Putting RBG loss in perspective
By Lisa Rutherford
The recent loss of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, affectionately known as RBG, was not a shock or rather should not have been. She’s been sick for some time and at 87 it was amazing she had hung in with her health challenges as long as she did. In fact, perhaps that is what’s more astounding than her death. But whether it should have been a shock or not really doesn’t matter. It has been a devastating loss because of what she meant to all progressive people in this nation: a beacon of hope for many who feel outcast.
Her diminutive stature carried much more power than one might expect when it came to influence; proving that size does not equate to strength and ability. For women, specifically, she was a model of what a woman can achieve if she puts her mind to it and has the required smarts and passion.
At this time many, including myself, are mourning the loss and many are feeling hopeless because of the loss and because of fear that her replacement will be another extreme conservative who will tip the court to the right for decades. But will that happen is the question because the past does not necessarily bear that out. I’ve been looking for a brighter future as I work through the loss of this great woman.
President Bill Clinton’s nomination of RBG and her confirmation in 1993 brought an end to a quarter-century of Democratic drought in the Supreme Court. Her confirmation was certainly a cheerful time for Democrats since ten nominations prior to that by Republican presidents had seemed to seal the fate of the court just as we are faced with a conservative majority in the court now. RBG’s confirmation was soon followed by the nomination and confirmation of Justice Stephen Breyer in 1994, another liberal.
Before that, it was a bleak time for the Democrats but some strange twists came about then which hold promise for today’s Democrats. Starting with Chief Justice Warren E. Burger in 1968, a Nixon appointment, conservative judges provided surprises. He supported Row v. Wade holding that the right to privacy prevented states from banning abortions. His court also issued liberal decisions on capital punishment and school desegregation and ruled against Nixon regarding executive privilege in the Watergate scandal.
That was followed by Justice Harry Andrew Blackmun, another Nixon appointment, who ended up being one of the most liberal justices.
It didn’t end there. Under President Ford, Justice Paul Stevens started as a conservative and ended up a liberal.
President Reagan appointed four justices. One, Justice Anthony Kennedy, became a reliable swing vote, and another, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, was a conservative, opposed by pro-life groups because of her position on a woman’s right to choose.
Justice David Souter nominated by George H.W. Bush and “expected to be” conservative voted with the liberal wing. He was eventually replaced when he retired by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, a reliable liberal.
So, all is not as it often appears. Now, I know that things have changed since the days of Nixon, Ford, and Reagan when it comes to the Republican party. Trump is evidence of that! That change can partly be explained by the earlier presidents who were not far right enough for the likes of today’s ultra-conservatives. But humans are interesting creatures and already we are seeing some decisions from Chief Justice John Roberts and lately by Justice Neil Gorsuch. Chief Justice Roberts’ vote on the ACA and Justice Gorsuch’s vote on LGBTQ protections surely were not decisions that the hard-core Republican base or President Trump found favorable.
So, all is not lost for RBG lovers of all persuasions and Democrats. Hold out hope just as RBG did throughout her several bouts with cancer and against all odds that faced this small but amazing woman. This is a time of loss but not a time to despair. It’s a time to gird your loins and move into a post-RBG future with hope and tenacity.
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