ments (and between states). As such, the Supreme
Court is the ultimate “umpire” in U.S. politics, defin-
ing the limits and duties of public life. In the tradi-
tion of English common law, the Supreme Court
decides cases based on “precedent,” or past case deci-
sions. Its primary function is to uphold the principles
and RIGHTSin the Constitution. For example, because
the FIRST AMENDMENTof the Constitution guarantees
the individual right to FREEDOMof speech, if Congress
or a state passes a law censoring free speech, the U.S.
Supreme Court will declare that law “unconstitu-
tional” and invalid. This practice is known as judicial
review.
It is important in the Court’s functioning and
preservation of a constitutional REPUBLIC that this
judiciary is independent from the other branches
of government and public pressure, so lifetime
appointments or “tenure” of the judges (or “justi-
ces”) on the bench protect the Supreme Court
from political influence and allow it to rule on the
basis of law and tradition. This makes the U.S.
Supreme Court a kind of unelected ARISTOCRACY, as in
ARISTOTLE’s notion of mixed government, to balance
the “one” of the president and the “many” of the
Congress.
Supreme Court judges are appointed by the United
States president and approved by the U.S. Senate. Since
1869, the number of judges on the Supreme Court has
been nine, making each justice an extremely powerful
person in the United States.
Common constitutional issues dealt with by the
U.S. Supreme Court include federalism, individual
rights (freedom of speech, press, religion), police pro-
cedures in criminal investigation and trials, and gov-
ernmental regulation of business. Some Supreme
Court decisions (such as those related to ABORTIONand
PRAYER IN SCHOOL) are highly controversial.
The U.S. Supreme Court is one of the most
respected institutions in the country, and its function
is essential to the maintenance of the Republic.288 Supreme Court, U.S.
U.S. Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C.(LIBRARYOFCONGRESS)