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News Reports
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Editor's Choice: Scroll below for our monthly blend of mainstream and alternative news and view in January, 2022Note: Excerpts are from the authors' words except for subheads and occasional "Editor's notes" such as this.
Jan. 27
Top Headlines
Washington Post, With Breyer’s retirement, the fight in a 50-50 deadlocked Senate begins- New York Times, Justice Breyer to Retire From Supreme Court, Adam Liptak
- Washington Post, Breyer’s retirement renews focus on the Black women who could replace him
- Washington Post, As it weighs action in Ukraine, Russia showcases its new military prowess
- New York Times, U.S. Economy Grew at Fastest Rate in Decades in 2021,
- Washington Post, More than half of Virginia school districts are defying governor’s mask-optional order
Pro-Trump Coup Attempt, Election Rights, Probes
- Washington Post, Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes ordered to remain jailed pending trial on Jan. 6 seditious conspiracy charge
U.S. Medi, News
- Washington Post, YouTube permanently bans Fox News host Dan Bongino for posting covid misinformation
- Washington Post, Bannon was deplatformed. Now an obscure media mogul keeps him on air
Virus Victims, Responses
- Washington Post, Conspiracy theorists, banned on major social networks, spread message on newsletters, podcasts
Washington Post, Live Updates: Even as U.S. cases drop, global vaccine inequity could prolong pandemic, experts warn- New York Times, Covid Live Updates: Vaccination Gap Could Let Another Dangerous Variant Emerge, Experts Say
- Washington Post, Spotify pulls Neil Young’s music after his ultimatum against Joe Rogan and vaccine misinformation
- Worldometer, World & U.S. Coronavirus Case Totals: U.S. Deaths: 898,680
- Washington Post, 210.9 milliion in U.S. fully vaccinated
More On U.S. Supreme Court- New York Times, Senate Democrats Plan to Move Quickly on Successor to Justice Breyer
- Washington Post, Breyer’s legacy: A centrist pragmatist and defender of the court’s reputation, Ann E. Marimow
- Washington Post, Opinion: This is not how the Supreme Court is supposed to work, Jennifer Rubin
- Washington Post, Opinion: Breyer’s act of listening will pave the way to a healthier democracy, Neal Katyal
- Washington Post, Retropolis, The Past, Rediscovered: Ginni Thomas is not the first Supreme Court spouse to imperil a justice, James D. Robenalt
World News, Human Rights, Disasters
Washington Post, Opinion: A pope complicit in sex crime coverups bids moral authority goodbye, David Von Drehle
U.S. Elections, Governance, Economy
- New York Times, E.P.A. Chief Vows to ‘Do Better’ to Protect Poor Communities
- Washington Post, Biden administration cancels mining leases near Minnesota wilderness, in reversal of Trump-era decision
Washington Post, Melania Trump auctioned off her hat, and became the latest victim of the cryptocurrency crash- Washington Post, Crypto collapse erases more than $1 trillion in wealth, forcing a reckoning for everyday investors
- Washington Post, Rep. Jim Cooper won’t seek reelection, accuses GOP of ‘dismembering’ his Nashville district
More On U.S. Crime, Courts
- Washington Post, A co-worker invited him to a rural cabin. He was killed hours later
- Washington Post, Many want policing to change, but these self-proclaimed experts tell officers they’re just fine
Top Stories
Washington Post, With Breyer’s retirement, the fight in a 50-50 deadlocked Senate begins, Michael Scherer and Seung Min Kim, Jan. 27, 2022 (print ed.). Justice Stephen G. Breyer’s planned retirement set up a new election-year challenge as the deadlocked 50-50 Senate confronts a heated Supreme Court confirmation fight focused on some of the most contentious issues in the nation’s ongoing cultural divide.The news Wednesday came as a relief for liberal activists, who have worried that Democrats would lose control of the Senate before Breyer left the court, and a much-needed shot of confidence to Democratic leaders, who view the politics of the high court this year as a bright spot in an otherwise gloomy election season. President Biden has promised to nominate the first Black woman to the high court, a prospect his party hopes will excite his core supporters by delivering on a campaign promise, keeping the politics of abortion in the headlines and reminding Democrats of the importance of holding on to Senate control.
