The Supreme Court

The Supreme Court is the most powerful of all judicial courts. It serves as a global model for high courts, particularly those dealing with public courtrooms and debatable cases. Its justices are tasked with drawing boundaries of government power, effectively guiding the president, Congress, and states on what they can or cannot do. This court's primary function is to interpret the 200-year-old Constitution, a role that is crucial in safeguarding liberty, maintaining the union, and upholding the rule of law.  

The biggest thing I learned that I did not know before was that throughout American history, there have been slightly over 100 Supreme Court Justices. Each justice serves an average of 16 years; however, many have served twice that long. Many have served for decades after the president who appointed them is out of office. Many people only know about the bigger, more influential justices versus smaller ones. For example, everyone knows Ruth Bader Ginsburg because of how influential she was for the American government and for women everywhere. One of the most significant takeaway points about the Supreme Court is that while they debate the cases in front of everyone in a public courtroom, the final decisions are made privately with just the justices. No one other than the justices is allowed there, and there are no secretaries, police, or law clerks. To me, this was an important point because a lot happens when it is just the justices. First, they vote on who will write the decision, and then they vote on the actual decision, but the public only hears about the decision once it is official and moves onto the press. 

What I found most surprising was that the Supreme Court is mainly silent. Justice Oliver Wendall Holmes has said, "We are quiet." "But it is the quiet of a storm center." This was surprising because I never thought that it was mainly silent because I also did not know they get so many cases that they consistently work on. That final decision is very silent; unless it is a big case, many people never end up hearing about it. This video changed how I thought about the Supreme Court because I give them much more credit than before. After all, they have to go through so many cases throughout the term, which takes a lot of patience. Many of them have said the first few years are overwhelming and that it takes a while to get used to it. This video gave me a new perspective and credit to the Supreme Court.