RUTH BADER GINSBURG, Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, has died at the age of 87. Above, she is pictured at the announcement of her appointment in 1993 by President Bill Clinton (Shutterstock).

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court and a liberal icon, has died at the age of 87.

CNN and the Associated Press are reporting that the court announced her passing at her home Friday evening. She had been battling metastatic pancreatic cancer. Her death leaves a vacancy on the high court that could end up tipping the balance there in a more conservative direction.

The court has had five conservative and four liberal justices, although Chief Justice John Roberts has sometimes sided with the Democratic-appointed justices on key issues, including saving the Affordable Care Act, known as “Obamacare.”

Ginsburg, who was appointed to the court by President Bill Clinton in 1993, has been a staunch advocate for liberal causes. She became the most prominent member of the court’s liberal wing, earning the nickname the “Notorious R.B.G.”

As she fought cancer for the third time, she expressed her desire to stay on the court as long as she was able. Unless a replacement is selected and seated before Nov. 3, a Joe Biden victory could allow the Democrats a chance to replace her with a liberal, while a win by President Donald Trump would give the conservatives a six to three edge at the highest judicial level.

Other news: Unwanted surgery, TikTok targeted

The Associated Press is reporting that a gynecologist at the Irwin Detention Center for detained immigrant women performed unwanted surgeries –including hysterectomies – on women there. • The popular TikTok and WeChat apps from China will be banned from American app stores starting Sunday and blocked from U.S. internet services, the U.S. Commerce Department announced. National security and data privacy concerns were cited. • President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden are both campaigning today (Friday) in Minnesota, a long-reliable Democratic stronghold now considered a “swing state.” Trump almost won the Gopher State in 2016. Recent polls show Biden leading by 8 to 16 percent.

Alas, we will still have some haze

We’re not quite done with the haze, although there has been daily improvement. The National Weather Service forecast for West Orange County calls for hazy conditions Saturday with a daytime high of 89 and an overnight low of 63. Sunday looks sunnier with a daytime high of 82, an overnight low of 62.

A rough night for Denver fans

• Lakers 126, Denver Nuggets 114. Led by 37 points from Anthony Davis, the Los Angeles Lakers won the first game of the NBA Western Conference finals. Kent Caldwell-Pope scored 18 and LeBron James 15. The Nuggets, led by Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic – who each scored 21 points – made the score respectable in the fourth quarter after LA built a 24-point lead after over quarters. The teams will meet again on Sunday at 4:30 p.m.
• Dodgers 15, Colorado Rockies 6: Three players went deep for LA as the Dodgers crushed the Rockies in Denver Friday night. With the score 4-3 in the second, the visitors blew the game open with five runs in the fifth, two in the sixth and four more in the seventh. Mookie Betts hit his 16th homer of the season, Cody Bellinger his 11th and Gavin Lux his third as the team improved its record to 37-15, good for first place in the National League West.
• Angels 6, Texas Rangers 2: Albert Pujols hit two home runs to pass Willie Mays for fifth on the all-time home run list. He now has 612 career homers. Pujols went 3-for-5 overall. Taylor Ward had two hits for the Halos and drove in a run. The win went to starting pitcher Jaime Barria (1-0) who worked 6.1 innings, giving up six hits and two earned runs. He struck out eight batters and walked none. The Angels are now 22-30 and moved to within a half-game of the third place Seattle Mariners.