“Watching the previous administration and Mitch McConnell stacking the courts with individuals who would overturn Roe v. Wade, that is not lost on Nevadans,” said Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), who is running for reelection in one of the most closely contested Senate races this fall. “People are going to be paying attention this year and next year. This is such an important, galvanizing issue in my state and across the country.”
New York Times, Justice Breyer to Retire From Supreme Court, Adam Liptak, right, Jan. 27, 2022 (print ed.). Justice Stephen G. Breyer, the senior member of the 
Supreme Court’s three-member liberal wing, will retire, two people familiar with the decision said, providing President Biden a chance to make good on his campaign pledge to name a Black woman to the court.Mr. Biden is expected to formally announce the retirement at the White House on Thursday, according to one person familiar with the planning for the event.
Justice Breyer, 83, the oldest member of the court, was appointed in 1994 by President Bill Clinton. After the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in 2020 and the appointment of Justice Amy Coney Barrett by President Donald J. Trump, he became the subject of an energetic campaign by liberals who wanted him to step down to ensure that Mr. Biden could name his successor while Democrats control the Senate.
With conservatives now in full control of the court, replacing Justice Breyer, left, with another liberal would not change its ideological balance or affect its rightward trajectory in cases on abortion, gun rights, religion and affirmative action.But Democrats, who control the Senate now by the narrowest of margins, may have to act quickly if they want to ensure that the court does not become even more conservative. If they lose even a single seat in the midterm elections, the balance of power in the chamber would flip, making it much more difficult for Mr. Biden to win confirmation for his nominee.
Justice Breyer’s opinions have been those of a moderate liberal, marked by deference to experts, the ad hoc balancing of competing interests and alertness to fundamental fairness. His goal, he said, was to reinforce democracy and to supply workable legal principles for a sprawling and diverse nation.
He has been more likely to vote against criminal defendants than other liberal justices. On the other hand, as the years progressed, he has grown increasingly hostile to the death penalty.
He played a starring role in the court’s last term, writing majority opinions rejecting a challenge to the Affordable Care Act and protecting the free speech rights of a high school student.
In an interview in August, Justice Breyer said he was struggling with the question of when to step down.
“There are many things that go into a retirement decision,” he said.
He recalled approvingly something Justice Antonin Scalia had told him.
“He said, ‘I don’t want somebody appointed who will just reverse everything I’ve done for the last 25 years,’” Justice Breyer recalled. “That will inevitably be in the psychology” of his decision, he said.
“I don’t think I’m going to stay there till I die — hope not,” he said.
Over the years, Justice Breyer bristled at the accusation that judges act politically. “My experience of more than 30 years as a judge has shown me that, once men and women take the judicial oath, they take the oath to heart,” he said in April in a lecture at Harvard Law School. “They are loyal to the rule of law, not to the political party that helped to secure their appointment.”
On the bench, his demeanor was professorial, and his rambling questions, often studded with colorful hypotheticals, could be charming or exasperating. But they demonstrated a lively curiosity and an open mind.
If Mr. Biden succeeds in winning confirmation for his nominee to replace Justice Breyer, that justice is very likely to serve for decades.
Washington Post, Breyer’s retirement renews focus on the Black women who could replace him, Seung Min Kim and Ann E. Marimow, Jan. 27, 2022 (print ed.). The expected retirement of Justice Stephen G. Breyer this year abruptly puts a renewed spotlight on a small circle of Black female jurists who are positioned to be chosen as President Biden’s first pick to the Supreme Court, potentially marking a milestone in the country’s history.That shortlist, which could grow, is topped by Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, who was confirmed last year to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit as one of Biden’s first judicial nominees. Brown is a favorite of the Democrats’ liberal base, in part because of her history as a former public defender, an unusual background for a Supreme Court justice.
Another strong candidate is Leondra Kruger, a California Supreme Court justice who has previously rebuffed offers from the White House to take a job in the administration.
And a confirmation hearing slated for next week will put the spotlight on yet another Black woman who is being catapulted into the vacancy discussion: J. Michelle Childs, a federal judge and a favorite of House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn (D-S.C.). Childs seized the ...
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