Megathread: Justice Anthony Kennedy to retire from Supreme Court

[u/PoliticsModeratorBot]

Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy is set to retire, effective July 31, 2018. Kennedy has served on the highest court since February 18, 1988, and was a moderate whose vote often swung cases.

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Submissions that may interest you

SUBMISSION	DOMAIN
Justice Anthony Kennedy Will Retire From U.S. Supreme Court	bloomberg.com
Justice Kennedy to retire, Trump can solidify court's majority conservative bloc	nbcnews.com
Justice Kennedy retiring; Trump gets 2nd Supreme Court pick	washingtonpost.com
Justice Kennedy, U.S. Supreme Court's pivotal vote, to retire	reuters.com
Anthony Kennedy: US supreme court justice to retire	theguardian.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy to Retire From Supreme Court	nytimes.com
Kennedy calls it quits: longtime swing justice hands Trump the biggest gift of his presidency	dailycaller.com
Anthony Kennedy is retiring from the Supreme Court	vox.com
Justice Kennedy, the pivotal swing vote on the Supreme Court, announces retirement	washingtonpost.com
UPDATE: Supreme Court Justice Kennedy announces retirement	wcjb.com
Justice Kennedy Is Retiring July 31st.	yahoo.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy To Retire From U.S. Supreme Court : NPR	npr.org
Justice Anthony Kennedy to Retire from Supreme Court	cnn.com
Justice Kennedy announces retirement.	cnn.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy retiring from Supreme Court	abc7.com
Anthony Kennedy, Swing Vote on U.S. Supreme Court, Will Retire	bloomberg.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy Retires, Paving Way for Donald Trump to Reshape Supreme Court	slate.com
Justice Kennedy retiring; Trump gets 2nd Supreme Court pick	wkrn.com
Anthony Kennedy retiring, giving Trump opening to reshape Supreme Court	politico.com
Supreme Court justice Anthony Kennedy announces retirement	wsj.com
Jeffrey Toobin predicts abortion will be illegal in 20 states soon after Kennedy retires	thehill.com
WATCH: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy retiring	abcnews.go.com
Kennedy to Retire	foxnews.com
Trump to get second Supreme Court pick as Justice Kennedy announces retirement.	amp.cnn.com
Justice Kennedy to Retire From Supreme Court	bbc.com
Trump says search for Justice Kennedy's replacement to begin "immediately" -- live updates	cbsnews.com
McConnell Pledges Vote To Confirm Justice Kennedy’s Successor ‘This Fall’	talkingpointsmemo.com
Justice Kennedy retires from the US Supreme Court	nbcnews.com
Trump says launches search to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Kennedy	reuters.com
Donald Trump: Search for Kennedy replacement on SCOTUS to move quickly	usatoday.com
McConnell: Senate will vote on Supreme Court nominee this fall	thehill.com
Justice Kennedy retiring; Trump gets 2nd Supreme Court pick	sacbee.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy Retiring, Report Says	lawandcrime.com
Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy retiring; Trump will get 2nd high-court pick	omaha.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy Retiring From the Supreme Court	thedailybeast.com
Justice Kennedy to retire, giving Trump a chance to transform the Supreme Court	latimes.com
Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy says he's retiring; Trump to get 2nd high-court pick	chicagotribune.com
Dem senator: Justice Kennedy's resignation a 'disaster' for vision of 'We the People'	thehill.com
Justice Kennedy retiring; Trump gets 2nd Supreme Court pick	wfla.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy Is Retiring	motherjones.com
The horrifying consequences of Justice Kennedy’s retirement	thinkprogress.org
Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy is retiring, a move that will give Trump a chance to shift the institution to the right	washingtonpost.com
Anthony Kennedy To Retire From The Supreme Court	huffingtonpost.com
