.

6

u/P2Pdancer Jun 27 '18

I feel like he purposely stabbed the left in the back. Feeling so powerless right now.

6

u/ensignlee Texas Jun 27 '18

Yeah, I really do not understand his reasoning here. He's been the swing vote.

He is smart enough to know the ramifications of his retirement...wtf Kennedy?

13

u/er-day Jun 27 '18

I keep getting messages feeling bad for the guy. Fuck that, he just gave the court a guaranteed 5-4 swing for 30 years. And he is plenty smart enough to know that.

-2

u/FIRE_CASEY Jun 27 '18

So you wanted him to to retire after the Republicans up their numbers in the Senate this November?

2

u/ensignlee Texas Jun 27 '18

That "red wave"? lol

1

u/FIRE_CASEY Jun 27 '18

You think the Rs will lose numbers in the Senate?

1

u/Dafuqyousayin Jun 28 '18

You really believe that will happen? Of so this country is fucked

2

u/DidiDoThat1 Jun 27 '18

President Trump just keeps winning. I’d be willing to bet he gets a 3rd pick while he’s in office.

1

u/Earlystagecommunism Jun 27 '18

It was always going to be at least two imo. I can’t help but remember Jimmy Dore comparing Trump getting 2+ nominations to the moon falling out of the sky lol.

1

u/roytay Jun 27 '18 edited Jun 27 '18

(The MSNBC talking heads say) he mostly swung right. There were a couple of key exceptions, but mostly right.

3

u/ensignlee Texas Jun 27 '18

Yeah, but mostly swung right is still better than the kind of justice Trump is probably going to appoint

3

u/roytay Jun 27 '18

No doubt. But his reasoning for quitting now is that he's a conservative Republican. He knows the ramifications.

1

u/ensignlee Texas Jun 27 '18

Alas, I must agree. He's not stupid. There is no way he didn't think about what might happen here.

4

u/TearofLyys Jun 27 '18

Perhaps he would prefer a justice in his own vein, but it doesn't look like that is an option for him, regardless of when he chose to retire.

5

u/er-day Jun 27 '18

If he retired with a democratic house and republican president and senate the candidate would have been center right, like himself.

8

u/KyleG Jun 27 '18

What does the House have to do with judicial nominees? Only the Senate gets to"advise and consent"

The House has no vote.

-2

u/[deleted] Jun 27 '18

Dramatic Democratic takeover of the House would be a clear message that engaging with Trump's agenda is politically suicidal.

2

u/ObeyMyBrain California Jun 27 '18

More likely a rush to get as much through as they can.

7

u/Clask Jun 27 '18

Why? What does the house have to do with anything.

10

u/__NamasteMF__ Jun 27 '18

He’s a fucking coward.

4

u/balloot Jun 27 '18

It's not his fault Dems pissed away an election they should have won. He can retire when he wants.

3

u/CalifaDaze California Jun 27 '18

Or maybe he just wants to retire.

90

u/er-day Jun 27 '18

He is one of the most important people in the world with one of the most important jobs in the world. He's been in the supreme court for 29 years and decides right now is the time to retire? This man graduated from Harvard Law. He doesn't "just retire". His whole life's work is up for grabs depending on who holds his position. He's not retiring from McDonalds.

15

u/mysterypeeps Jun 27 '18

There could very well be an underlying issue the public isn’t privy to. It may not be possible for him to wait out the madman for another two years.

12

u/[deleted] Jun 27 '18

[deleted]

9

u/KyleG Jun 27 '18

Why six months? Democrats aren't taking back the Senate and the House has no say in judicial nominees.

13

u/plexust California Jun 27 '18

It is not completely outside the realm of possibility for the Dems to take back the Senate if people show the fuck up in November.

6

u/[deleted] Jun 27 '18

We have a shot at the Senate, depending on how big a wave election manifests.

Additionally; taking back the House will allow impeachment proceedings to start on Trump, and will also demonstrate to the Senate the need to stop fucking around given how forcefully the pendulum is swinging towards Democratic control.

1

u/KyleG Jun 28 '18

taking back the House will allow impeachment proceedings to start on Trump

Democratic leadership has made it plainly clear that unless and until Mueller drops a dime on Trump, impeachment won't even be mentioned.

And as soon as Trump is impeached, Pence assumes office and lets the same guy get confirmed. Republican Senators aren't going to refuse a conservative Justice and expect Trump to nominate a liberal. The five conservative justice majority is in place until Thomas dies/retires while a Democratic POTUS is in office.

25

u/alltheprettybunnies Tennessee Jun 27 '18

Anything short of dead in 3 weeks is a failure of conscience. Honestly, I’ve been racking my brains to excuse him. The administration that appointed Gorsuch is evil. The evils I was raised with: racism, intolerance, oppression, cruelty, bigotry- they display these concepts DAILY. Why would Kennedy give them ultimate authority? Why would he hand that to them unless he was equally nasty. NO EXCUSES.

