On retirement

"mkbruin, Atlas VP" (mkbruin) 06/28/2018 at 08:05 • Filed to: None

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Wishing Justice Kennedy long and joyful retirement. He's certainly earned it. He was a fantastic jurist. Godspeed Justice Kennedy!

pip bip - choose Corrour > mkbruin, Atlas VP 06/28/2018 at 08:13

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piker, should have stayed in the job till he died.

Spanfeller is a twat > mkbruin, Atlas VP 06/28/2018 at 08:37

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I used to eefend the US system of having life appointments, but I’m starting to see the relevance of Mexico’s 15 year rule 

Chuckles > mkbruin, Atlas VP 06/28/2018 at 08:49

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He’s free to retire whenever he wants, but for someone to retire now, it’s clear that he took a look around and said “you know what? I don’t care what happens after I’m gone. I got mine.”

Maybe I'm just bitter because I know I won't have the luxury of retiring at the young age of 82.

Spanfeller is a twat > Chuckles 06/28/2018 at 09:03

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He was a very odd judge, he was a tie breaker and very tied to his own vision. But I think it’s a bit arrogant to expect him to fix the country.

In the end 35-ish percent of Americans didn’t vote, and that’s where the pointy fingers should go. 

RacingShark > mkbruin, Atlas VP 06/28/2018 at 09:08

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eh, he voted in citizens united, which will just take power away from the people.  I appreciate more that he wasn’t fixed to one side. Bringing your case to the supreme court should be a fair, and I think a lot of judges have made their decision before it even gets to them.

RacingShark > Spanfeller is a twat 06/28/2018 at 09:13

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15 years makes a lot of sense. I’m tired of everything being controlled by people who are 70+. I’m sure there are a lot of 70+ yr olds who are as quick and smart as they were at 50. There are a lot more that are not. Judges shouldn’t be holding out until they can get a favorable replacement. Also, judges should be confirmed by a 2/3rds majority. N eeding only 51 votes ensures that the team in power gets to put in a guy (lets be honest, there’s no chance Kennedy’s replacement will be anything other than an old white guy) that is the extreme end of their values.

someassemblyrequired > mkbruin, Atlas VP 06/28/2018 at 09:14

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DC rumor mill says this is important for context, and that there may be a Mueller tie-in (see also Paul Ryan’s and Jason Chaffetz’s sudden retirements):

One back channel is the fact that Kennedy’s son, Justin, knows Donald Trump Jr. through New York real estate circles. Another is through Kennedy’s other son, Gregory, and Trump’s Silicon Valley adviser Peter Thiel. They went to Stanford Law School together and served as president of the Federalist Society in back-to-back years, according to school records. More recently, Kennedy’s firm, Disruptive Technology Advisers, has worked with Thiel’s company Palantir Technologies.

Source

duurtlang > RacingShark 06/28/2018 at 09:16

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It’s strange that everything in the US has to be so polarized, so binary. Why does a judge, who is appointed for life, need to have very hard opinions on political or social issues? He/she’s a judge, they should leave their personal opinions at the door and interpret the law the best and most objective way  they can.

If they keep the weird current system in place I think the US would be better off with requiring at least a 2/3 majority for appointing a judge. That way you need a compromise and you’ll end up with someone who’s at least somewhat centrist, regardless of who’s in power at that specific time.

Spanfeller is a twat > RacingShark 06/28/2018 at 09:27

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I’m not againts old judges as much as judges who cannot represent the current morality and legality of the country

fintail > someassemblyrequired 06/28/2018 at 09:40

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But Mueller is just in a witch hunt, this is a nothingburger :)

nermal > mkbruin, Atlas VP 06/28/2018 at 09:43

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The great thing about this is that there are potentially 2 more that could retire before Trump’s presidency is over!

