Ruth Bader Ginsburg makes 1st public appearance since December surgery

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg slipped into a performance of Notorious RBG in Song Monday night in Washington, D.C., making her first public appearance since undergoing cancer surgery on Dec. 21.

Soprano Patrice Michaels, Ginsburg's daughter-in-law, created the show and also performs in it, and did not tell the audience that Ginsburg was there; she sat in the back, and most people didn't notice her until she left, The Washington Post reports. Doctors discovered two cancerous nodules in the 85-year-old's left lung in late December, and she underwent a pulmonary lobectomy. It usually takes about six to eight weeks to recover from this surgery, and Ginsburg's son, James, said his mother is already walking a mile every day and is once again working with her trainer. Last month, the court gave an update on her condition, announcing that there is "no evidence of remaining disease, and no further treatment is required."

The Supreme Court's next public session is Feb. 19, and while Ginsburg did miss oral arguments last month, she's been reading briefs and transcripts from home and will be able to vote on upcoming cases. Don't expect to see her at the State of the Union, though — it's not mandatory for justices to attend the event, and she hasn't been to any of Trump's previous addresses.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up