“The last thing the Supreme Court needs: Another judge”
The title of this post is the title of a new op-ed in the Chicago Tribune from Professor Timothy P. O’Neill. As regular readers know, this op-ed echoes some points I have been making whether SCOTUS appointments become a topic of discussion and speculation. Here is a snippet from the op-ed:
For the first time in American history, every justice now on the court has come from exactly the same job: judge on the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Chief Justice John Roberts has approvingly noted this fact, calling the court a “judges’ court” that has “a more legal perspective and less of a policy perspective.”
But Roberts neglects to mention several other “firsts.”
For the first time in American history not a single justice has had any legislative experience. Not one has ever been elected to Congress, a state legislature or a city council.
For the first time in American history not a single justice has ever held—or even run for—any elective office at any level of government.
For the first time in American history eight of the nine justices attended one of two law schools: Harvard or Yale.
This narrow background is unprecedented. We now have eight justices who can sing the Harvard or Yale fight songs, but not one who has ever shaken hands with a voter, introduced a bill in a legislature or decided whether to veto a piece of legislation.
Some related old and new posts on judicial appointments: