So I guess that means we should throw out every decision in which liberal justices over 50 helped deliver a liberal win?
Via Free Beacon:
CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin had a novel argument Tuesday for why Supreme Court nominations have become stiffer political battles in recent years.
Former U.S. Acting Solicitor General Neal Katyal said the confirmation fight for President Donald Trump’s nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh is a “big deal” because he will be able to serve for decades if confirmed. After Katyal named some of the expansive rulings from retiring Justice Anthony Kennedy, Toobin said the current norm defies how the Founding Fathers envisioned Court nominations.
“When the Constitution was written in the late 18th century, people were expected to die in their 50s,” Toobin said. “The Framers never contemplated that these terms would regularly go to 30-plus years as they do now.”
Life expectancy was significantly shorter in the 18th century, largely due to those who died when they were young. However, many adults lived well past their 50s, including all the presidents of the Founding generation. President George Washington lived to be 67, John Adams to be 90, Thomas Jefferson to be 83, James Madison to be 85, and James Monroe to be 73.