Justice Stevens Announces Retirement

Much to no surprise to anyone who follows the SCOTUS on a regular basis, Supreme Court Associate Justice John Paul Stevens, the court's oldest member and leader of its liberal bloc, said Friday he is retiring, giving President Obama his second high court opening to fill.  Stevens said he will step down when the court finishes its work for the summer in late June or early July.

Although Obama will obviously replace Stevens with another Liberal, this is still a good news item for Conservatives.  Stevens was close to Justice Kennedy and swayed him frequently to the wrong side (left side) of a number of decisions.  We are all hopeful that Justice Kennedy will begin to show some moderate, and even right-leaning, behaviors in his decisionmaking.