From the poetic justice files comes this Wapo piece detailing the rather deliberate efforts underway in S.Ct. Justice David Souter’s hometown to arrange for the local municipality to seize the good jurist’s home for either a hotel, or a park project, in a most unveiled reaction to the outrageous decision reached by the Supreme Court in Kelo v. New London, to wit, that any well-connected developer can get any local government to seize any private property it wants, as long as the takee is less politically influential.
Again, I tend to consider the Kelo case a bit of anomolous for Souter, who is usually on the correct side of important cases (like Padilla or Bush v. Gore, for example.)
Well, I suspect that Souter will not lose too much sleep over efforts to nationalize his ancestral home. After all, he is probably more politically powerful than those trying to spite him. Anyway, let me recommend to y’all this Jeffrey Rosen piece pointing out what I’ve been trying to say for a while: the Supreme Court, despite what we all say (including me) ain’t all that important. The President and Congress… those matter. But the Supreme Court? Who knows what it will do… indeed, even future Justice Roberts may well go with his soon to be best buddy Souter on… abortion. That’s just it… who knows?
Best stop screwing around making a collateral side show the only issue a once major party concerned itself with… Of course, that’s just me. See y’all at the opening of Hotel Souter…
tdog
The implications of Souter in the case, however, are interesting. Consider this: if there is a case in the pipeline that could require further refinement by the court of the eminent domain decision reached earlier, if Souter is involved in such a case himself he would have to recuse. Otherwise, he would be interpreting the law on a case in which he is involved in a different jurisdiction. The conflict of interest would be crystal clear. And note that there have been a lot of eminent domain cases of late. Had one in my town just last year.