HILLARY CLINTON: SUPREME COURT DOESN'T FIT MY PERSONALITY.

by Frank Marafiote
5/3/2010

A few weeks ago when the rumors began flying that Hillary might be considered as a replacement for Justice Paul Stevens on the Supreme Court, I wrote here that she would never accept such a position.

Here's how I phrased it --

"Although all the positive reasons for seeing Hillary on the the Supreme Court are valid in my opinion, such a position does not fit into the lifelong paradigm of Hillary’s activist history. Sitting on the Court would push her into the darkness where she would no longer be the outspoken, out-front advocate that she has been her entire life. Hillary is not too old for the Supreme Court. But she is too valuable a player in our political life to be stashed away in a black robe writing legal opinions, and she knows it."

Yesterday on Meet the Press David Gregory asked the Secretary whether she would consider sitting on the Supreme Court:

Secretary Clinton: "I do not and have never wanted to be a judge, ever. I mean, that has never been anything that I even let cross my mind, because it’s just not my personality."

That was exactly my point, and I think that people who really know Hillary Clinton understand how out of character a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court would be for her. In other words, it's just not her personality.

Here's a transcript of the conversation with David Gregory:

QUESTION: Before you go, a question about whether you think it’s realistic that you will stay on as Secretary of State for the balance of the first term.

SECRETARY CLINTON: (Laughter.) Well, I intend to. Yeah, I intend to.

QUESTION: You do intend to?

SECRETARY CLINTON: Yeah. But I mean, people have been asking me this. And in the interest of full disclosure, it is an exhausting job. But I enjoy it. I have a great time doing it. I feel like we’re making a difference around the world, that I’m a big believer in setting goals, having a vision of where we’re trying to get, but then trying to translate that into what we do today and what we do tomorrow. And we’ve made a lot of progress. We face incredibly difficult problems.

QUESTION: So you think you’ll stay for the whole first term?

SECRETARY CLINTON: Well, I think so. I think so. I mean, look, ask me next month and the month after that, but that certainly is my intention.

QUESTION: And yet you don’t care to be on the Supreme Court?

SECRETARY CLINTON: Oh, never. I mean, I’m glad you (inaudible).

QUESTION: You’re a lawyer with all that background.

SECRETARY CLINTON: I am – I do not and have never wanted to be a judge, ever. I mean, that has never been anything that I even let cross my mind, because it’s just not my personality.