Somebody’s Calling Bush’s Shots, Marshall Says

Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall says he is unsure what to make of President Bush’s choice of David H. Souter for the high court, but he suggested in an interview broadcast Thursday that it is a politically motivated appointment dictated by a presidential aide.

Asked by interviewer Sam Donaldson on ABC’s “Primetime Live” why he thought Bush picked Souter to replace retired Justice William J. Brennan Jr., Marshall replied: “I don’t have the slightest idea. Never heard of him (Souter). I just don’t understand what he (Bush) is doing . . . . This last appointment is the epitome of what he’s been doing. I think somebody’s calling his shots.”

Marshall, 82, said that the Souter appointment might be the work of conservative White House Chief of Staff John H. Sununu, who as governor of New Hampshire put Souter on that state’s Supreme Court.

The justice, a staunchly liberal ally of Brennan on the high court, said that when Souter’s appointment was announced on television, he turned to his wife and said: “Have I ever heard of this man?”

Marshall said he then called Brennan’s home to find out whether he knew Souter. Marshall said Brennan’s wife answered the phone and said Brennan “never heard of him either.”

In the interview, Marshall also said he would vote against Bush if he runs for reelection.

“It’s said that if you can’t say something good about a dead person, don’t say it,” Marshall said of Bush. “Well, I consider him dead.”

Marshall, in the interview in his office at the Supreme Court building, said he expects to be voting in the minority a lot more because of Brennan’s departure.