Justice Souter, We Hardly Knew You

The death of Justice Souter, who was most famous for stepping down as a Supreme Court justice at the height of his powers, is a moment to think about the virtues that make for a wise jurist. A Republican from New Hampshire, he was nominated as the 105th justice by the first President Bush. Souter served on the court for 19 years. During the span, he moved in his jurisprudence to the left from the right. He clung, though, to his sober sensibility.“No More Souters” was the byword for conservatives who felt burned by Souter’s tendency to concur with the liberals on the Rehnquist and Roberts Courts. When Souter retired at a mere 69 years old — the age at which Pope Leo XIV is beginning his reign — President Obama appointed Justice Sonia Sotomayor, a liberal who was called a firebrand. That phrase never fit Souter, whom the high court reports died as he appeared to live, “peacefully.” Souter was graduated from Harvard Law and was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford. He first served as a prosecutor in New Hampshire, then as a judge there before being elevated to the First United States Appeals Circuit. That, though, was only a cup of coffee, so to speak, as the highest court soon came beckoning. His nomination was opposed by only Democrats, who painted him as to the right of Attila the Hun.That mistake is common in both parties, these columns have often remarked. It’s just hard to predict how a justice will come out. Souter voted with the court’s left in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, which sustained the “essential holding” of Roe v. Wade — that there is a constitutional right to an abortion. A later Supreme Court failed to find the aforementioned right. Souter voted with the court’s minority in Bush v. Gore.The president who appointed Souter did not appear to have regretted his choice. Bush marveled to the New York Times in 1994 — four years after Souter was confirmed — at “how wrong” Souter’s critics were and predicted: “This quiet decent man will serve for years on the Court, and he will serve with honor always and with brilliance.” Justice Roberts in a statement on Friday lauded his “uncommon wisdom and kindness.”After stepping down from the court, Souter repaired to New Hampshire, where he would occasionally ride circuit. One of our correspondents met him on several occasions at Harvard’s Lowell House, where he graced the Senior Common Room and met with students. Times scribe Linda Greenhouse once reckoned that to focus on Souter’s “eccentricities” is “to miss the essence of a man who in fact is perfectly suited to his job.” Souter, in his commencement address at Harvard in 2010, reflected that “the Constitution is a pantheon of values.” He ventured that a judge lives in a “state of trust” with his own judgement, the parchment, and the American people. Souter never broke that trust, an example to savor at a juncture where attacks on the courts from both right and left have become de rigueur. To riff on the old resolution — “more Souters,” if there are any.

Justice Souter, We Hardly Knew You

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