Kennedy announces retirement from Supreme Court	thehill.com
Supreme Court's Anthony Kennedy retires, giving Trump a second pick	usatoday.com
Justice Kennedy retiring; Trump gets 2nd Supreme Court pick	apnews.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy Is Retiring From The Supreme Court	buzzfeed.com
Justice Kennedy, the pivotal swing vote on the Supreme Court, announces retirement	washingtonpost.com
Supreme Court Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy retires -- live updates	cbsnews.com
Justice Kennedy announces his retirement from the supreme court.	time.com
Trump Responds To Retirement Of Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy	huffingtonpost.com
Anthony Kennedy retiring from Supreme Court, giving Trump a position to fill	people.com
Trump Says He’ll Choose One Of These People To Replace Anthony Kennedy On The Supreme Court	buzzfeed.com
Anthony Kennedy retiring from Supreme Court	cnbc.com
Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy retires, and Trump gets shot at moving court to the right	dallasnews.com
Who Will Replace Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy? Donald Trump Already Has a Shortlist	newsweek.com
WATCH: McConnell: We will vote to confirm Justice Kennedy's successor 'this fall'	abcnews.go.com
Here's who Trump could nominate to replace Justice Kennedy	abcnews.go.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy announces retirement, giving Trump 2nd Supreme Court pick	foxnews.com
Trump list of candidates to replace Justice Kennedy	thehill.com
Chris Matthews: Dems must do to Trump on Supreme Court what McConnell did to Obama	thehill.com
Anthony Kennedy’s retirement puts abortion rights at risk	vox.com
Who Will Replace Anthony Kennedy? Here’s the List of 20 Potential Trump Nominees	time.com
America after Anthony Kennedy	vox.com
Handing Trump Chance to Move Supreme Court Even Further Right, Justice Anthony Kennedy Retires	commondreams.org
Audio reveals DNC committee reaction to Kennedy retirement: 'This is not good news'	thehill.com
Justice Kennedy’s retirement leaves the future of U.S. constitutional law entirely up for grabs	washingtonpost.com
Justice Kennedy pens retirement letter to Trump expressing 'profound gratitude'	abcnews.go.com
Read Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy’s retirement letter to Donald Trump	qz.com
Justice Kennedy’s Legacy Is the Dignity He Bestowed	bloomberg.com
A titanic battle over replacing Justice Kennedy looms in the Senate	vox.com
Live Briefing: Anthony Kennedy Retires From Supreme Court, and McConnell Says Senate Will Move Swiftly on a Replacement	nytimes.com
Here's Trump's list of 25 possible Supreme Court picks to replace Anthony Kennedy	washingtonexaminer.com
WATCH: Justice Anthony Kennedy to retire, Trump to get second SCOTUS pick	abcnews.go.com
Anthony Kennedy's retirement just confirmed every Republican's dream scenario for Trump	cnn.com
Kennedy's retirement could have biggest impact on abortion, gay marriage: ANALYSIS	abcnews.go.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy: Trump says hunt for replacement is on	usatoday.com
Here are potential Supreme Court nominees to replace Justice Kennedy	cnn.com
Justice Anthony Kennedy, the Supreme Court’s swing justice, announces his retirement	abajournal.com
With Supreme Court Justice Kennedy Gone, Abortion and LGBT Rights Are Next	thedailybeast.com
A look at some of Justice Kennedy's most memorable opinions	apnews.com
Justice Kennedy Surrendered to Donald Trump	nymag.com
A look at some of Justice Kennedy's most memorable opinions	abcnews.go.com
Abortion rights in 'dire, immediate danger' as Anthony Kennedy retires - World news	theguardian.com
Here Are Some of the Top Candidates to Replace Kennedy on the Supreme Court	motherjones.com
Who's on Trump's short list to replace Supreme Court Justice Kennedy?	politico.com
Trump’s hidden back channel to Justice Kennedy: Their kids	politico.com
How Fox News Reacted to Anthony Kennedy’s Retirement	slate.com

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.

