Justice Kennedy Reaffirming his Presence on the Court

Posted Wednesday, June 29, 2016 by Andrew Charles Huff

Justice Anthony Kennedy clearly stepped into the opening on the Supreme Court created with the death of Antonin Scalia by showing why he always keeps watchers on their toes. The nation’s high court ended its term by once again showing the pivotal role of Justice Kennedy.

The latest docket included cases on public sector unions, voting rights, affirmative action and an abortion case loomed as well. Many court experts predicted the court was poised to take a right turn after having cleared the way for gay marriage and ruling in favor of Obamacare. The belief was the five conservative justices would come together and swing the court to the right on some of those hot-button issues. But then came the passing of Justice Scalia, creating a 4-4 split among liberal and conservative-leaning justices.

And the door was left open for Justice Kennedy.

IN a somewhat stunning move, Justice Kennedy voted for the first time in favor of an affirmative action plan in upholding the race-conscious admissions plan at the University of Texas. His majority opinion in the 4-3 case set out a road map of sorts for other schools to follow. And on the final day of the term, he then joined the four liberals in rejecting a Texas law that limited access to abortion clinics. While the senate decides whether to grant the President’s current nominee Judge Merrick Garland a hearing, Justice Kennedy could continue to be that unknown “swing vote” in more cases to come next term.