This remark from a future Chief justice of the United States Supreme Court highlights both the major place of the Constitution and of the Supreme Court in the American political system. The Constitution is a symbol of nationhood for the Americans, the reference on how to run their system. The Supreme Court can thus be perceived as the link between this emblematic document and the American citizens. The Supreme Law of the USA is nonetheless an unclear text, made to endure years, crises and evolutions. Ergo, it needs interpretation to be implemented and this is the original role of the Supreme Court. However, past this formal constitutional role of interpretation, the Supreme Court has widened the scope of its influence. How this evolution has occurred and what explain it? What have been the concrete impacts of the United States Supreme Court of Justice in the political life?
[...] United States of America sets out the judicial power of the Nation in its Article III.[1] This judicial power is embodied by the United States Supreme Court which is the highest judicial body of the country and controls the judiciary power in the federal government. It is also presented as the final court of appeal from all other lower federal courts and States' systems of courts. The Supreme Court has being imagined by the Founding fathers when they shaped the so-called system of check and balances, the only one which, according to them, was able to prevent tyranny and abuses of power. [...]
[...] This means that the Court has been particularly active in striking down unconstitutional laws or has deeply evolved in the way of interpreting the Supreme Law. Most of the time, they are period of criticisms. The justices are accused of partiality in their judgments and of worrying about primacy more than about the Constitution's one. At the contrary, the Court has also had some judicial self-restriction period. It has been very careful about not making controversial decisions or very concerned about respecting the elected bodies' choices. [...]
[...] It is important to add that apart from the real role that the Supreme Court does play in the American political system, there is the non-direct role that it plays, up river, during its nomination. All the ambitions and attempts of influences surrounding the nomination of its members are not really the Supreme Court's, in itself, role nonetheless they are also linked with the institution. To conclude, the Supreme Court is, first of all, a judicial body and thus acts with the same procedures as a court of law. [...]
[...] As numerous judicial review powers in the world, the Supreme Court is often criticized in its role of final interpreter of the Constitution as being a non-democratic body supporting a “government of judges”.[5] So how this power of judicial review has been developed to grant the Supreme Court such a polemical aura? As said previously, the Constitution does not give any judicial review power to the Supreme Court, nor does the Congress when it established the federal court system in 1789. [...]
[...] Baum, The Supreme Court, Politics and Public Policy Series, CQ Press - M. Gallagher, M. Laver, P.Mair ; Representative government in modern Europe ; 4th Edition ; McGraw Hill Higher Education Websites: - http://www.supremecourtus.gov/about/about.html - http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html (accessed 25/03/07) R. McKeever, J. Zvesper, R. Maidment; Politics USA; Prentice Hall, 1999: p365. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_unsuccessful_attempts_to_amend_the_U.S. _Constitution (accessed 23/03/07) D. McKay, American Politics and Governing , Blackwell :p55. M. Gallagher, M. Laver, P.Mair ; Representative government in modern Europe ; 4th Edition ; McGraw Hill Higher Education P:94 [...]
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