Last week news broke Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer was retiring. But the news didn't come from the Court or from Breyer himself, prompting anger and frustration.
A bit more clarity. I'm told Justice Breyer had firmly decided on his own to retire and that an announcement was due very soon. And while it appears someone jumped the gun on that, better to characterize him as surprised by events today than "upset".
— Shannon Bream (@ShannonBream) January 26, 2022
One day later, Breyer joined President Joe Biden at the White House to officially announce his retirement.
Stephen Breyer says the U.S. is "an experiment that's still going on," based on its Constitution and founding principles
— CBS News (@CBSNews) January 27, 2022
"My grandchildren and their children, they'll determine whether the experiment still works. And of course, I am an optimist, and I'm pretty sure it will." pic.twitter.com/Bm0qNqQ6wy
The news leaked and immediately raised questions about who revealed the decision without Breyer's permission. Now we know White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain reportedly shared the news with a number of Democratic Senators on Capitol Hill, eventually making it to the media.
"So I think it must have been Wednesday morning when I received a surprise call at 9:30 a.m. from Ron Klain, not a usual person to call me. I think the first time he's ever called me. He said the president wanted me to know that Stephen Breyer was about to announce his retirement from the court and they were telling a limited number of people and that I should keep it confidential," Sen. Dick Durbin told reporters Monday. "That’s what confidential on Capitol Hill leads to, I guess."
Meanwhile as President Joe Biden's approval rating continues to tank, Klain's future at the White House is uncertain.
