Souter retiring from high court; Obama mum

WASHINGTON — The news that Justice David Souter is planning to retire set off spirited speculation about a successor Friday, but the man who will appoint the new justice was staying out of it. "No Supreme Court questions," President Barack Obama told reporters.

At the end of a Cabinet meeting about swine flu, reporters tried to shout questions about Souter, bringing Obama's four-word rejection.

Souter's departure is unlikely to change the court's conservative-liberal split. Obama's first pick for the high court is likely to be a liberal-leaning nominee, much like Souter.

The White House has been told that Souter will retire in June, when the court finishes its work for the summer, a person familiar with his plans said Thursday night. The retirement is likely to take effect only once a successor is confirmed.

The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak for Souter.

Souter had no comment Thursday night, a Supreme Court spokeswoman said.

The vacancy could lead to another woman on the bench to join Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, currently the court's only female justice.

At 69, Souter is much younger than either Ginsburg, 76, or Justice John Paul Stevens, 89, the other two liberal justices whose names have been mentioned as possible retirees. Yet those justices have given no indication they intend to retire soon and Ginsburg said she plans to serve into her 80s, despite her recent surgery for pancreatic cancer.

In Philadelphia, Sen. Arlen Specter said he would like to see more ethnic and gender diversity on the high court. "I think that, given the proportion of women in our society, that one out of nine is under-represented," said Specter, a recent convert to the Democratic Party. "The court could use some diversity along a number of lines," he added, mentioning African-Americans and Hispanics.

Souter, a regular jogger, is thought to be in excellent health.

Interest groups immediately began gearing up.

"Obama's own record and rhetoric make clear that he will seek left-wing judicial activists who will indulge their passions, not justices who will make their rulings with dispassion," said Ed Whelan, president of the conservative Ethics and Public Policy Center.