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COURTS MATTER
When JAC recently met with Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (CA), she made a passionate plea for the future of our nation’s courts. “Elections for the Senate are elections for the Supreme Court,” she stated urgently. Her words couldn’t be more accurate.
Whoever wins the White House will have the authority to appoint up to two new Supreme Court justices. If it is Trump, our country could see a high court dominated by young, ideologically extreme Trump-appointed judges sitting for decades. But before these justices don their robes, the Senate must confirm them. The Senate yields enormous power in determining the future of our courts and democracy as well.
We need Kamala Harris in the White House, who will nominate judges who respect the Constitution and are within the judicial mainstream. We also need a Senate that shares that same commitment rather than a desire to use judges to advance their political agenda.
Trump has already left a damaging legacy by appointing extreme judges to the Supreme Court and lower courts. These justices have changed the legal and political landscape in this country. It was the Supreme Court that said a president—Trump—would be immune from criminal acts committed in office. This dangerous ruling paves the way for the broad abuse of presidential powers.
President Joe Biden has worked to restore balance, filling many court vacancies during his term. But 28 nominations remain stalled in the Senate: five for the courts of appeals and 23 for district courts. With Congress out of session until after the election, these vacancies will unlikely be filled in time, creating an even more significant opportunity for the next president. According to an analysis by the American Constitution Society, nearly 250 judges will be eligible for semi-retirement in the next four years, potentially opening even more seats on the bench.
Over the past four years, Trump’s judges have ruled on pivotal cases, from voting rights and free speech to the Second Amendment. The overturning of Roe v. Wade by this conservative majority has triggered abortion bans across the country, jeopardizing women's health and lives.
SCOTUS ruling on mifepristone, the abortion pill, may have kept it available—for now—but our rights are hanging by a thread. If we fail to vote with the Supreme Court in mind, we risk seeing our rights dismantled before our very eyes.
Elections have consequences because courts matter.
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