Chief Justice "Too Controversial" to Speak at College Graduation

I have a friend with ties to Butler University and I can't imagine he'll be too happy to hear this:

When John Roberts' niece graduates in May from Butler University this May, the Supreme Court chief justice may attend as a relative — but he has been deemed too controversial to take the stage as commencement speaker.

University faculty members scuttled a student-led drive to invite Roberts to speak at the May 8 ceremony, a decision that has disappointed the students and some conservatives on the Indianapolis campus.

"We try to steer clear of political divides if possible," Butler Faculty Senate President Jeanne VanTyle told the Indianapolis Star.

VanTyle says the school has made only two exceptions to its no-politicians rule in three decades: once for Democrat Evan Bayh when he was governor and last year for Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels.

"Last year, I watched half of the audience cheer and half of the audience frown," VanTyle told the Indianapolis Star. "That's not what someone's commencement ought to be."

He's the Chief Justice of the United States, not an elected politician. If the standard is going to be that no one with any particular political leanings can speak at Butler, their graduations are going to be quiet affairs.