United States at crossroads with Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination to Supreme Court
Published on: 1 October 2020, 05:41 am
Amy Coney Barrett's nomination has rung political alarm bells across the United States. With 45 days to go for what is the most hotly contested US Presidential election, the stakes of a lifetime Supreme Court appointment are very high, says ROHIT TRIPATHI.
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THE passing of a soul is most often accompanied by grief and reflection. Much more so when the passing is of a giant like Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
The legendary jurist was 87 when she recently passed away. There are extremely well-written obituaries of this extraordinary woman, who has inspired an entire generation of men and women in the United States and abroad. The timing of her passing, however quite sadly, is giving American democracy no luxury to mourn this tireless public servant.
Such a vacancy in the Supreme Court of the United States is always a monumental event in American life. It is one to come with voting already underway for Presidential election with a viciously divided electorate, in the middle of a pandemic. And here walks in Judge Amy Coney Barrett, the nominee to fill RBG's vacant spot in the Court.
The test that American democracy is about to soon see could not have got tougher.
Judiciary and Political Ideology
The current Supreme Court leans right with a 5 to 4 conservative to liberal advantage. As Chief Justice John Roberts has sided with the liberals on some recent decisions, a 6-3 tilt towards the conservatives will reliably tilt the court to the right.
“Having an ideologically aligned judiciary is the goal of all political aspirants. Thus, when any lifetime appointment of a jurist comes around there is a political tailwind behind it.
Classically, that would mean a more literal interpretation of the constitution. In modern terms it means a tilt against government intervention in healthcare, preferring corporations over labor, hostility towards environmental regulations, and enhanced deference to the executive on various matters like immigration. This deference will remake the dynamic between the three branches of the government.
