Former Supreme Court Justice dead at 85

David Souter, a former Supreme Court Justice who retired from the Court in 2009, has passed away.

Souter, who had been nominated to the Court by President George H.W. Bush, was 85 years old.

He’s Gone

Chief Justice John Roberts announced the death of Souter, who passed away on Thursday.

He stated, "Justice David Souter served our Court with great distinction for nearly twenty years. He brought uncommon wisdom and kindness to a lifetime of public service.

“After retiring to his beloved New Hampshire in 2009, he continued to render significant service to our branch by sitting regularly on the Court of Appeals for the First Circuit for more than a decade. He will be greatly missed.”

The Supreme Court added, "Justice Souter was appointed to the Court by President George H.W. Bush in 1990, and retired in 2009, after serving more than 19 years on the Court.”

More Moderate

Souter was a rather polarizing justice for conservatives when he was on the court, and when he chose to step down, it did not help his case.

Souter was considered a conservative when Bush nominated him, but over the years, his philosophy had him more middle if not left of center.

After Justice Clarence Thomas took his seat, Souter moved noticeably to the left, with Thomas clearly being a far-right justice.

Souter then retired after Barack Obama took office, apparently wanting a liberal justice to replace him to level the playing field on the bench. Justice Sotomayor was then placed on the Court by President Obama.

The New David Souter

Souter’s death comes at an interesting time for conservatives due to the emergence of Justice Amy Coney Barrett siding with liberal justices quite often in key cases.

Barrett, who was placed on the Court by Donald Trump, has drawn the ire of MAGA over several of her decisions, immediately drawing the comparison to Souter.

For instance, Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) has called her “disappointing.” Rogan O’Handley accused Barret of keeping “cartels in America.” Ann Coulter posted a photo of two of Barrett’s children, who were adopted from Haiti, stating, “Who could’ve seen that coming?”

I really don’t compare Barrett to Souter, as I believe she takes her cue from Justice Roberts, who had definitely leaned a bit more left since Donald Trump took office. Having said that, I think we now have the most balanced Court we have had in decades, even though conservatives have a 6-3 edge in ideology. I don’t have to agree with the Court to respect its decision, and overall, I think they are getting it right. As I have stated before, if you don’t like the Court’s ruling, you may want to look at Congress rather than the Court to legislation the agenda Trump is trying to put in place.