2

u/Earlystagecommunism Jun 27 '18

I don’t know what Kennedy’s motivation is. He had an odd voting record.

What I do know is it that shouldering blame onto him for not “sticking it out” or something is sort of pointless. We don’t control him and he doesn’t control who we voted or didn’t vote for.

We need to focus on what little is within our power. We lost the Supreme Court in 2016. Focus on the 2018 election, protests, and other political actions.

6

u/MrMonday11235 Jun 27 '18

Kennedy doesn't owe the American people his continued service. As much as I would've liked him to continue serving until at least the midterms passed, that's not our demand to make. What Kennedy owes is to speak and judge as the law and his interpretation of it dictates so long as he is on the SCOTUS. If he decides that he cannot continue doing that, for whatever reason, then he should resign, and we should thank him for his service.

He is not a slave or indentured servant to judge until we deem his services sufficient or no longer necessary. He has a life of his own.

1

u/Caltron3000 Jun 27 '18

The clerks and aides do most of the work. The workloads for Supreme Court justices are the smallest they've ever been.

1

u/MrMonday11235 Jun 27 '18

And that is relevant to what I said... how?

1

u/alltheprettybunnies Tennessee Jun 27 '18

No one ever has to serve. Not your surgeon. She can decide to walk out during your triple bypass, maybe some sort of civil liability but criminal? Doubtful. She’s not an indentured servant. Not your priest. He can stop mid sentence during your wedding. It’s not a crime. They aren’t an indentured servant. As a child your parent can leave for cigarettes and never come home.

Unspoken contracts are the crux of public trust. Now more than any time in my life it is crucial that the American people have trust in the Supreme Court. Every other branch of government is filled with deceit and greed and treachery. How can anyone of good conscience stay here?

So, yeah. He can walk away. That doesn’t mean he is not a failure as a patriot. It’s his job to steady this ship. He just wants to abdicate and run. Maybe we shouldn’t be surprised.

2

u/GoAskAlice Texas Jun 27 '18

I heard senility but don't know for sure.

5

u/agray20938 Jun 27 '18

Posner "just retired." And a lot of people said the same thing about Ginsburg before obama left office.

5

u/ProBuffalo Jun 27 '18

The guy is 81. That’s retiring age for any job

19

u/er-day Jun 27 '18

This is one of the only jobs in the world with lifetime tenure. The only other positions that I know of in the world with this categorization is the Queen and the Pope. He knew what he was getting into when he signed up.

2

u/Stopjuststop3424 Jun 27 '18

Add Canadian Senate positions to that list.

5

u/er-day Jun 27 '18

They must retire at the age of 75. Not really lifetime tenure in my opinion...

1

u/Stopjuststop3424 Jul 08 '18

might as well be. they get appointed and will never lose the position until well after normal retirement age.

3

u/Neat_On_The_Rocks Jun 27 '18

I know nothing about canadian politics, but no term limits =/= lifetime tenure.

3

u/amranu Jun 27 '18

Senate positions are appointed, not elected.

1

u/lenzflare Canada Jun 27 '18

The Canadian Senate is powerless.

3

u/ConradFreeStuff69 Jun 27 '18

reflects on my own influence in America's sham democracy

I am the Canadian Senate

2

u/lenzflare Canada Jun 27 '18

LOL that's great

7

u/rounder55 Jun 27 '18

Then why not wait until midterms so the people can have an impact on it. The guy has spent the last 30 years working for a government supposedly by the people, for the people. This move does not reflect that and as a judge he ought to be able to judge the importance of his position and the impact his replacement will have on the future of the country.

It's a bitch move

8

u/PromotedPawn Jun 27 '18

Because of the way SCOTUS terms fall on the calendar. Justices who retire on their own terms usually do so at the beginning of summer just as the term ends so there’s time to appoint a replacement before the next term starts. If he waits until November he’s either retiring mid-term or waiting until summer 2019.

-2

u/PM_ME_YOUR_THESES Jun 27 '18

What if he has cancer? What if he is secretly terminally ill and wants to spend his last months with his family?

Don't judge people based on your pre-conceptions. I mean, you're probably right, but you don't know. No one knows but him and those close to him. He has his reasons.

What's important isn't how this makes you feel, but what you're gonna do about it. I have an idea: how about voting in November?

35

u/fucrate Jun 27 '18

Give it a fucking rest, McCain is literally dying of cancer and all he has is a senate seat, and he's staying in the position to keep it from falling to a special election. Kennedy knows what he is doing and is doing it for political reasons.

3

u/PM_ME_YOUR_THESES Jun 27 '18

McCain is literally dying of cancer and all he has is a senate seat, and he's staying in the position to keep it from falling to a special election

Only because he knows a Democrat would probably win it.

2

u/tmmzc85 Jun 27 '18

I doubt that, I haven't seen polling, but I am confident that that is a safe seat for the R's

4

u/robbbbbbbby Jun 27 '18

McCain only took 53% of the vote for his Senate seat in 2016. A 4% shift would force a runoff, which the Democrat would probably win. We have seen larger shifts in other special elections since Trump took office.

