Le juge John Paul Stevens, pilier progressiste de la Cour suprême, a annoncé aujourd'hui son intention de se retirer à la fin de juin, donnant à Barack Obama une nouvelle occasion de changer la composition de la plus haute instance américaine. L'hebdomadaire The New Yorker a publié récemment cet excellent portrait sur Stevens, qui sera bientôt nonagénaire. Le magistrat a récemment exprimé son inquiétude face à l'activisme des juges conservateurs de la Cour suprême dans sa dissidence de l'arrêt levant les limites au financement des campagnes électorales nationales par les entreprises. Je cite un extrait dans le texte du reportage du New Yorker à ce sujet :
Stevens charged that the way the majority had handled the case was even worse than the legal outcome. "There were principled, narrower paths that a Court that was serious about judicial restraint could have taken," he wrote. "Essentially, five justices were unhappy with the limited nature of the case before us, so they changed the case to give themselves an opportunity to change the law." He added, referring to the Court, "The path it has taken to reach its outcome will, I fear, do damage to this institution." It suggested that, after thirty-five years on the Supreme Court, John Paul Stevens was about to walk away from a place he no longer recognized.
(Photo AP)