Roberts Court Disappoints O'Connor

In rare interviews, they discuss dynamics of Supreme Court shifts

(NEWSER) - When Sonia Sotomayor takes the bench for the first time next week, the Supreme Court will never be the same—as justice after justice tells C-Span in a rare interview program, each new member transforms the court's composition. John Roberts says that he looks at the bench "like people look at their families," and Clarence Thomas uses the same metaphor: "It changes the whole family. . . . You have to start all over. The chemistry is different." More»

Obama too timid on federal nominees, with big issues coming

(NEWSER) - With big issues working their way toward the Supreme Court on such vital issues as health care reform, same-sex marriage, affirmative action, and police stops of undocumented immigrants, liberals need to be on guard, writes longtime court-watcher Emily Bazelon for the New York Times . Sure, there are solid progressives, such as Obama appointees Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan. But frequent swing vote Anthony Kennedy, while he may side with liberals on occasion, has a voting record on par with Ronald Reagan. More»

Gallup finds numbers similar to Alito, Miers

(NEWSER) - Forty percent of Americans think Elena Kagan was an "excellent" or "good" choice for the Supreme Court, while 14% rate President Obama's choice of nominee "poor," according to a new Gallup poll. That puts Kagan's initial approval numbers in line with those for Bush nominees Samuel Alito and Harriet Miers, but lower than Sonia Sotomayor and John Roberts. More»

(NEWSER) - Senate Republicans locked arms against Sonia Sotomayor yesterday … or would have, if they’d bothered to stay for the Judiciary Committee’s vote. Instead, half ducked out, leaving Jeff Sessions to repeat “No by proxy,” over and over, writes Dana Milbank in the Washington Post. It was an ugly display of partisanship—though, as Orrin Hatch pointed out, Democrats started it by opposing justices Roberts and Alito. More»

(NEWSER) - The women of the Supreme Court—Sandra Day O'Connor, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and now likely Sonia Sotomayor—may come from wildly different backgrounds, but they all shared a common childhood pastime: curling up with a Nancy Drew novel. What was it about that wholesome teenage detective? wonders Mary Jo Murphy in the New York Times. The books are not exactly masterpieces of prose, but they do show an image of justice. More»