The United States Supreme Court is the highest court in the country, and the decisions it makes have a tremendous impact on the country’s laws and how we interpret the Constitution. Historically, the Supreme Court has ruled on landmark cases that have shaped the country, such as Brown v. Board of Education, Roe v. Wade, and Citizens United v. FEC. More recently, the count ruled to overturn Roe v. Wade, which removed the constitutional right for people to have an abortion. This is just one of many decisions that this body has made and goes to show the far-reaching impact that the Supreme Court is capable of having on everyday people.
While justices are meant to be impartial and objectively interpret laws, each of the nine justices are known to be more liberal or more conservative justices, something that is primarily based on the U.S. president who nominated them for a seat on the court. Currently, we have an extremely conservative leaning court, with “Six of the nine justices were appointed by Republican presidents”. The six Republican-appointed justices and their ages are Clarence Thomas (75), Samuel Alito (73), John Roberts (69), Neil Gorsuch (56), Brett Kavanaugh (58), and Amy Coney Barrett (52). The three youngest justices on this list were all appointed by President Trump, meaning that in one term as president he appointed one third of the current supreme court justices. The three Democrat-appointed justices and their ages are Sonia Sotomayor (69), Elena Kagan (63), and Ketanji Brown Jackson (53).
One of the biggest impacts that the Republican win in the 2024 presidential election will have is their ability to maintain a strong conservative majority on the supreme court. The conservative justices already outnumber the liberal ones 6-3, and a Trump presidency means that for the next 4 years any justices who pass away or step down will be conservative. This also means that conservative justices have the opportunity to step down, knowing that they will be replaced by another conservative justice. President-elect Trump will also likely pick young candidates who will be on the bench for a long time. In theory, if the three oldest justices (Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, and John Roberts) were all to retire during Donald Trump’s 4 year term, the Supreme Court would have a 6-3 conservative majority, with all of the conservative justices being under the age of 60. A slate of judges that are this young sets up conservatives to maintain control of the supreme court for decades to come. Given that Justice Thomas and Justice Alito will both be over 75 by the end of Trump’s second term, it is very likely they take this opportunity to retire.
The two party system in the United States allows two sides of each argument to be heard. And while one side having ‘control’ of all three branches of government is not optimal, for two of those branches this is temporary. The house and senate can change every two years, and the president can change every four years. However, a Supreme Court appointment can last a lifetime, meaning that changes in the court are not as routine. We are likely going to see the Supreme Court to remain a conservative leaning entity for many years to come.
A Justice, is required to be honest with the law. Politics are not to be a factor when deciding any issue. Imagine an NFL referee, slanting his calls, based on team prejudice,…… would that last long with the fan base? I think 🤔 no.
The only thing skewed is this article. When Roe v Wade was first decided, it also effected a nation of people who did NOT agree with the then liberal court decision. That’s okay, we don’t talk about the ramification of that liberal decision or that if the liberals don’t get the decisions they want….it’s time to change the number of justices on the court until they are able to get the desired outcome.
Why bother to print this repetitive dogma.
Not conservative. in Thomas and Alito case!
They are bought and sold