The US Supreme Court and How it Works
Description
Over the past century, the U.S. Supreme Court has become a major influence on the lives of those who fall within its reach. This program explains how the Court came to be a powerful force in modern society, how its members are chosen, and how it operates. The audience will be encouraged to use familiar examples of historical and contemporary debates over social policy to participate in a discussion of this peculiarly "anti–democratic" institution.Essay
As early as the 1830's, Alexis De Tocqueville observed," no other nation ever constituted so powerful a judiciary as the Americans... without which the Constitution would be a dead letter." He further observed that all great political and social issues found their way to the Supreme Court, an observation echoed approvingly by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1904. What neither De Tocqueville nor President Roosevelt noted was the constant political challenge to the power of the court in a democratic society.Modern controversies over the power of the Supreme Court and the conduct of justices are nothing new. Rather, from the 1790's to this day, history records the periodic rise and fall of the current of dissatisfaction with the Court. In 1955, on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the birth of our most prominent chief justice, John Marshall, Chief Justice Earl Warren observed that Marshall's efforts could not "perpetuate either stability or freedom [for the nation]. Every generation must earn those things for itself. Our problems in this regard are as pressing as they were in the days of John Marshall, and call for the same devotion to constitutional principles."
The program is aimed at (1) helping this generation understand the history of controversy over the Court, and (2) promoting understanding of how the Court does it work. The focus of the presentation is on the Court's institutional operating principles and its structure. Key among those operating principles are the scope of the Court's power, the requirements for an independent judiciary and the consequences of those key provisions. In terms of structure, the presentation looks to the appointment and confirmation process in both historical and contemporary aspects, control over cases that come to the Court, and the processes by which cases are decided and opinions published.
Some historical examples of controversies and events, from the distant as well as recent past, in which the Court has been central are explored to highlight the material presented. Those examples are chosen, where possible, to link to contemporary issues that are or likely will be before the Court.
The program is largely informational and relies heavily on a power point presentation to convey the information in an economical package. The heart of the matter is the question and answer period with the audience. The questions open the way to exploring the underlying reasons for the institutional principles and the Court's method of operation.
