Liberals just lost the Supreme Court for decades to come

Alito has never publicly discussed his potential retirement, as is typical for judges. But when he was surreptitiously admitted earlier this year, many court watchers noted his wife’s hint that he might not be around much longer. “I want a Sacred Heart of Jesus flag because I have to look across the lagoon at the Pride flag for the next month,” Martha-Ann Alito said in the footagereferring to controversies about flag flying in their house and her discussions with her husband about it. “I said, ‘When you’re free of this nonsense, I’ll put it up’.”

Thomas, for his part, apparently hopes to stay on the field as long as he can. New York Times reported in 1993 that he told one of his clerks that he planned to serve on the court until 2034. When asked why that particular year, Thomas’ answer was straight to the point. “The Liberals made my life miserable for 43 years and I will make their life miserable for 43 years,” he said.

Even before Tuesday, the legal math for Democrats was bleak. The three justices Trump appointed in his first term were young by judicial standards: Justice Neil Gorsuch was 49 years old at the time of his confirmation, Brett Kavanaugh was 53, and Amy Coney Barrett was 48. All three could easily serve as Supreme Court until the 2060s, and their replacement of older justices meant that Democrats already faced a difficult path to flipping the court to the liberals within the next 10 to 15 years. That time horizon is now closer to 30 or 40 years.