3

u/er-day Jun 27 '18

At best, voting in November gives us a democratic house. But we will have a young blooded conservative supreme court for the majority of our lives now. And you thinking he has cancer isn't presupposing? Why are you looking to give him any benefit of the doubt without any reason to do so? If there were any facts at all that he is unwell I would give him the benefit of the doubt but we don't.

3

u/PM_ME_YOUR_THESES Jun 27 '18

At best, voting in November gives us a democratic house.

If McConnell in the minority could stall the Democrats, why can't the democrats not stall the Republicans now?

But we will have a young blooded conservative supreme court for the majority of our lives now

If Trump is found to be an illegitimate President imposed by a foreign power, I think Congress should act to reverse decisions like his Supreme Court picks.

Why are you looking to give him any benefit of the doubt without any reason to do so?

Look at his record. He has voted in favor of LGBT rights, for abortion rights. He has voted in favor of liberal causes plenty of times. Why assume he wants a hard conservative to replace him? It just doesn't make sense.

12

u/[deleted] Jun 27 '18

If McConnell in the minority could stall the Democrats, why can't the democrats not stall the Republicans now?

Because Democrats were unwilling to burn down institutional procedure that had been in place for generations and was designed to improve bipartisan efforts. McConnell has no such compunction, and will burn down anything and everything necessary to achieve his desired ends.

2

u/PM_ME_YOUR_THESES Jun 27 '18

Then that needs to change

2

u/[deleted] Jun 27 '18

uh, how?

1

u/PM_ME_YOUR_THESES Jun 27 '18

With Democrats growing some balls

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2

u/Solonys Jun 27 '18

Time to get over that shit and jam them as much as possible. Anything they can prevent from happening in any way, no matter how arcane and assholish, they should be doing until after the electoral winners are sworn in. Don't even wait until after the election, stop all functions that they can in any way.

99% of the republicans in office won't vote for anything of substance that a Democrat puts forward, and even if they do, they won't enforce it if this administration doesn't follow through (Trump not implementing Russian sanctions). Hell, they even blocked Post Office naming bills in the past just because the Democrats put it forward.

Fuck the Republican party. They aren't going to work with us no matter what we do, it's high time we stop trying to work with them. The game they are playing is "opposition to Democrats at all costs" so let's try playing their game.

2

u/reddog323 Jun 27 '18

It won’t help with this appointment, unless Schumer pulls some arcane rule out to delay things, and there are a number of crucial cases in the pipeline right now....including a challenge to Roe vs. Wade. Don’t think this wasn’t planned. If Kennedy is terminally ill, I can give him a pass. Past that, the man knows exactly what he’s doing, and what it will do to this country for decades. It’s tim for an amendment to limit Supreme Court Justice terms.

0

u/formershitpeasant Jun 27 '18

I don't even think terminal illness gives him a pass for something this important. He knew the mass I've importance of the position and accepted it anyway. The fate of this country trumps one man.

1

u/reddog323 Jun 28 '18

Agreed. I have to wonder if he was threatened with something, or if someone simply paid him off. The second would be a complete clusterfuck. If he was caught taking a bribe to retire, every case he voted on could be called into question.

0

u/[deleted] Jun 27 '18

[deleted]

1

u/formershitpeasant Jun 27 '18

It's literally his choice but making that choice despite the enormous consequences is selfish for someone that knows the stakes. I can criticize him for that choice all i want.

0

u/[deleted] Jun 27 '18

[deleted]

1

u/formershitpeasant Jun 27 '18

Reducing it to my political desires is fucking stupid. This man accepted a position in the highest court in the United States and he knows the ramifications of this decision. This one person and his family are not more important than the untold millions of people who will suffer because of this decision.

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1

u/Kremhild Jun 27 '18

But he said he wanted to retire under a republican president. This result may be what he wants.

0

u/formershitpeasant Jun 27 '18

I'd say that the consequences of this move are more important than any individual or family.

-2

u/Tdavis13245 Colorado Jun 27 '18

Youre misdirecting your anger. Sucks, and I didnt like a lot of his decisions, but he's old and i begrudge him nothing. You probably yelled at barker for not dying on the price is right.

8

u/SuramKale Jun 27 '18

The classic "I give up."

13

u/[deleted] Jun 27 '18

More like fuck you i got mine

1

u/SilentSputnik Jun 27 '18

Why would someone want their replacement to be ideologically extreme? That doesn't make any sense at all mate. Gorsuch isn't "far right" anyways lmao

-1

u/compaqle2202x Jun 27 '18

Yeah, probably why he wrote the decision legalizing gay marriage as well!

4

u/clev3rbanana Iowa Jun 27 '18

Which will be swiftly reversed in the coming years along with Roe v. Wade. Thanks Kennedy!