From the old joke about, "What do they call the guy who graduated last in his class in med school?"

Do you suppose the three Supreme Court justices appointed by Trump feel as though they carry some sort of stigma? Appointed by a former game show host. A guy who tried to prevent the peaceful transfer of power and incited insurrection and sedition. That was their ticket to the highest court in the nation?

I mean, Clarence Thomas has clearly been nursing a grievance ever since he was confirmed. I can't imagine that he feels as though his career on the court has been deeply personally rewarding to him, made his life meaningful. He got a lot of nice vacations and a Winnebago; but he just seems like such a bitter, angry guy. One who can never be happy because of his experience during confirmation.

I can't imagine Gorsuch is proud of his association with Donald Trump as the president who appointed him. Or the fact that he got the job because Mitch McConnell held it for him, denying Obama his last pick.

But yeah, he's a Justice. In some ways, the least tainted.

Kavanaugh with allegations of sexual assault and his on-air meltdown. In 20 years, who's going to remember or care? Well, he will. That whole sad, sorry, very public episode. "Can you define 'boof,' please?" That will be at least in his memory until he dies. And the memories of anyone who watched those hearings too. Keeping his calendar from his (private) high school days? Not as creepy as Amy Coney Barrett's religious affiliation with People of Praise, but still, pretty weird.

Barrett has that whole "Handmaid's Tale" vibe about her. Her tissue-thin resumé, and the fact that she just straight up lied through her teeth on Roe being "settled law" in her confirmation hearing certainly made her a typical Trump choice.

"Everything Trump touches, dies."

Becoming a Justice of the Supreme Court ought to be the highest achievement in a career in law. It should be a source of pride, and genuine personal reward. But I think for these three Justices, it's nowhere near the kind of achievement or reward it might have been, were it not for being nominated by Donald Trump.

I'm sure they and others explain it away by blaming "the left." But the fact remains that they were appointed by one of the most partisan, divisive and polarizing presidents in American history. One eager to accept partisan nominees who could be certain to tilt the court to the hard right for decades to come.

It's not just that there will forever be this metaphorical asterisk next to their names, it's the fact that they will be forever associated with Donald Trump and the chaos and corruption that surrounds him.

But, "Supreme Court Justice."

That's what we call them.

Originally posted at Nice Marmot 10:46 Tuesday, 23 April 2024