The Supreme Court

• John Roberts - Strict constructionist
• Antonin Scalia - Strict construstionist
• Samuel Alito - Strict constructionist
• Clarence Thomas - Strict constructionist
• Ruth Bader Ginsburg - Loose constructionist
• Stephen Breyer - Loose constructionist
• Sonia Sotomayor - Loose constructionist
• Elena Kagan - Loose constructionist
• Anthony Kennedy - Swing justice

• Interprets the Constitution in a strict, literal or conservative fashion,
• Tends to stress the retention of as much power as possible by the governments of the individual states
• Focus on the content of the Constitution
• Tend to be appointed by Republican presidents

• Interprets the Constituion in a loose or liberal fashion
• Tends to stress the broad grants of power to the federal government
• Focus on the context of the Constitution
• Tend to be appointed by Democrat presidents

An approach to judicial decision making which holds that a judge should use his or her position to promote desirable social ends

An approach to judicial decision making which holds that a judge should defer to the legislative and executive branches, which are politically accountable to the voters, and should put great stress on the precedent established in previous court decisions

• A vacancy occurs through death, retirement or impeachment
• The president instigates a search for possible nominees and interviews short-listed candidates
• The president announces his nominee
• The Senate confrimation process begins in the Senate Judiciary Committee and ends up on the floor of the Senate

• Previous experience
• Able to hold up against opposition criticism
• Good in the media
• A consistent political attitude
• Similar political philosophy (pack the court)
• Maybe a minority - to make the bench look like America

• Politicisation by the president
• Politicisation by the Senate
• Politicisation by the media

• Want to pick a judge with similar views
• Danger that presidents use a 'litmus test' on nominees
• Try to shape the thinking of the nations' highest court

• Can unfairly attack potential candidates meaning a biased choice e.g. Robert Bork, one of best scholars of his time had a $15m dollar ad campaign against him launched by interest groups influenced by Democrat opponents on the Senate Judiciary Committee
• Will look for scandal to harm a nominee's chances e.g. The Senate could have picked up on Clarence Thomas' lack of qualifications but instead focused on the allegations of sexual harassment. "This is a circus. A national disgrace."

• Feeding frenzy on any gossip e.g. Clarence Thomas
• Are known to twist words

The power of the Supreme Court to declare acts of congress, or actions of the executive - or acts or actions of state governments - unconstituional, and thereby null and void

• The court can, in effect, update the words of the constitution
• Gives the court importance but also turns it into a quasi-legislative body
• The decisions the court makes almost have the effect of a law being passed by congress
• Sometimes described as a 'third house of the legislature'
• Roe Vs. Wade, 1973 upheld the constitutional right to have an abortion. This decision is comparable to an abortion rights law passed by congress

• Impeachment, trial, conviction and removal from office
• Propose consitutional amendments

• Appointment of judges
• Pardon

Where justices sit on the bench longer than the president who appointed them stays on office e.g. justice Scalia was appointed by presidentReagan in 1986