Impact of current appointments
to the U.S. Supreme Court
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Overview:
The nine justices of the U.S. Supreme Court are deeply divided in their
rulings on religious,
cultural, and moral cases. Many, perhaps most, decisions in these areas are
by a split vote of 5 to 4. The division in the court mirrors the gulf seen in
the rest of American
culture, religion, and government. Any change in the delicate ratio of conservative to liberal justices would have a profound effect on the decisions
of the Supreme Court, and on the future of the
U.S. law and culture.
This concern became widespread with Justice Sandra Day O'Connor's
announcement on 2005-JUL-01 that she was resigning from the Court. She is
generally regarded as a moderate conservative and a swing voter. It was further
intensified by the sudden degeneration of the health of Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist during 2005-AUG, and his death on 2005-SEP-04.
On 2005-JUL-19, President Bush nominated John G. Roberts, a strict
constructionist -- originally to replace Justice O'Connor. With the death of
Chief Justice Rehnquist, Roberts was nominated to be the Chief Justice. Their
methods of interpreting constitutional and other law are similar. Thus the
balance of the Supreme Court was probably not altered much.
On 2005-OCT-03, President Bush nominated Harriet Miers to be Justice
O'Connor's replacement. This proved to be a controversial nomination. She has
never been a judge. She has never argued a case before the Supreme Court. She
was originally a liberal and became conservative. Some
have suggested that she attained her current position as White House Counsel as
a result of the spoils system; she is a political appointee. She is a
fundamentalist Christian. According to Wikipedia: "In 1993, when the
American Bar Association opted to take a stance in favor of
abortion rights, Miers fought to
have the members of the ABA take a full vote on the issue." 1 Yet, in the same year, she delivered a
speech in which she said that government should not intrude into moral topics
and that women should be free to decide whether to have an abortion. She was born in 1945; if her nomination
had been confirmed, she could have remained a member of the Supreme Court for two decades or
more. Due to massive opposition by religious and social conservatives, she
withdrew as a nominee.
If Miers' appointment had been confirmed by the Senate, her selection might
have radically altered the philosophical makeup of the Court, perhaps for many
decades to come. Many past decisions relating to the principles of:
However, history has shown that many Justices of the Supreme Court who have
had a conservative orientation prior to being appointed to the court have become
more liberal while serving on the court.
Justice O'Connor has decided to remain active on the Court until her
replacement is installed.
