Patterico's Pontifications

1/27/2022

Will the Supreme Court Hear the Harvard Affirmative Action Case This Term?

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 8:29 am



And will Justice Breyer’s retirement, which is being officially announced today, affect the analysis? Consider:

  • Despite conventional wisdom, I believe there is still a chance the case could be heard this term. (Correct me if I am wrong about this, but don’t cite the conventional wisdom.)
  • Chief Justice Roberts is strongly against racial preferences.
  • Justice Breyer’s seat is about to be filled with an openly affirmative action pick. We don’t yet know who it will be, but we know it will be a black woman because Biden promised that to Jim Clyburn in return for an endorsement before the South Carolina primary.
  • Why would Chief Justice Roberts want a clear affirmative action pick sitting on this case? Even though Breyer would vote the same way, the optics — and the media focus on the inevitable dissent from the newly appointed affirmative action pick — might be something Roberts wants to avoid.

We’ll see. It’s a longshot, but if it happens, I’ll remind you of this post. If conventional wisdom is right, this post never happened.

11 Responses to “Will the Supreme Court Hear the Harvard Affirmative Action Case This Term?”

  1. I hope so. The original Hopwood plaintiff deserves her (terribly delayed) justice.

    DRJ (03cb91)

  2. But Justice Robert’s isn’t a crusader. If there is pressure to hear the case this term, it seems to me it will come from other conservative justices.

    DRJ (03cb91)

  3. They already decided to hear it. But it’s past the point of scheduling it for this term:

    https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/24/us/politics/supreme-court-affirmative-action-harvard-unc.html

    If the Supreme Court follows its usual practices, it will hear arguments in its next term, which starts in October. A decision is not likely until the spring or summer of 2023.

    Sammy Finkelman (c49738)

  4. I really would like someone on the Court to opine about the wisdom of ethnic quotas for nominees to the Court. Something about creating the appearance of political representation.

    Thomas’s well-known distaste for the presumptions that accompany affirmative action (e.g. all minorities are assumed to have been given a preference) would suggest that he could make the stink, but I think that Roberts would be a better choice.

    Kevin M (38e250)

  5. Personally, believe Roberts is the only sane man alive working in Washington.

    DCSCA (f4c5e5)

  6. I would love to see a broad decision, ordering all racial and gender preferences dismantles “with all deliberate speed.”

    Kevin M (38e250)

  7. *dismantled.

    Kevin M (38e250)

  8. affirmative action came about in the late 1960’s when the blacks were torching a city a week. Newark one week detroit the next week. In phoenix smoke could be seen in south phoenix and people wondered what it was as newspaper and tv wouldn’t report what was happening. Affirmative action: it was thought if black men were given jobs in the building they were less likely to burn them down. Affirmitive action at collages like harvard and yale started much earlier 1900/1910 to keep jews from taking places away from the sons of the anglo-saxon aristocracy.

    asset (41df35)

  9. DRJ’s comment at number 2 is spot on

    OT – the Dominion voting machines were hacked – Federal Judge has been suppressing the report, being pressured to release it. https://www.yahoo.com/news/judge-won-t-budge-voting-204105603.html

    EPWJ (0fbe92)

  10. Who did Roberts blow to become leader of the bench?

    mg (8cbc69)

  11. @9 BS Lie about dominion

    Time123 (9f42ee)


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