[July 15, 2016] My original blog entry today was going to be about how leaders seem to take themselves too seriously. Whether it’s narcissistic behavior or simply going too far in promoting themselves, leaders can cross the line with their words and behavior. A recent dust up over the comments by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is a classic case of a senior person ignoring a basic rule of leaders; it’s not about you.
It is common for non-political senior leaders to be under a code of conduct that specifies little or no political activity. I know that in the military a Department of Defense Directive is very specific about not openly engaging in or publically promoting a political candidate while in uniform. Canon 5 of the Code of Conduct for U.S. Judges says in part that judges should not “(2) make speeches for a political organization or candidate, or publicly endorse or oppose a candidate for public office …”
Justice Ginsburg made repeated attacks on presidential candidate Donald Trump and then declined to retreat from her criticism.1 Yesterday, she relented and made a mild apology by saying “On reflection, my recent remarks in response to press inquiries were ill-advised and I regret making them.”2 Observers of the political scene note that her statements were unprecedented and unethical.
There are, of course, problems with her “apology” because she did not apologize to Trump and she seems to put the blame on the press for asking her questions. Her initial remarks and the apology is an example of poor leadership in action and all leaders should look at her as proof that no one is above being criticized for violating commonsense codes of conduct. Note that she only made her apology after being severely criticized across the political spectrum.
Her rank partisanship being on display in the New York Times and on CNN tells us that she is untrustworthy to be a Supreme Court Justice. Being a member of such a distinguished court means being impartial and interpreting law as it relates to the U.S. Constitution. She made this incident about her and not the court. Furthermore, her comments have made it open for all to see that she will not be impartial. This may affect her in being a voting member on cases involving politics.
Sadly for her, those statements actually benefited Donald Trump and made her look small in character; the opposite of her intent. Be careful what you say … leaders!3 She would be well advised to remember, as a leader, that it’s not about you.
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- http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/12/politics/justice-ruth-bader-ginsburg-donald-trump-faker/index.html
- Her full statement was, “On reflection, my recent remarks in response to press inquiries were ill-advised and I regret making them. Judges should avoid commenting on a candidate for public office. In the future I will be more circumspect.” http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/14/politics/ruth-bader-ginsburg-i-regret-making-donald-trump-remarks/index.html
- https://www.theleadermaker.com/be-careful-what-you-say-leaders/