Assuming 20+ years of service for 4 SCOTUS judges appointed by Trump, that’s a lot of long term influence.

someassemblyrequired > fintail 06/28/2018 at 09:48

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Too many coincidences with a lot of this stuff. He could have just retired, but it may be an Abe Fortas situation . If half the stuff I hear here is true (and it has been more than that so far) the average Fox News viewer is gonna have their mind blown. Oh wait... yeah her emails, I forgot, that’s way more important .

fintail > mkbruin, Atlas VP 06/28/2018 at 09:49

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What are the odds he choses someone else who can be marginally centrist and provide a swing vote?

What are the odds Roe vs Wade is gone within half a decade?

fintail > someassemblyrequired 06/28/2018 at 09:55

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The timing is quite suspect, so many distractions lately. I wonder what Mueller is up to, and what Putin is up to. Kennedy appears to be at least a moderate voice, and I strongly think his replacement will be much more to the right.

The average Fox News viewer wouldn’t fathom reality if it fell out of the sky and started wiggling on their face.

Anything involved with vampire Thiel will be sketchy at best.

someassemblyrequired > fintail 06/28/2018 at 10:01

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I’m not as panicked about the replacement as a lot on the left, as the Supreme Court’s size is not fixed by the constitution, so a Dem House/Senate/President could increase the number if the court takes a hard turn to the right.

But yeah, the timing is odd, and Trump often throws chaff to distract from his missteps (see family separation) .

If Peter Thiel spends the rest of his life in jail, the BS of the last two years will be totally worth it. .

fintail > someassemblyrequired 06/28/2018 at 10:13

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I’d love to see the Fox/Breitbart base react if the court was increased in size to water down prior nominations. It’s going to be an interesting next couple of election cycles. The US has already thrown off its leader of the free world title, and these elections could cement it permanently.

We’ve been going from one crisis to another for months, while a certain investigation keeps going.  What a coincidence.

So many people tied to this regime deserve jail or more.

someassemblyrequired > fintail 06/28/2018 at 10:18

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It’s always darkest before the dawn. 

haveacarortwoorthree2 > Chuckles 06/28/2018 at 10:27

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First, he could have made millions upon millions of dollars in private practice — to say he’s retiring because “I got mine” is just wrong. In fact, the last article I saw on the wealth of the justices places his net worth at less than a million dollars. That’s less than most big law firm partners make in a single year, and that’s what Kennedy has upon retirement. By way of further comparison, Justice Sotomayor received a $2m advance for her book.

And frankly, he may have decided to retire right now because neither party is clearly in charge. The thought being that with a slim 51 to 49 (or 47 + 2) majority, and with a couple of the 51 being less conservative, Trump might have to select a more moderate choice while still leaning toward the conservative side (i.e., like Kennedy himself). Plus he’s 82 and has been on the bench for 40+ years, 30 on the Supreme Court.  

haveacarortwoorthree2 > someassemblyrequired 06/28/2018 at 10:35

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Can you imagine what would happen if Congress tried to amend a statute that has existed since 1869 just to add more justices to the Court? There is no way that would fly. Heck, even FDR couldn’t get that done. 

deprecated account > mkbruin, Atlas VP 06/28/2018 at 10:35

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Gowdy for SCOTUS???

Milky > mkbruin, Atlas VP 06/28/2018 at 10:38

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It’s not merely that lifestyles are being politicized, but that politics is becoming a lifestyle.

https://www.nationalreview.com/2018/06/when-partisan-identity-like-religion-bad-for-america/

fintail > someassemblyrequired 06/28/2018 at 10:56

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We can hope this is USA 1775 and not Germany 1935.  Sadly, I believe the odds of the latter are greater than zero.

someassemblyrequired > haveacarortwoorthree2 06/28/2018 at 10:59

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Meh, all the rules are out the window now. Playing by convention got the dems in this mess.

Spanfeller is a twat > fintail 06/28/2018 at 11:02

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Aborton is not ruled according to Roe v. Wade, it’s ruled according to Gonzales v. Carhart which is why we’re seeing states passing more and more restrictive laws regarding abortion.

fintail > Spanfeller is a twat 06/28/2018 at 11:06

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And on that note, even if the regressive attack RvW, states can act on their own. It will be an even greater proof of which states are regressive hellholes, and which ones are in the free world.

someassemblyrequired > fintail 06/28/2018 at 11:07

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Technically by Trump’s logic on Crimea, large portions of Washington and Maine are actually the 11th and 12th Canadian provinces, so you got that going for you.

