RIP, RBG

“A giant.” ​“Fierce and fiery.” ​“A jurist of extraordinary talent.” ​“The embodiment of courage, grit, and grace.”

Those are just some of the words that Connecticut politicians used to describe the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Friday at the age of 87 — ushering in yet a new stage of national political tumult.

A Brooklyn native and pioneering women’s rights lawyer, Ginsburg was a cornerstone of the four-justice liberal bloc on the country’s highest court.

Linda Greenhouse, a New Haven resident, Yale Law School teacher, and long-time journalist for the New York Times, authored one of the most comprehensive and definitive assessments of Ginsburg’s life and legacy Friday night.

“Ruth Ginsburg was occasionally described as the Thurgood Marshall of the women’s rights movement by those who remembered her days as a litigator and director of the Women’s Rights Project of the American Civil Liberties Union during the 1970s,” Greenhouse wrote. ​“The analogy was based on her sense of strategy and careful selection of cases as she persuaded the all-male Supreme Court, one case at a time, to start recognizing the constitutional barrier against discrimination on the basis of sex. The young Thurgood Marshall had done much the same as the civil rights movement’s chief legal strategist in building the case against racial segregation.”

Ginsburg’s death, from complications from metatsatic pancreatic cancer, sparked press releases and social media posts from Connecticut Democratic politicians. All praised her legal career and accomplishments — and nearly all warned of the already-begun national political fight over whether or not Republican U.S. Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell should allow President Donald Trump to fill Gisburg’s vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court in a presidential election year. McConnell blocked former President Barack Obama’s appointment of Merrick Garland in 2016, arguing at the time that the Senate had to wait until after that year’s presidential election before hearing and voting on a new lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court.

Below are a few comments issued in email press releases and on social media by state and federal politicians from Connecticut in the wake of Ginsburg’s death. And click here to listen to a Friday interview with another New Haven resident, Yale Law affiliate, and New York Times writer, Emily Bazelon, about the coming political battle over Ginsburg’s replacement and about the potential implications for everything from the Affordable Care Act to abortion rights to gun control.

U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal: Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a giant. The world is a different place because of her. More than the laws she forged are the lives she touched. She was soft-spoken and slight in stature, but packed a mighty punch. She will always be a uniquely American icon – breaking barriers with courage and conviction, and letting nothing stop her from the classroom to the courtroom.

As to the appointment of Justice Ginsburg’s successor, I couldn’t improve on what Mitch McConnell said after Justice Scalia’s death: The American people must have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.

This close to the election, there is no way that the United States Senate can or should act before the voters decide.

U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy: Ruth Bader Ginsburg changed her nation for the better. Fairness and justice, especially for those with the least access to power, were her north stars. She was a pioneer for women in the law, and a cultural icon on top of it all. The people of Connecticut mourn for her tonight. The precedent Republicans set in 2016 requires the Senate to wait to consider a nominee until a new president is sworn in. Should Republicans go forward and reverse this precedent, the Senate will never, ever be the same. It will be changed forever. I pray tonight that at least a few of my Republican colleagues understand this.

Gov. Ned Lamont: Tonight, the nation mourns the unimaginable loss of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg – a fierce and fiery champion for fairness and equality for all. Shattering the glass ceiling in the legal world, Justice Ginsburg overcame adversity both in and out of the courtroom – battling gender discrimination at a time when women were rarely serving as lawyers. She also fought cancer with rigor, rarely missing any days in court. A giant inspiration and pioneer for women globally, Justice Ginsburg should not just be remembered for what she stood for but what she stood against. Our nation is greater for her tenacity, dissension, and adversity against injustice. As Justice Ginsburg put it best, ​‘there will be enough women on the court when there are nine.’

Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a crusader, a fierce fighter for women’s rights, and a firm believer in justice for all. As the second woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg was a jurist of extraordinary talent. She approached every case — no matter the complexity — with compassion, intelligence, and wisdom. And in every aspect of her life, she exemplified grace, dignity, and tenacity. She tirelessly advocated for women’s reproductive freedoms and fought against discrimination in all its forms. She was a pioneer from the beginning and a true role model until the very end.

I had the honor of knowing Justice Ginsburg since I was a child. My mother, Shirley Raissi Bysiewicz, and Justice Ginsburg were both law professors and colleagues at a time when very few women worked in the legal profession. She inspired many women, including me, to enter the legal profession. She showed the entire world that with perseverance and tenacity there is no obstacle you can’t overcome. She fought for all of us because she believed in the promise of our nation.

Let us honor her legacy by continuing her fight for freedom, equality, and civil rights. May her memory be a blessing.

Attorney General William Tong: I am raising two young women in my home, and I can only be grateful that my daughters had the opportunity to see, appreciate and learn from the example set by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. To our family, she was the embodiment of courage, grit, and grace. I met her once, and she greeted me with kindness and warmth. May we honor her by pursuing her vision of a more fair and just nation.

State Treasurer Shawn Wooden: Thank you Justice Ginsburg, the second woman to serve on SCOTUS & a pioneering advocate for women’s rights. Your dedication to equality paved the way for so many women to have a seat at the table. Your legacy will live on & continue to inspire generations to come. #NotoriousRBG