The U.S.
Supreme Court is the ultimate authority on the Constitution and the nation’s laws. But who judges the justices when they violate the public trust? It’s not a hypothetical question. In recent decisions and revelations, the current court has shown it is and corrupted by a certain ex-president trying to escape justice on . So, who ultimately judges the justices? As usual, the answer is voters. Our Supreme Court must abide by higher standards for objectivity and fairness than any other government institution. Yet public respect for the court has been . Earlier this month, a found that a big majority of Americans want
Donald Trump to stand trial before the November
election. A third said his conviction would make a difference in how they vote, but 75 percent don’t fully trust the Supreme Court to be fair and nonpartisan. Unfortunately, voters have no direct authority to restore the court’s integrity. The people’s recourse is to elect a
Congress willing to force the court to reform. The next opportunity is Nov. 5. So, what are the several ways the Roberts Court has undermined public trust? Until recently, it refused to subscribe to the ethics standards set for other members of the federal judiciary. Even after the news media found at least two members engaged in apparent conflicts of interest, the justices hesitated for months before adopting an ethics code. It turned out to be . Second, the court has abandoned the standard of judging without fear or favor. Its conservative majority has bent over backward to protect Trump from accountability for in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection. The justices even agreed to hear Trump’s that he enjoys total immunity for his alleged crimes. It delayed oral arguments until next April, . In another case, the justices decided to protect Trump by rewriting the Constitution rather than enforcing it. The 14th Amendment people from public office if they swear to support the Constitution, then aid an insurrection. It says oath-swearing insurrectionists can escape disqualification only with a two-thirds vote of the House and
Senate. The court’s conservatives gave Congress a new role, saying no insurrectionist can be sanctioned unless Congress says so, apparently on a case-by-case basis. So, a highly partisan body, rather than the Constitution, will make these decisions. Third, the justices disregard “settled laws” decided by and repeatedly affirmed by previous courts. The most egregious example was its of Roe v. Wade. Now state politicians decide whether
Women have the right to make their own reproductive decisions. The court also , reasoning, perhaps naively, that
racism is no longer a problem in the South. Fourth, the court to make unlimited anonymous monetary contributions to political campaigns. The majority reasoned unrealistically that campaign contributions don’t influence how members of Congress vote. It also stretched credulity by ruling that money is speech and corporations are people. As a result, corporations and wealthy Americans gained even more power to . So, Supreme Court reform should be a top objective for voters this year. That requires a Congress committed to the goal. In , I pointed out that Congress has the necessary powers.
Democrats (ideally joined by moderate
Republicans and independents) should promise to use them if voters give them a trifecta: control of the
White House, House, and Senate. Congress could: These and other commitments for reforming the Supreme Court should be part of the next Congress’s Contract with America.