Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg will be "back in full form" within a month, according to a top doctor. The news followed reports that the Trump administration was preparing for Ginsburg's departure following her recent surgery to remove two malignant growths from her lung.
Ginsburg, 85, has had other recent health scares, including falling and breaking three ribs in November. She battled colon cancer in 1999 and panreatic cancer in 2009.
But this was the first time her health has caused her to miss Supreme Court oral arguments.
Read more: "Take my lungs": Twitter reacts after Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg surgery
She was released from the hospital four days after surgery to remove the cancerous nodes, and has been recovering at home.
"This is completely routine," Dr. Raja Flores, chairman for the Department of Thoracic Surgery at the Mount Sinai Medical Center, told MSNBC's Rachel Maddow on Thursday night.
"But it is a big operation. It is a very difficult operation to recover from, but she did very well. She was home in four days. You can't expect her to be back this soon. She's only a couple of weeks out of surgery.
"I had an appendectomy when I was 42, and I was out of commission for a month. She's 85 and had half of her lung removed. We have to be patient. She will be back and she will be fine."
Flores, who has worked with Ginsburg's doctor, also noted that younger patients who had the same surgery went on to run marathons after their recovery. "I'm not suggesting that she's going to run a marathon. But the Notorious RBG will be back on that bench," Flores said. "The administration trying to find her replacement to me makes no sense. She'll be back in full form, I'd say within a month."
Ginsburg, who was nominated to the Supreme Court by President Bill Clinton, is one of liberal voices on the Court. If she left the Court, President Donald Trump would likely nominate a conservative to replace her.
With a Republican majority in the Senate, his choice would likely be confirmed, tilting the Court's balance even further to the right and heightening the threat to abortion rights enshrined in the landmark case of Roe v. Wade.
So far, Trump has appointed two conservatives to the Court—Justice Neil Gorsuch in 2017 and Justice Brett Kavanaugh in 2018. Kavanaugh faced a wave of opposition following allegations of sexual misconduct, and that he'd made false statements to Congress.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Shane Croucher is a Senior Editor based in London, UK. He oversees the My Turn team. He has previously overseen ... Read more
To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.
