GOODBYE TO GINSBURG
The body of Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died of cancer last week at 87, returned to the Supreme Court for the final time on Wednesday as family, friends, more than 100 former law clerks and colleagues on the high court gathered for one last goodbye.
After the brief ceremony, Ginsburg’s casket was placed at the front portico of the court for two days of public viewing. On Friday, she will become the first woman to lie in state.
Ginsburg’s death ignited a partisan battle over the high court vacancy. President Donald Trump vowed to announce his nominee at 5 p.m. Saturday.
WASHINGTON – Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg returned to the Supreme Court for the final time Wednesday under circumstances she and her legions of liberal allies and admirers hoped would never happen.
Even as President Donald Trump readied a potential replacement for the late justice, who died Friday of cancer, Ginsburg’s family, close friends, more than 100 former law clerks and colleagues on the high court gathered for a final goodbye.
The flag-draped casket of the 87year-old justice was carried up the stairs to the Supreme Court’s Great Hall, just outside the courtroom – its entrance draped in black – where she served for 27 years. Her clerks, wearing black masks to guard against the coronavirus pandemic, stood socially distanced and in silence.
“To be born into a world that does not see you, that does not believe in your potential, that does not give you a path for opportunity or a clear path for education, and despite this to be able to see beyond the world you are in, to imagine that something can be different – that is the job of a prophet,” said Rabbi Lauren Holtzblatt of Adas Israel Congregation in Washington, D.C. Her husband, Ari, is a former Ginsburg law clerk.
“And it is the rare prophet who not only imagines a new world but also makes that new world a reality in her lifetime. This was the brilliance and vision of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.”
Chief Justice John Roberts, the other speaker, said Ginsburg’s life “was one of the many versions of the American dream.” The daughter of a bookkeeper, she rose to the highest court in the land, writing 483 majority opinions, concurrences and dissents that “will steer the court for decades.”
Ginsburg dreamed of becoming an opera virtuoso, Roberts said, “but she became a rock star instead” – a reference to the justice’s emergence late in life as cultural icon “Notorious RBG.”
“She found her stage, right behind me in our courtroom,” Roberts said. Her voice was soft, he noted, “but when she spoke, people listened.”
After the ceremony, Ginsburg’s casket was placed at the front portico for two days of public viewing.
Many who traveled from throughout the nation waited more than 90 minutes to pass by the casket. The White House announced that Trump will pay his respects Thursday.
Then Ginsburg’s body will be moved across the street to the U.S. Capitol, where on Friday she will become the first woman to lie in state since the honor initially was bestowed on Henry Clay in 1852.
A private interment service will be held next week at Arlington National Cemetery, where Ginsburg will join her late husband, Martin, who died in 2010.
Hundreds of people gathered in the morning to pay their respects to the late justice.
Ginsburg’s death ignited a partisan battle over the high court vacancy. Trump has refrained from naming a nominee until after most of Ginsburg’s ceremonies are completed, but he has made no secret of his intent to act quickly with the Nov. 3 election approaching, vowing to announce his nominee at 5 p.m. Saturday.