Word: appointment
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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Though the Supreme Court does sometimes "follow the election returns," the Justices more often follow the dictates of legal precedent or their own consciences. The public's only real influence on the high court comes through its power to elect Presidents, who appoint the Justices, and Senators, who confirm them. Once a Justice enters the court's sanctum, he can stay for life.* The high court that begins its traditional nine-month term this week is a gerontocracy: five of the nine Justices are 75 or older. Not since Franklin Roosevelt railed against the Nine Old Men almost...
...felt necessities of the time." Such a task is delicate, to be undertaken with reverence for established principle and the slow evolution of fundamental rights. If the court becomes a mere political instrument, it will lose its legitimacy; if the Justices become the blunt tools of the Presidents who appoint them their judgments will be just as transitory It is reassuring that, once ensconced in the high court, so many of the Brethren develop a higher loyalty. - By Evan Thomas...
...Supreme Court was last a major election issue when Richard Nixon campaigned against the activist Warren Court in 1968, vowing to appoint Justices who would "interpret the Constitution strictly." Within three years, Nixon had four openings to fill, including that of Chief Justice (Warren stepped down at age 77 in 1969). Pundits proclaimed a "Nixon Court" under Burger, the new Chief Justice, and waited for a veer to the right...
...Council Monday night established the commission, whose members it will appoint during the next several weeks, along with new rules against discrimination on a variety of bases, including sex and sexual orientation...
...broader membership will surface in a matter of time, but they caution against overt tokenism. Calkins says the board must avoid, having a specific slot for a woman or a minority. Andrew Heiskell '28 adds that in recent years the Corporation has made a concerted effort to appoint a woman or minority but thus far has been unsuccessful...