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Souter bids farewell to court

Posted by Foon Rhee, deputy national political editor June 29, 2009 02:41 PM

Low-key and a stickler for decorum to the very end, Supreme Court Justice David Souter read a short note of thanks from the bench today for a letter of tribute from his colleagues.

Souter, who is returning to his farm in Weare, N.H., after nearly two decades on the court, signed on to his last set of rulings, issued today on the high court's last day of this session.

"Your generous letter has touched me more than I can say, and I will only try to leave you
with some sense of what our common service has meant to me. You quoted the Poet, and I will, too, in words that set out the ideal of the life engaged, ' . . where love and need are one. . . .' That phrase accounts for the finest moments of my life on this Court, as we have agreed or contended with each other over those things that matter to decent people in a civil society," Souter read. "For nineteen terms, I have lived that life with you, all of us sharing our own best years with one another, working side by side as fellow servants and as friends.

"I will not sit with you at our bench again after the Court rises for the summer this time, but neither will I retire from our friendship, which has held us together despite the pull of the most passionate dissent. It has made the work lighter through all my tenure here, and for as long as I live, I will be thankful for it, and be under a very grateful obligation to each one of you."

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don't let the door hit you in the behind on your way out.

Posted by Jack Higgins June 29, 09 04:08 PM
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Good Riddance....

Of all the dumb moves George Herbert Walker Bush made as President of the United States, nominating this windbag had to be the dumbest.....

Posted by Wianno Jim June 29, 09 04:32 PM
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An extraordinary writer and man.

Posted by Jen June 29, 09 05:34 PM
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What a Waste

Posted by WB Thornton June 29, 09 07:41 PM
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As a conservative Republican American I thank you for your dedicated service to our nation. I disagreed with you on most rulings but I respect your intellect and dedication. Thank you,

Posted by Once Poor, now Rich June 29, 09 08:30 PM
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"don't let the door hit you in the behind on your way out."
Don't let the shift key hit your finger next time you attempt to type.

"Of all the dumb moves George Herbert Walker Bush made as President of the United States, nominating this windbag had to be the dumbest....."

Yeah, so much worse than the S&L crisis and the first pointless TV war in Iraq. It's amazing how there is a direct proportion between primacy of comment posting and idiocy of posted comments.

Posted by jk June 29, 09 11:31 PM
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Thank You Justice Souter for your service to our country. You are truly a kind and very decent man.

Posted by bob North Smithfield, RI June 29, 09 11:35 PM
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" Writing for liberals John Paul Stevens, Stephen G. Breyer and, on his last day on the bench, retiring Justice David H. Souter, Ginsburg said New Haven had "ample cause to believe its selection process was flawed and not justified by business necessity." "
==
And on his last day on the bench when it came to the question "Does the city of new haven have the right to throw out the test if only white firefighters passed it" justice souter voted...... (drum roll please) .. What a surprize. He voted with the liberals. ... I guess using his high powered logic, the NBA should cease and desist from employing African Americans in 95 percent of their starting rosters. Just because they play better and get more points and dribble faster, we must hire more white guys so the teams can be more diverse.

yes, goodbye justice souter. Go back to your shack in the woods and think deep thoughts.


iamjohngalt


Posted by iamjohngalt June 30, 09 12:38 AM
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Very pleased someone else remembers George HW's biggest blunder. Good one, Wianno Jim!

It's funny, Reagan also put in some middle-roaders. Many Republicans do this. They try too hard to please both sides, but ending up getting absolutely no thanks from Dems, and only myself and Wianno Jim seem to think it's silly. Silly, it's the most damaging act your own party's leader can do. The Dems are smart when it comes to their power - they use it without mercy and to its fullest. Fine. The Reps are so dumb to try to apease both sides. It never works. No matter how much the Reps will give, nobody cares. The Dems, again, hardly ever throw Reps a single bone. And the Dems have never screwed up the single most important duty the President has, which is appointing a Supreme Court Justice. I'm not a fan of Dems, but I give them credit for getting this part right. Their picks are always guaranteed far-lefters. I know Obama will pick a surefire extreme left pick to replace Souter, as he did with Ginsberg.

Posted by Joyce Hyser June 30, 09 01:17 AM
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