The time for the Equal Rights Amendment has passed, and even Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg acknowledges it.

Noting that she would like to see a similar amendment introduced now, Ginsburg said this week that the window for the ERA has already closed.

“I would like to see a new beginning,” she said at an event at Georgetown University Law Center. “I’d like it to start over. There’s too much controversy about latecomers, Virginia long after the deadline passed, plus a number of states have withdrawn their ratification. So, if you count a latecomer on the plus side, how can you disregard states that have said, ‘We’ve changed our minds?’”

The ERA, passed by Congress in 1972, reads in part: “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex.” It may sound bipartisan, but conservatives have long feared that it could be used to promote liberal policies that aren't simply pro-woman.

There will still be a debate over whether an equal rights amendment would put us on par with the rest of the world, as Ginsburg suggests, or whether equality is already protected under the 14th Amendment. But what is not debatable, according to Ginsburg, is that the time for the old amendment has already passed.

This is good news for conservatives, many of whom view the ERA not as a solidification of equality but the gateway to a progressive wish list, including pro-abortion and pro-transgender legislation.

In January, Virginia finally became the 38th state to ratify the amendment, and supporters of the ERA hope to see it become part of the Constitution. Three Democratic attorneys general are even suing the U.S. government to make that happen. But, as Ginsburg notes, other states have since withdrawn their support of the ERA, and the deadline for ratification was almost four decades ago. The losing legal battle just isn't worth it.

When the lawsuit fails to pan out, liberals will likely reintroduce an amendment similar to the ERA. But for now, conservatives can appreciate a win, one recognized even by Ruth Bader Ginsburg.