Speaking at the Stanford University Law School on Saturday, Justice Breyer reportedly said about his vote in Bush v. Gore: “I had to ask myself: Would I vote the same way if the names were reversed? I said ‘yes.’ But I’ll never know for sure — because people are great self-kidders — if I reached the truthful answer.” In other words, Justices are people too. Most judges and justice, in Breyer’s words, “by and large try to find the answer. They come to different conclusions, but they try.” In other words, judges and justices operating in good faith can reach contrary conclusions in any close case. Just something worth remembering before during this year’s (inevitable? already begun) election litigation — and when partisans make charges of judicial partiality.
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