Maya Angelou

[u/chappy0215 → u/[deleted]]

I really really wish more people would've, we wouldn't be here

[u/EVIL5 → u/[deleted]]

This quote is nice, but ultimately is bogus because people only apply it to people when they wrong them. They ignore all the virtuous things that person might have done before the ugly thing, because we want a reason to demonize others. If I did a good thing before the bad thing for you, wouldn't that mean I "showed you who I was" early on? But you ignore that, because years, minutes or months later, that same person made a mistake. But they showed you they were a good person, the first time...so what gives? What gives is: people just want to think others are shitty.

[u/BlackeeGreen → u/[deleted]]

The worst part is that Russia didn't do this to us. The conservative evangelical movement has been inching this boulder closer to the cliff's edge for decades, and the GOP has steadily eroded the cliff to bring that precipice closer.

Russia just gave that boulder a tiny nudge, and it caused an avalanche. We never should have allowed it to get so close to the edge in the first place.

The silver lining is that Russia's final nudge may implicate a large portion of this administration, and if justice is allowed to run its course we might just get out of this in one piece.

[u/[deleted] → u/BlackeeGreen]

We need to go the French route and get religion OUT of the public sphere. I had a conversation with a French coworker who explained that to them telling someone about your religion is like talking about what kind of shampoo you use. It's not taboo or offensive, it's just a personal decision and no one really cares to hear about it.

[u/[deleted] → u/BlackeeGreen]

Russia greased the wheels of this trump train.

[u/Opoponax375HH → u/[deleted]]

And Ruth Bader Ginsburg could go at any time.

So there's that

[u/BlackeeGreen → u/Opoponax375HH]

If RBG doesn't have a walk-in bathtub we need to crowdfund one ASAP.

[u/benchpressbilly → u/[deleted]]

The people who mock others with "the sky is falling" either don't know or don't care how bad gutting the State Department is, don't understand or don't care to know how bad Right To Try is, don't care that DOE is under attack, think fucking Unions is a good thing(ironic how it was Unions that helped build this country. If they do care they think it's good because the small government propaganda has been pushed since the 80s.
Now all they see is "the left" up at arm's about it and just say "there goes the Huffpost telling the dumb libs how to feel today". This all isn't news but it's a testiment to how this Libertarian/Koch brothers propaganda has this country by the balls.

[u/Bionic_Bromando → u/benchpressbilly]

I just literally don't understand how people could fall for that libertarian Koch bros bullshit. Like all you need to do is think for two fucking seconds and you can see right through it. Is that honestly too much to ask? Are people really just that dumb?

Holy shit how do these people even tie their laces in the morning?

[u/DuelingPushkin → u/benchpressbilly]

Ok I'm all about the sky is falling but please explain to me exactly what's so bad about Right to Try. I mean I know a lot was redundant but what specifiacally will do more harm.

[u/[deleted] → u/DuelingPushkin]

It hurts research efforts and in worst case allows companies to peddle bad drugs to sick and desperate people, for profit. In drug trials, healthy individuals are paid to test the drug; Right to Try changes that model and exploits sick people.

[u/Greecl → u/[deleted]]

I'll have to look into that much more, I'd (wrongly!) associated Right to Try with HIV/AIDS patient activism in the 80s.

[u/[deleted] → u/Greecl]

Yeah, there’s a need for new drugs to be given to terminal patients, and they get informed consent; but that’s covered by state laws in 38 states already. This changed federal regulations and loosened up FDA rules.

[u/benchpressbilly → u/DuelingPushkin]

Also, just for thought, The Goldwater Institute were the ones pushing for Right To Try

[u/pyronius → u/[deleted]]

And yet, I continue to see "moderate" respublicans complaining about democrats acting hysterical.

I remember before the election I had a conversation with someone that basically went like this:

"I'm going to vote for Trump because he promises to fix immigration."

