News that Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer would retire sent shockwaves through the political world on Wednesday — earlier, evidently, than Breyer had hoped.
Multiple outlets reported Wednesday that Breyer planned to announce his retirement, major news that signaled President Biden would be able to put forward his first nominee to the Supreme Court. But hours after the news was widely reported, Breyer had still not confirmed it. Fox News legal correspondent Shannon Bream reports that Breyer's announcement "wasn't planned for today" and he was surprised and unhappy the news was revealed early.
"Justice Breyer was not planning to announce his retirement today," Bream reported on Fox News, adding, "I'm told that he is 'upset,' that the way that this is being handled was not the timeline that he had planned."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
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.
Bream went on to say that Breyer reportedly "felt this was pushed before he was ready to make it official." She later followed up on Twitter to clarify that Breyer did decide "on his own to retire" and that it would be "better to characterize him as surprised by events today than 'upset'" after someone "jumped the gun" on the announcement.
Breyer is planning to stay on at the Supreme Court until the end of its term, NBC News reported, and CNN reports the formal announcement is now expected on Thursday. Asked for comment on the news, Biden declined to weigh in until it was official. "Every justice has the right and opportunity to decide what he or she is going to do and announce it on their own," Biden said. "There has been no announcement from Justice Breyer. Let him make whatever statement he's going to make, and I'll be happy to talk about it later."
-
What to know before turning to AI for financial advicethe explainer It can help you crunch the numbers — but it might also pocket your data
-
Book reviews: 'The Headache: The Science of a Most Confounding Affliction—and a Search for Relief' and 'Tonight in Jungleland: The Making of Born to Run'Feature The search for a headache cure and revisiting Springsteen's 'Born to Run' album on its 50th anniversary
-
Keith McNally' 6 favorite books that have ambitious charactersFeature The London-born restaurateur recommends works by Leo Tolstoy, John le Carré, and more
-
Israeli double strike on Gaza hospital kills 20Speed Read The dead include five journalists who worked for The Associated Press, Reuters and Al Jazeera
-
China is silently expanding its influence in American citiesUnder the Radar New York City and San Francisco, among others, have reportedly been targeted
-
Kyiv marks independence as Russia downplays peaceSpeed Read President Vladimir Putin has no plans to meet with Zelenskyy for peace talks pushed by President Donald Trump
-
Trump halts Gaza visas as Israelis protest warSpeed Read Laura Loomer voiced her concerns over injured Palestinian kids being brought to the US for treatment and a potential 'Islamic invasion'
-
Russia tries Ukraine land grab before Trump summitSpeed Read The incursion may be part of Putin's efforts to boost his bargaining position
-
US, China extend trade war truce for 90 daysSpeed Read The triple-digit tariff threat is postponed for another three months
-
Europe counters Putin ahead of Trump summitSpeed Read President Trump will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska this week for Ukraine peace talks
-
Israeli security cabinet OKs Gaza City takeoverSpeed Read Netanyahu approved a proposal for Israeli Defense Forces to take over the largest population center in the Gaza Strip
