524 Chapter 14 | The CourtsThe Independence
of the Courts
Many presidents have been frustrated by federal court
decisions that they perceived to be unreasonable. Some have
responded by lashing out at the courts—an action that never
fails to stir controversy. Recently, both Presidents Obama and
Trump have criticized high-profile Court decisions. In Obama’s
2010 State of the Union address, he noted his disagreement
with the Court’s ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election
Commission (2010) and stated that he believed the decision
had opened the floodgates for corporate spending—including
by foreign corporations—in elections. Justice Alito was
caught on camera mouthing the words “not true” in response.
Washington was abuzz for days about whether the president’s
comment or Alito’s response was out of line.a President Trump,
for his part, was incensed with several lower-court rulings that
suspended his travel ban aimed at preventing terrorists from
coming into the country, and tweeted, “Just cannot believe
a judge would put our country in such peril. If something
happens blame him and court system. People pouring in.
Bad!”b Though it is not very common for presidents to openly
criticize the federal courts, they routinely try to influence
the courts through nominations to the federal bench. As we
discussed earlier, all presidents try to pick justices who share
their political views. Is this kind of influence different than that
of presidents who directly express their opinions on Court
decisions? Is either kind of influence acceptable?Presidents should be able to influence the
courts. Some argue that whether it is President Obama
criticizing the Court’s ruling on campaign finance or President
Trump expressing his views on the lower courts’ actions on his
travel ban, presidents should be able to express their views
on the important issues of the day. Furthermore, presidents
are not obligated to nominate centrist judges. If a Republican
president can nominate conservative judges, that is certainly
his or her right. Trump has exercised this right, to the dismay
of some observers who believe that he has picked extremely
conservative judges to push his policy agenda.
Trump’s appointees, like those of any other president,
still need to be confirmed by the Senate. If people don’t
like the ideological makeup of the judges selected, they
can vote out the president and their senator in the next
election. Besides, the president speaks for the people who
elected him, while the courts are less democratic because
they are not elected.TAKE
A S TA N DThe independence of the courts is crucial: the
president needs to back off. Others argue that, while
it is fine for the president to express his policy views on
issues that come before the Court, he should refrain from
direct criticism of specific cases or judges. Just as it was
improper for Justice Ginsburg to criticize Trump during
the campaign, presidents should not interject politics
into the Court.
And though it is true that all presidents try to influence
the Court through their nominations, moderation here
would also serve the long-term interests of the country
better than wild swings between ideological extremes.
The ballot box is the ultimate recourse for accountability,
but even the mighty power of the vote is limited when it
comes to holding judges responsible: many judges will
serve on the bench for 25 years or more, much longer than
the president or most senators.take a stand
- Where would you draw the line on presidents’ criticizing
the courts? - Does it bother you that courts are not accountable to the
people and yet make important policy decisions? If so,
how should presidents be able to influence the courts? - Should presidents be able to nominate whomever
they want to the courts (subject to Senate approval, of
course), or should the process be less partisan and less
ideological?
President Barack Obama was criticized during his 2010 State
of the Union address for his comments on Citizens United v.
Federal Election Commission, a federal court decision that he
perceived to be unreasonable.Full_15_APT_64431_ch14_488-529.indd 524 16/11/18 1:46 PM