The “Unique” Views of Justice Thomas | “Leaky” Pipeline For Female Supreme Court Advocates | “The Left” And Its Opposition To Kavanaugh
July 15, 2019
A CONSERVATIVE BEACON
|“On the U.S. Supreme Court, where nine justices often disagree but try to meld their views into majority decisions, one justice stands out.” Nina Totenberg with NPR reports on the “unique” views of JUSTICE CLARENCE THOMAS, the high court’s longest serving justice. She notes, “As he has in the past, Thomas this term has charted a course that is, at times, breathtakingly different from those of his colleagues. While he wrote eight majority opinions for the court this term, it was his 18 dissenting and concurring opinions that raised eyebrows.”
LET'S HEAR IT FOR THE BOYS
|Jake Holland with Bloomberg Law reports on the ways in which attorneys can become Supreme Court advocates, but he notes there’s a “leaky” pipeline for women who want to appear before SCOTUS. “Women have made gains in Supreme Court clerkships, which are considered an important stepping stone for further appellate work, including advocacy before the high court. But the solicitor general’s office, a more direct path to Supreme Court work in the private sector, has taken a hit, with fewer women assistants in the office this year than in years past.”
WHAT'S IN A NAME
|Democratic presidential candidate SENATOR AMY KLOBUCHAR told The NPR Politics Podcast that she plans to nominate a full slate of justices on Day 1 of her presidency — but she isn’t going to name names just yet. She told NPR, “I think that you interview people, you make decisions — you can’t do that as a candidate. You can’t vet them like you should. As a candidate you don’t have the FBI.”
TOP-ED
|“When the Senate confirmed BRETT KAVANAUGH 50-48, it was a victory over American politics’ most vicious smear campaign in decades. Or was it? The left failed to keep Judge Kavanaugh off the Supreme Court, but it did irrevocable damage to his reputation and to America’s institutions—for which it has paid no price.” That’s Mollie Hemingway and Carrie Severino opining in The Wall Street Journal about “the left’s” opposition to Brett Kavanaugh and “the media’s malpractice” which they say damaged America’s democratic institutions.
SAME FIGHT, DIFFERENT BATTLE
|Just after SCOTUS decided federal courts can’t intervene in cases involving partisan gerrymandering, a case in North Carolina could serve as a blueprint for legal challenges in other states to take shape regarding the issue. Jeff Tiberii with NPR writes, “During the 2018 midterm election, Republican state legislative candidates received less than half the overall vote. However, in the state Senate they won 58% of the seats (29 out of 50), and in the House they hold 54% of the seats (65 out of 120). As for North Carolina’s congressional districts, Democrats won 50% of the vote and 23% of the seats. If the voting rights groups that have challenged North Carolina’s state legislative districts succeed, the maps could be ordered redrawn in time for the 2020 election in a state that is closely divided politically.”