Here's Why John Roberts Was Rumored To Retire
There had to be a reason for reporting a false tip. Radar isn't the type of place to just make stuff up about someone who isn't blonde, 22, and in a movie five years ago. That John Roberts resignation rumor finally has an explanation.
Above The Law talked with two Georgetown law students, who "blames" it all on professor Peter Tague, who was trying to make a law-based point at the start of his class. And I'll tell you what, Tague knocked one out of the park with this case study:
Our criminal justice professor started our 9 am lecture with the news that roberts will be resigning tomorrow for health reasons — that he could not handle the administrative burdens of the job. He would not say how he knows — but halfway through our lecture on the credibility and reliability of informants he revealed that the Roberts rumor was made up to show how someone you ordinarily think is credible and reliable (ie a law professor) can disseminate inaccurate information.
So one of the students e-mailed Radar with this lead, and they ran with it at 9:10 a.m. "Halfway through" was about 9:30 a.m., and minutes later the retraction ran. Wow.
This story was initially irritating, but now it's fascinating as hell. A professor teaches his students about how you can't trust everything you hear, and then it manifests itself by the educator purposely spreading a false rumor. Perhaps he could moonlight as a j-school professor. (Or a celebrity blogger.)
The only way this entire story could be put on its head is if Above the Law is pulling our leg just as much as Radar. But notice how we want to believe this one, because it makes way more sense than a squeaky clean Chief Justice stepping down after only five years.
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