In an interview that aired Thursday, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said that the United States is not going through the “best of times” but added that she still has “hope” for the country’s future.
“I am optimistic in the long run. There was a great man who once said that the true symbol of the United States is not the bald eagle. It is the pendulum. And when the pendulum swings too far in one direction it will go back,” she told BBC’s “Newsnight.”
“I would say we are not experiencing the best of times, but there’s hope in seeing how the public is reacting to it,” Ginsburg said when asked about the state of the U.S. today. “The Women’s March ― I’ve never seen such a demonstration, both the numbers and the rapport of the people in that crowd. There was no violence; it was orderly. So yes, we are not experiencing the best of times, but there is reason to hope that that we will see a better day.”
Ginsburg also signaled in the interview that she has no plans to retire any time soon.
“At my age you have to take it year by year. I know I’m OK this year. What will be next year?” she replied when asked how much longer she will sit on the Supreme Court. “I’m hopeful however, because my most senior colleague ― the one who most recently retired, Justice John Paul Stevens ― stepped down at age 90. So I have a way to go.”
Watch the interview via the BBC:
