Supreme Court justices say the institution must be nonpartisan — but they make it political, Ryan C. Williams writes for NBCNewsTHINK.
Ryan C. Williams, assistant professor of law at Boston College Law School
Law and politics are different things. Judges do law and politicians do politics. At least, that’s what some of the Supreme Court’s current members would like us to believe. The justices should carefully consider the types of rhetoric they employ in defending their positions and criticizing those of their colleagues — both in their written opinions and in extrajudicial statements.delivered at the University of Louisville, Justice Amy Coney Barrett pushed back against media characterizations of the court’s decision-making as politically motivated, insisting that “judicial philosophies are not the same as political parties.
Barrett’s remarks echo similar sentiments expressed in recent months by her colleague, Justice Stephen Breyer,that the court’s legitimacy depends upon the public perceiving that its decisions are based on the rule of law rather than partisan politics. While their concerns are understandable, their actions may be contributing to the very partisan perceptions they decry. And both justices seem well-positioned to do more than they currently are to address such concerns.
Barrett and Breyer are correct to observe that judicial ideology and partisan preferences are not the same thing. But the role of the president and the Senate in the
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