Court Critique

Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall can be "sullen and at times overbearing," though he listens "objectively." His benchmate John Paul Stevens is a "maverick." Byron White writes in a manner that is "hard to understand." But far more irritating is the behavior of Reagan Appointee Antonin Scalia, who "asks far too many questions ((and)) takes over the case from the counsel." Even Sandra Day O'Connor, herself a dogged questioner, has become "exasperated" by Scalia.

Says who? Why the Justices' very own colleague Harry Blackmun. It was not the first time the outspoken Nixon appointee chose to ignore custom by critiquing the court. While Blackmun, 79, had some favorable remarks at a judicial conference in St. Louis, he outdid himself with sharp words about individual Justices. What especially seems to upset Blackmun, however, is the tendency of President Reagan's appointees to vote as a conservative bloc. "All the appointees of the present Administration are voting one way," he complained. "When I started, we tried to just be good judges."