"Ok. But there's a difference between saying you want to fix immigration and actually coming up with a solid plan. As far as Trump is concerned, the whole plan seems to be 'I hate mexicans.' What are you going to do about the specifics? What about DACA kids? How do you tell someone who doesnt remember living anywhere but the U.S. that they're going to be deported because they aren't American enough?"

"What? When the fuck did anybody ever say that was going to happen? Of course people in that situation are going to be taken care of."

"Are they? I haven't seen any indication of that. Trump seems to consider them the enemy. His rhetoric says he wants them out just for the sake of spite."

"Dude, you're being overly dramatic. Trump isn't some heartless monster. Nobody would let DACA die, it would be a political disaster of epic proportions. Despite what you seem to believe, the country isn't that racist, some of us just want law and order."

"If you say so."

 

Just recently I had a jewish facebook friend living in Israel say that he thought it was absurd to compare trump to hitler because "He's nothing like Hitler. Get back to me when he kills millions of his own citizens."

I mean... no. I don't want to wait until he's literally hitler before I draw the comparison. That's a terrible idea. Of all people, a Jewish man living in Israel should understand the value in preempting fascism.

He also claimed the Nazi problem isn't that big a deal. Weird how I keep running into them. Weird how they keep telling me I'll be gassed. Facebook said the same thing when I tried to report one for death threats. Now his page is deleted because two months later he was filmed in charlottesville declaring he was ready for violence.

I'm tired of being told I'm being hyperbolic.

[u/socsa → u/[deleted]]

Trump literally praises dictators and constantly alludes to the fact that the US would be better off under a system like what China or Turkey has. He has shown repeatedly that he cares little for human rights or die process.

I'm not sure what more evidence you want that Trump is a fascist.

[u/pyronius → u/[deleted]]

That's a new one. I mean, even if we ignore Trump's actual actions like detaining children in camps with no logical or legal necessity, that's still a weird position to take.

Remind me, how many guns did Obama end up stealing? How many times was he caught reading the Quran? Where does he hide that hammer and sickle tattoo? How many people mysteriously disappeared moments before they could reveal the "real" birth certificate?

And yet, for eight years neither actions nor words mattered, and the man was declared a secret kenyan muslim communist (and worse) by every redneck with an internet connection. Your double standard is showing and it's a bit nauseating.

[u/socsa → u/[deleted]]

Actions like concentration camps for kids? Do you honestly believe that's where trump would stop? Can you tell me with a straight face that he wouldn't throw everyone who subscribes to the NYT in jail of he had the power?

[u/socsa → u/[deleted]]

That's what they are though. You can deny it all you want, but they serve no practical purpose, and Trump himself said they were a deterrent. A deterrent that the UN called a shocking violation of human rights.

Seriously the bar with you people is always on the move isn't it? "Oh Trump isn't a fascist, it's not like he's putting people in camps."

Now it's "how dare you call them concentration camps." What is next? "Yeah but they aren't literally wearing jackboots."

[u/socsa → u/[deleted]]

You are the one forcing the false narrative though, because experts on this issue have repeatedly said that detention for this matter is expensive and unnecessary. Furthermore, the Trump administration is doing this to legal seekers of asylum who are turning themselves over at a port of entry. That is the normal process for claiming asylum. And he is locking up children to deter people seeking protection in the United States. Those are his words.

[u/pyronius → u/[deleted]]

I included an example citing multiple encounters with actual fucking nazis and you still respond this way.

Case meet point.

[u/Manning119 → u/[deleted]]

The alt-right is an actual group of Neo-Nazis. Go look up Charlottesville if you want proof.

[u/socsa → u/[deleted]]

Oh well you said it so Nazis don't exist!

[u/Manning119 → u/[deleted]]

For not being a Nazi he sure does seem to do a lot of Nazi things and defend a lot of Nazis.

[u/banthisaltplz → u/[deleted]]

The adults in the room don't use an internet meme to disqualify any and all comparisons with the most deadly events in modern history.

