The Politicization of the Supreme Court

“Essentially, five [Conservative] justices were unhappy with the limited nature of the case before us, so they changed the case to give themselves an opportunity to change the law . . . The path [the Court] has taken to reach its outcome will, I fear, do damage to this institution.” ~ Justice John Paul Stevens on the Supreme Court’s handling of Citizens United v. FEC, from Jeffrey Toobin’s article in The New Yorker

I listened to this fantastic interview with legal analyst and lawyer Jeffrey Toobin on NPR’s Fresh Air today. Despite the title, it is less a discussion about Justice John Paul Stevens’ impending retirement than a great overview of the major changes the U.S. Supreme Court has been undergoing in recent years.

The Supreme Court is supposed to be an apolitical branch of government. It is supposed to reach decisions based on legal analysis and interpretation of law, not ideology. Unfortunately, it is undeniable that the Court has become increasingly political in both its makeup and its opinions in recent decades.

As a lawyer and an American who believes in the U.S. Constitution and the principles upon which our justice system are founded, I find this fact very depressing and extremely maddening. I try not to make broad generalizations, but I’m going to go out on a limb: if you don’t feel that way also, then you’re not paying attention. Or, perhaps, you don’t mind right-leaning opinions (see, e.g., Heller, Citizens United) because you are right-leaning yourself. But what goes around, comes around. And this kind of politicized “justice” hurts us all.

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