Policy Proposals

1. Policymakers should pledge to promote the appointment of constitutionalist judges.
2. Senators should prioritize determining whether judicial nominees will be committed to the judiciary’s role as designed.
3. Senators should not abuse their role of “Advice and Consent.”

Quick Facts

1. Courts with judges who serve unlimited terms have a total of 860 seats around the country.
2. The lower courts have the last word on most federal cases because the Supreme Court decides only about 80 cases per year.
3. Judicial vacancies have remained a problem, compromising the judiciary's ability to serve its purpose.

How to Talk About the Courts

Constitutional

• Judges are required to swear an oath to uphold the Constitution, and the Senate should ensure nominees have a record of interpreting the law as written.

Unbiased

• A judge’s responsibility is to interpret the written law, not to create laws that align with his or her personal policy preferences.
• Judges should not have the power to redefine laws and traditions Americans have known for over two hundred years.

Unpoliticized

• Judicial nominees at all levels should not be considered political pawns to be captured by one party or another—they are servants of the American people with a duty to uphold the Constitution.

Articles:

• Heritage Judicial Tracker
• How the Senate Treats Judicial Nominations Depends on Who Is in the White House 
• The Way to Stop Politicizing the Supreme Court 
• Gorsuch Helps Transform the Supreme Court Into the Supreme Legislature on LGBT Rights 
• DACA Ruling Is Supreme Court’s Latest Act of Political Timidity 
• Supreme Court Hands Huge Victory to Families on School Choice 
• The Supreme Court Has Imperiled Parents’ Right to Pass Their Values on to Children Heritage.org 
• Supreme Court’s "Faithless Electors" Decision Safeguards Electoral College 

Podcasts:

The Heritage Foundation’s podcast SCOTUS 101 provides a weekly breakdown of what’s happening at the Supreme Court.

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