WASHINGTON U.S. Republican presidential contender Donald Trump called on Wednesday for the resignation of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, describing her as mentally unfit after she lambasted him in a series of media interviews.
"Justice Ginsburg of the U.S. Supreme Court has embarrassed all by making very dumb political statements about me," Trump said in a Twitter post. "Her mind is shot - resign!"
The New York billionaire chided Ginsburg, 83, for criticizing him this week and expressing concern for the country's future if he is elected in November.
Trump said it was inappropriate for Supreme Court justices to weigh in on political campaigns. He told the New York Times on Tuesday that he thought it was a disgrace to the court and that Ginsburg should apologize to her colleagues on the bench.
Trump was not alone in the rebuke. In an editorial on Wednesday, the New York Times urged Ginsburg to uphold the court's tradition of silence in political campaigns.
"Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg needs to drop the political punditry and the name-calling," the editorial said.
The Times said there was no legal requirement that Supreme Court justices keep silent on political campaigns, but it expressed concern that Ginsburg would jeopardize her own commitment to impartiality.
Ginsburg was not immediately available for comment on Trump's remarks and the editorial.
In a CNN interview posted on Tuesday, Ginsburg called Trump "a faker."
"He has no consistency about him," she said. "He says whatever comes into his head at the moment. He really has an ego.
"How has he gotten away with not turning over his tax returns? The press seems to be very gentle with him on that."
Earlier, Ginsburg joked about moving to New Zealand if Trump wins the White House.
"I can't imagine what this place would be - I can't imagine what the country would be — with Donald Trump as our president,” she said in a New York Times interview published on Sunday.
Trump adviser Sam Clovis told CNN on Wednesday that Ginsburg's comments were out of character for Supreme Court justices but should not have been surprising.
"She has always been a firebrand," he said.
(This story has been refiled to correct spelling of Ginsburg in penultimate paragraph)
(Reporting by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn and Frances Kerry)
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