Scalia !?!?!

[BlueStreak]

9. Scotus is feeling the heat

There have been several cases lately that broke away from the usual 5-4 mold. I believe this is a reaction to all the criticism the court has received for entering a period of heavy politicization of the court.

Remember, the court has no armies. No police. They don't have any power whatsoever, other than the support of the people. I believe Robert has become worried that he could become the guy who caused the court to lose the confidence of the public. His decision on the ACA might have been at least partly motivated by that.

Another thing to remember is that there is absolutely nothing in the Constitution that guarantees this particular structure for the court. There is nothing that guarantees life appointments. There is nothing that says how many Justices there will be. The Congress could change that anything they had a consensus for that.

We could have, for example, a panel of 15 Justices, each serving a 15-year term, with a new appointment every year. I think an arrangement like that would be a vast improvement over the current situation. A single President couldn't pack the court -- only naming the 8th Justice in his last year. There would no longer be an incentive to name 50-year-olds that could potentially hog 1/9th of the court for 40 years. And a very wayward court could be brought back to reality within about 8 years.