In the questionnaire he filed with the Senate Judiciary Committee, Judge Stephen Breyer set forth his employment record. In the summer of 1955, when he was 17, he worked as a waiter for the San Francisco Department of Recreation. In 1958 he made a career change: He held a job as ditchdigger for Pacific Gas & Electric.
When the Senate confirms his appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court, Breyer will hold a biographical distinction unlikely ever to be challenged. He will become the richest ex-ditchdigger ever to sit on the highest bench in the land.The wealth is worrisome - not greatly worrisome, but a little worrisome. As of April 30, Breyer and his wife, Joanna, had a net worth of $6.6 million. They held positions in 40 listed securities having a value of $2.8 million.
Breyer traded actively in 1993 across a wide range of family investments.The questionnaire indicates 87 transactions during the year.
This might be no more than a day's work for a busy broker, but it suggests that Breyer's mind could not have been wholly concentrated on his work as chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit.
Breyer's investments prompted some questions from the committee, but the questioning never amounted to much. Sen. Howard Metzenbaum, D-Ohio, who cherishes his role as a pain in everyone's total anatomy, tried to make something of the judge's participation in Lloyds of London. Nothing came of it.
A couple of other ripples appeared. Committee chairman Joe Biden, D-Del., said Breyer was elitist. Consumer activist Ralph Nader made muttering noises, but Nader no longer scares anyone.
The judge's portfolio may not be a problem at all. He will want to make fail-safe arrangements to avoid any semblance of personal gain from cases coming before the high court. This can be done.
Judge Breyer apparently will not be the wealthiest member of the court. He will rank just behind Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who reported in May that she and her husband had assets of as much as $7.9 million.
Last week's committee hearings revealed nothing of special note about Judge Breyer's views on the Constitution.
Question: Will Breyer make an ideological difference on the court? Answer: Yes, but probably not much. In succeeding Justice Harry Blackmun, Breyer replaces the court's most consistently liberal jurist. He may prove slightly more conservative, and despite his background as ditchdigger, his heart won't bleed quite so freely for the common man.
Breyer is not a theorist, philosopher or stylist. His colleagues describe him as a pragmatist who can reason his way to reasonable ends. Clinton may not have named a great judge, but evidently he's named a good one.