Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia’s unexpected death left Washington in gridlock: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell vowed not to confirm any nominee that President Obama might put forward prior to the presidential election.
The Weeds: the Supreme Court vacancy and the possible collapse of American democracy
No other democracy gives its high court justices life tenure on the bench — so no other country has these unexpected, tumultuous, and sudden vacancies. So on this episode of The Weeds, we talk about the case for term-limiting the Supreme Court and what that might mean for the legal system.
Also on this episode: a look at the political fight over Scalia’s replacement and a 25-year-old work of political science that implies the United States is heading for a coup. What fun! You can find the episode below or on iTunes. Send us your feedback and show ideas at weeds@vox.com.
Show notes:
- “Life Tenure, Re-Considered,“ the paper from Steven Calabresi and James Lindgren making the case for term limits on the Supreme Court
- Alexander Hamilton’s Federalist Paper on judicial tenure, Federalist 78
- David Stras’s paper in favor of life terms — and “golden parachutes” for Supreme Court justices
- Ezra’s “semi-persuasive piece” on why prominent Republicans ended up blocking any nominee
- Juan Linz’s “Perils of Presidential Democracy”
- Ezra thinks American democracy will muddle along
- Matt argues that our democracy is doomed
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