What the United States Supreme Court now looks like

A mere one week before the US presidential election when it looks as if the Republicans will lose both the White House and the Senate, Amy Coney Barrett – nominated by Donald Trump and approved by the Republican-controlled Senate – has been appointed to the country’s Supreme Court.

  • In the history of the United States, there has only been five women members, two black members and one Hispanic member of the Supreme Court. Following the death of Ruth Bader Ginsberg and her replacement by Barrett, the present membership of the Court includes three women members and one black member. 
  • Following the death of Ruth Bader Ginsberg and the appointment of Barrett, six of the justices are Roman Catholic and two are Jewish. Neil Gorsuch was raised Roman Catholic but now attends an Episcopal Church.
  • Following the appointment by President Trump of Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, there is now a conservative majority on the Court. All the conservative members were appointed by Republican presidents, while all the liberals were appointed by Democratic presidents. Since Gorsuch, Kavanaugh and Barrett are young by Supreme Court standards, Trump is viewed to have a secured a legacy that will last decades.

However, as I wrote in this blog posting, if the Democrats take both the White House and the Senate in next week’s election, it would not be unreasonable if Joe Biden nominated two additional members to the Court, although currently all he is promising is a six-month review of the Court.


 




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