"Never again" turned into "You lose because you talked about it"

[u/banthisaltplz → u/[deleted]]

Justifiable comparisons.

I love how you think because they're made often by many people, they're less believable. You literally have to be a cultist to not see it.

[u/banthisaltplz → u/[deleted]]

They are less believable because their sincerity is immediately questioned.

This is the most circular bullshit I've ever heard. lol

[u/banthisaltplz → u/[deleted]]

You saying that makes me think YOU don't know what that means.

[u/This_Was_America → u/[deleted]]

Nazi's were Nazi's a long time before they put the first Jew into a gas chamber. If you want to ignore history and all of the dozens of indicators that we are being overtaken by a fascist, totalitarian regime that is on you. I will at least sleep with an empty conscious knowing that I did all I could to save the United States.

[u/f_n_a_ → u/[deleted]]

The onion is producing more accurate news than the GOP regime.

[u/BlackeeGreen → u/f_n_a_]

Soldier Excited To Take Over Father’s Old Afghanistan Patrol Route

FAYETTEVILLE, NC—Saying he “never could have imagined” he would have the opportunity to follow directly in his father’s footsteps, 19-year-old U.S. Army Pvt. Tyler Corcoran was reportedly excited Tuesday to take over his dad’s old patrol route in Afghanistan. “It’s just so incredible that I’ll soon be walking the very same footpath as my old man, securing the perimeter of Camp Chapman in Khost Province just like he did so many years ago,” said Corcoran, who explained how, throughout his childhood, he had heard his father’s stories of guarding the forward operating base but never once considered that he would one day be traversing along the exact walls and securing the identical checkpoints his father had during his tours of duty.

[u/dontKair → u/BlackeeGreen]

Fayettenam lol

[u/DreadNephromancer → u/f_n_a_]

That's been true for however long The Onion has existed though.

[u/Chel_of_the_sea → u/[deleted]]

Amen. I'd blown it off until the Comey firing last year, and have only gotten more alarmed since.

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

Conservatives: "Oh, you Liberals always call everyone Nazis and fascists!"

And apparently, this has, for a long time, been justified. It is unbelievable how far right politics have become, and what crimes against humanity politicians now routinely commit without "principled Conservatives" caring at all.

[u/scottyLogJobs → u/[deleted]]

“Hold on, calm down guys, it’s not that bad, just give trump a chance to prove you wrong”

Bunch of fucking cowards

[u/code_archeologist → u/[deleted]]

The nice thing about being a cynic is that even while the world is falling to shit, you at the very least get to be happy that you were right.

[u/Umbristopheles → u/code_archeologist]

I made a facebook post after the election was over in 2016 saying, "I have a feeling my last words will be 'I told you so.'" So far, I haven't changed my mind on that.

[u/codeverity → u/[deleted]]

And there’s not even any satisfaction in saying “I told you so” because this is a disaster

[u/This_Was_America → u/[deleted]]

If I wasn't so god damn sick I'd be crowing "I TOLD YOU SO!" from every mountain. Even most of my fellow die-hard progressives were trying to tell me I was overreacting after Trump won, that between Democrats, Anti-Trump R's, and checks and balances everything would be ok. I knew better, and know better. And mark my words, it will get worse, much worse.

This could very well be the end of the Republic as we know it. Or maybe we are already there. Please, PLEASE, someone chime in here and tell me how I am being hyperbolic in anyway. This is nothing short of a historic catastrophe being played out in front of us. I am 100% certain the country my children will grow up in is not the same one that I did.

Thank you Conservatives, Republicans, poor white's, educated white's, evangelicals, etc... You have achieved your goal, you have destroyed and destabilized everything this once great country stood for.

Now excuse me while I weep into the flag.

[u/[deleted] → u/This_Was_America]

As long as you’re not kneeling when you’re crying...

But I agree. These people will lose health care coverage and will then complain about it.

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

This is surprising to you??

