We’ve hit a point in the election cycle where polarization is hitting it’s peak, as we now know what the general election will look like. Despite the last stand of the Never Trump crowd coming, it’s highly improbable that they will successfully stop the coronation in Cleveland. As for Democrats, Senator Bernie Sanders has officially thrown his support behind former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, officially clearing the path for the coronation parade. With this comes the arming of the catapults on both sides. In recent days, Clinton has faced a great deal of criticism over the ongoing e-mail scandal, something that escalated after the government refused to enforce the law against her. Trump has faced criticism from the left because he continues to hurt people’s feelings to a degree that Senator Sanders even sold out his own movement to stop the controversial businessman.
None of this is surprising. It’s politics.
What has led to some to turn their heads is a Supreme Court justice voicing her political opinions and doing so repeatedly. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has been off on a media tour recently, trading barbs with Trump and hurling insults in the direction of the probable Republican nominee. The concern in regards to this lies with the fact that justices should remain impartial, especially given the scope of cases they hear. Even Democrats are concerned about the impropriety of the remarks made by someone sitting on the High Court.
Certainly, this is an issue, but it’s not the real issue. A Supreme Court justice has opinions? They’re human beings and regardless of whether they voice them or not, they have their respective biases, political and otherwise. The fact that Justice Ginsburg is airing hers out publicly and frequently does not mean she is any more or less opinionated than anyone else on the bench, it just means she’s not holding back.
The problem lies in the lack of accountability.
The Supreme Court has become the center of political debates. When discussion of political politics occurs, it often centers around the high court. This is due to the fact that the President will nominate someone to fill vacancies. Especially now, the winner of this election cycle will swing the court’s favor in a specific direction. This is the key argument Democrats and Republicans make when arguing against third parties, noting that even if their candidates are not preferable, their opponent deciding favor on the bench would be bad.
Herein lies the real problem: the power of the court and the lack of accountability.
Justice Ginsburg is going to spend the coming weeks and months spending the political capital earned by her position to influence an election against Donald Trump. Her liberal positions and politicking will lead many to question her, but what’s going to come of it? Nobody is actually going to challenge her. It would be one thing if voters could vote on the Supreme Court justice in the next election or recall her, but they can’t. There is zero accountability. Alternatively, everyday Americans are stuck relying on the leadership of Presidents to speak up for the integrity and propriety of the high court and Congress to intervene if needed.
Nothing is going to happen though. The Supreme Court is going to continue wrecking American law and politics, because there is zero accountability. The problem with Justice Ginsburg isn’t in her vocal opinions, but the overall fact that the Supreme Court will never be held accountable.
