Whitewater Scotus Updates

Welcome back! This week, I will be going over the “conservatize” justices on the Supreme Court. Now, I know what you are thinking, there isn’t supposed to be political leanings among the justices right? That is correct, the justices do not align specifically to one party, but they have ideological leanings, based on their personalities. During the Trump presidency, there has been 3 openings in the Supreme Court, which is three opportunities for a Republican president to pick the justices. The three justices selected during the Trump presidency make up a large portion of the conservative justices. Those justices are Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Comey Barrett (ACB). Of these justices, Brett Kavanaugh is the most conservative, followed by ACB and then Neil Gorsuch. The issue with rating ACB, is that since she is such a new justice, she has not done nearly as much work on the Supreme Court, it is more based off of her past statements and positions on issues. The most conservative justice is judge Clarence Thomas, who’s opinions often rest alone as his fellow justices do not always agree with him. Closer to the middle, there are two remaining conservative justices. The first is Samuel Alito who, on certain issues, tends to not agree with his conservative counterparts on the legal reasoning behind his decisions, but still ultimately agrees with the answer they arrive at. The last “conservative” justice is also the most important, Chief Justice John Roberts. He is the leading justice in the court, and while is considered conservative, he often sides with the liberal justices, becoming the courts “swing” vote. This position means when the conservative and liberal justice stick to their guns, Chief Justice Roberts often decides the tie vote. Next week, we will be going over the liberal justices, so stick around!