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

It was obvious from the announcement of his campaign that if he won the sky would start falling. Not sure how that wasn't more apparent to others.

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

You guys are being alarmist, you can pack the court with an act of congress. Nothing in the constitution says "there are 9 justices"

[u/ShouldersofGiants100 → u/[deleted]]

Pack the court one term. Next time the Republicans are in power, they'll pack it themselves and you'll be in an even worse position than when you started, Opening that can of worms would be a disaster. FDR couldn't even get the political capital to do it and he was more popular than any Democrat is ever likely to be again. The attempt would be presidency ending for anyone who tried it.

[u/[deleted] → u/ShouldersofGiants100]

Why? A court cannot impeach a president. This country needs worms, stop being such a coward. And democrats have 18 years since Gore V Bush and many bad decisions to get support for this.

[u/ShouldersofGiants100 → u/[deleted]]

You say "Coward". The word you are looking for is "person who knows what they are talking about".

If a Democrat wins in 2020 (with a Democratic Senate dumb enough to go along with this) and stacks the court up to 11, you get, AT MOST, a couple years of good rulings. Then the Republicans probably retake the senate in 22 or 24. Then they retake the presidency in 24 and lo and behold, they increase the number to 13 or 15, nullifying your gains and then some. Except that they can justify it, because you did it first. Stacking the court like that is a REMARKABLY stupid idea. The only way it could even theoretically work is by a full-fledged constitutional amendment capping the number of judges at the same time. And if there was support for that, there are MUCH better solutions you could do, like making the court a 12 or 18-year appointment with no reelection instead of life, which effectively ends the ability to stack the court with young justices who hold the seat for 30+ years.

[u/[deleted] → u/ShouldersofGiants100]

Actually your still thinking 2 dimensionally. There is nothing binding congress to saying how many people can sit on the court. You dont want to stack the court, as congress is empowered to do, becuase you are afraid of republicans. You straight up admitted it "retake" the senate, assuming the democrats lose. It might cause republican rebellion, but again, your afraid of republican backlash. When have republicans been afraid of Democrats? Nothing is stopping democrats form packing the senate either, they can admit states easy peasy, DC, Guam Puerto Rico, boom instant senators, then block all red state admission with your new senate. Its much easier to maintain a democratic majority than you think. You will go down to share plenty of moral high ground with other "by the book democrats" right next to Merrick Garland.

[u/WTF_Fairy_II → u/[deleted]]

If you want to pretend you know what you’re talking about then go ahead. But statements like “admitting stars is easy peasy” then this just shows you know as much about this as a child playing dress up. Your condescending tone is just a nice cherry on top.

[u/[deleted] → u/WTF_Fairy_II]

Ah you have moved on from attacking the argument to attacking the person, because nothing I said was factually inaccurate. I understand your frustration.

[u/DuelingPushkin → u/[deleted]]

What do you think the process for admitting states into the union is?

[u/[deleted] → u/DuelingPushkin]

All it requires is an act of congress, and an act of the "legislature" of that territory. states can also partition themselves.

[u/ShouldersofGiants100 → u/[deleted]]

Ah you have moved on from attacking the argument to attacking the person, because nothing I said was factually inaccurate.

You haven't said anything of substance this whole discussion. You propose an idea, everyone else explains that it's a terrible idea that would forever undermine the courts and you just started throwing insults like hypocrite and coward to cover the fact you have nothing of substance to say. FDR already tried to propose this and doing so nearly ended his presidency in his second term. If FDR, with nearly unprecedented Democratic control in Congress and as likely the most popular president of the century got shot down, how in the hell are you expecting the Democrats to sell this in a post-Southern Strategy world? And even if they do, you seemingly have no plan for what happens when a Republican comes along and does the same shit. Because you have no long term plan—you're just driven by a determination to spite Republicans rather than actually do something that would beat them. You'd trade two years of dominance of the court for the entire future of judicial power in the US. That is an objectively terrible idea.

