Litigation

Breyer: ?We?re not Junior League Politicians?

By Peter Hardin

Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer continues to speak publicly as he promotes his new book for general audiences, and one of his themes is eliminating the idea that judges rule under the sway of politics.

Americans “think we’re a group of junior league politicians,” he told a Wall Street Journal interviewer. “They think we decide things on the basis of politics. Or, if not politics, on the basis of what we think is good for people, rather than the Constitution. And I think that’s wrong.”

In fact, he said even when there is no agreement, “all nine of us think we’re following the same Constitution that was there in 1790,” Justice Breyer said.

He discussed similar views in a town-hall style meeting in southern California, the Los Angeles Times reported. On another point, the idea of televising oral arguments from the Supreme Court, he “noted that what happens in open court is a small part of a case and could leave the public with an incomplete view of the complex issues covered in the written submissions,” the newspaper said.

To find out what else Justice Breyer has been saying, click here for an earlier Gavel Grab post. For the latest on cameras in the Supreme Court,  click here for a Gavel Grab post today.

Full post as published by The Gavel on September 16, 2010 (boomark / email).