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Podcast: Commonwealth Club of California Podcast
Episode: Justice Anthony Kennedy: Life, Law, and Liberty
Description: When President Reagan nominated Anthony Kennedy to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1988, few could have expected that he would not only serve for 30 years but would also author landmark opinions on such contested issues in American society as abortion, gay rights, and free speech. At the ideological center of an increasingly divided court, Kennedy became the swing vote on many of the Roberts Court’s 5–4 decisions following the retirement of Sandra Day O’Connor. He said his principles never wavered; “The cases swing, I don’t.”
That role earned him the monicker “The Decider” by Time magazine. He is t...