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Supreme Court Justice Ginsburg Returns to the Bench
By carolinianweb on January 24, 2020 • ( 0 )
Tyra Hilliard and MaryKent Wolff
Staff Writer and News Editor
PC: Wikimedia Commons
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has returned to the Supreme Court bench after various health concerns in 2018.
The eyes of the nation have been on Ginsburg in recently, specifically since the election of President Donald Trump in 2016. The now 85-year-old was appointed to the Supreme Court by President Bill Clinton in 1993 and has risen to a figure not just in politics, but in popular culture since. Both a documentary and a movie have been released recently, as have various books and skits on Saturday Night Live.
At the end of President Barack Obama's final term, many Democrats began voicing concerns about Ginsburg's health, and her position on the Supreme Court. Many called for her to step down so that Obama could appoint a new liberal Justice, but Ginsburg refused, saying that she would remain on the Supreme Court until she felt that she could no longer mentally do the job. Since then and since the election of President Trump, Democrats have kept a careful watch on Ginsburg, concerned that any potential inability to remain on the Supreme Court would push the Supreme Court farther to the right.
On Nov. 8, 2018, news broke that Ginsburg was hospitalized after falling in her office and breaking three ribs. Ginsburg had also broken two ribs in 2012, but was able to recover without missing any work.
Soon after the public learned of Ginsburg's broken ribs, it was announced that Ginsburg also had to undergo surgery for cancer. Two nodules were removed from her left lung in late December.
Following the successful completion of surgery, Ginsburg is said to be officially cancer-free. Although she does not have any additional treatments to undergo, recovery will require her to miss oral arguments happening in the Supreme Court, to have a much-needed resting period. Further testing following Ginsburg's surgery showed the absence of cancer in the lymph nodes.
Court spokeswoman Kathleen L. Arberg said that the 85-year-old's recovery after surgery "is on track." Arberg continued by saying, "Post-surgery evaluation indicates no evidence of remaining disease, and no further treatment is required."
Not even recovery could keep the Justice from her job, as she already has a caseload for the start of the year and will be participating in the forms of briefs and transcripts, though Ginsburg did have to cancel two public events that she was meant to make an appearance at.
This is Ginsburg's third bout with cancer. Doctors believe that the chances of Ginsburg's expectancy of long-term survival is in the ballpark of about 80 percent. Her supporters are delighted by the news.
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Tags: News, rbg, supreme court