Spanfeller is a twat > fintail 06/28/2018 at 11:11

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Well, yeah.. but the federal government must have a role in insuring human rights and the basic principles of a country. Like, sure. I’d be way better off if the Mexican federal government worked more like the European Union and states worked more like countries in the EU, but that means that people that might live, what? 500km from me might have significant issues that are unacceptable if we pretend to live in a civil society under the same flag.

I believe on the separation of federal and state powers, but there are some laws that are just too important to say “to each it’s own.” the fact that gay marriage and abortion were not legally binding at a federal level in the US until recently is a complete and total aberration to the principles of the constitution, specially those that establish the US as a country with freedom of religion and a government that is supposedly neutral towards religion.


Because freedom of religion also means freedom from religion, something that they should explain to that fucktard Colorado baker.

fintail > Spanfeller is a twat 06/28/2018 at 11:18

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I think we already have those issues. I (and most in my region) have more in common in terms of economics, political views, and local demographics with someone in the Vancouver metro area than someone in Alabama. I think some generations from now, some of the old border identities will be tested, or there will be some new cross-border migrations.

Maybe mkbruin will be right, and these hot button issues won’t be tested.  Push it too far, and there will be real revolt.

Your third brief statement about freedom from a thing is very true. That’s freedom we need. You’re free to believe what you want, and I am free from having it forced upon policy that influences my life.

fintail > someassemblyrequired 06/28/2018 at 11:19

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Reminds me of the talk about “Cascadia”, bluexit, etc.   In time, if demographics become more polarized, I could see either shifting borders, or significant migrations of people to places that are more in line with their own line of thought.

Spanfeller is a twat > fintail 06/28/2018 at 11:34

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Yeah, but it’s different to disagree on economics than it is on social issues. If the US suddenly decides it’s a christian nation, sure, that’s fine, make gay marriage illegal and abortion a felony. But also why not start taxing the church eh? Lets see how they feel if that were to be enacted.

fintail > Spanfeller is a twat 06/28/2018 at 12:51

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There’d be crying in the streets - no matter that much of that group is effectively run like a business, especially the “mega” varieties.

The growing secular social stance here is as divisive as economics. And by many demographic/HDI measures, one can see which areas do it better:

https://scorecard.prosperitynow.org/

fintail > someassemblyrequired 06/29/2018 at 12:21

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Looks like Splinter is running with it:

https://splinternews.com/this-is-fine-right-1827234014

It really looks like there’s more th an coincidence in this retirement. Of course, the base will call the worst corruption in modern American history, if not historically, a nothingburger.

someassemblyrequired > fintail 06/29/2018 at 13:58

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What’s weird is he had hired his clerks for next year. Also apparently there is a ruling on mortgage backed securities that could be viewed to have benefited his son in 2010 that he didn’t recuse himself from.

There have been a few mentions in the Financial Times the last few days, which had a lot of the details and some long form reporting mid-2016 about Sater and some of Trump’s Azerbaijan deals (this stuff is just coming to light in the media here in the US).

fintail > someassemblyrequired 06/29/2018 at 15:05

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Makes it seem kind of sudden eh? Almost like the heat is on from somewhere. Mueller?

My thoughts and prayers are towards all of this being exposed in the manner of Watergate.  I suspect there’s a metric crapton of malfeasance that even the most pessimistic of us couldn’t imagine.

someassemblyrequired > fintail 06/29/2018 at 15:32

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Yeah hopefully this gets resolved soon, and hopefully he’s just retiring because he wants to buy a Winnebago and cruise the west. But given what’s happened since Jan 2017 that we know about, I wouldn’t be surprised if he was “retold” by Mueller or it was a planned distraction.