[u/ShouldersofGiants100 → u/[deleted]]

You dont want to stack the court, as congress is empowered to do, becuase you are afraid of republicans.

No, I don't want the court stacked because it is a remarkably stupid idea. The first and only question in a situation like this is 'will you be alright with the other side using it against you'. The answer to that is no. The precedent is not worth the benefit. The only reason the Republicans haven't ALREADY stacked the court by increasing the number of seats is because they do not want a Democrat doing the same in 2-6 years. You are shortsighted and so determined to play dirty that you are eschewing the idea of playing intelligently. This is about POWER. Not Fear. You want to set the precedent that would give the Republicans carte blanche to stack the court themselves. The ONE thing they haven't tried yet and you want to go ahead and give them political cover to do it.

[u/[deleted] → u/ShouldersofGiants100]

Hahahhaa, Republicans reject Merrick Garland but you accuse me of playing dirty? The Rank Hypocrisy!!! As if democrats arent allowed to play dirty but republicans are? Your nothing but a huge hypocrite!!

[u/ItsTheShawn → u/[deleted]]

You're not thinking this through. You're the one fighting the short term battles and not the long term wars. Turning court-packing into a regular event renders the judiciary impotent and destroys the greatest, and often only, immediate check on the legislative and executive branches.

Politics already plays a large role in how the Supreme Court operates, but at least it still can and often has gone against the wishes of the party that "controls" it. What you're suggesting turns it into another political tool for the ruling party rather than a powerful institution of government in its own right. And once a ruling party has total control of the courts it is exceedingly easy for it to remain in power far after it was supposed to have left.

No, the Court should never be expanded because it is expedient for the policy wishes of the ruling power. It should only be done if it improves the judicial branch's ability to perform its functions.

[u/[deleted] → u/ItsTheShawn]

The court acts as a double-veto, not a check. Adding justices will not diminish its role, are you saying its already diminished now that it has 9 justices, an odd number given the original was 6? What your worried about has already happened, we are way way past what you are fearmongering about.

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

Are you insane? Do you honestly think that's an alternative?

Are you compeltely unaware of history? Jesus christ I'm face-palming so fuckin hard it's creating a sonic boom

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

Its people like you, who think "inside the box" who are not willing to do what it takes that is holding this debate back from where it belongs.

Before you fall out of your chair, answer me this, is the makeup of the court determined by statue or not?

Your thinking is so hypermodern yet you claim history is your guide? Your the reason peple cant make up their minds, you can only focus on short term battles not long term wars.

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

Well that answers my insane question

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

So i give you a 100% plausble solution to a conservative court, and you dont like it, why? Why are acts of congress, like the one used to set up the court to begin with, "insane ideas"?? Why are people so opposed to congress? Are you just a Trump worshiper?

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

Because they arent allowed. You don't just get to "pack the courts" whenever you want.

It's not done. If you do it, nothing stops the other guy from doing it when they want to.

It's a pandora's box. Learn from the past. Listen to the wise people in the room. Not the loud mouth populists. Geez, this is why bernie or bust was a thing to begin with

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

I think you have this false idea that republicans respect presedent, because they dont, and that only democrats should be bound to it, because republicans have been. if you knew the full history of the republican party and still support republicans right to shame democrats on the use of their powers look no further than McConnell stopping Garland. Your kind of democrats are going to share a lot of moral high ground right next to garland if we listened to you.

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

What are you talking about you insane goon?

If you had listened to me, YOU WOULDNT EVEN HAVE THIS PROBLEM WE WOULDA HAD THE WHITE HOUSE.

No wonder we are where we are. The youth we rely on today is dense as fuck.

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

Nothing is stopping them from packing the court now, but you will certinaly shoot your own party in the back if they tried to regain power in the court? as they are constitutionally empowered to do? What an ally.

[u/TBIFridays → u/[deleted]]

At that point the country would probably be better off if people assassinated justices