Thom Hartmann: This Election Will Change The Supreme Court for a Generation

[thomhartmann]

Chief Justice John Roberts cast the deciding judgment upholding Obamacare as constitutional - and triggered a near mutiny by his right flank on the high court. Right after the decision - Roberts left the country and went to Malta to dodge all the criticism he knew he was going to get from Conservatives in the coming days and weeks. And that's how the last Supreme Court term ended. Now - three months later - a new Supreme Court term kicks off today. And though Obamacare isn't on the docket this term - a bunch of other high profile, crucially important cases are.

First on the list - affirmative action for college admissions. Arguments in "Fisher v. The University of Texas" are scheduled to begin on October 10th - and the court could strike down racial or economic preferences in college admissions. And given the court's 5-to-4 Conservative advantage - it's likely they'll do just that. Next up - the court will weigh in on whether or not corporations can be liable for human rights abuses overseas - namely whether or not Royal Dutch Petroleum can be sued for being complicit in atrocities committed by the Nigerian Government. The court is also scheduled to hear cases about drug-sniffing dogs and warrantless searches. And legal questions concerning the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act - known as FISA - which allows the US government to eavesdrop on overseas communications - are expected to be addressed by the high court as well.

Those are some of the cases on the Court's schedule this term. But there are two other very important cases that the high court will likely hear as well. First - marriage equality. Several lower courts have now struck down the Defense of Marriage Act as unconstitutional - meaning the Supreme Court will have the final say on whether a ban on same-sex marriage violates the civil rights of gays and lesbians.

And second - Voter Supression ID laws. In the last two years - Republican state legislatures have passed a series of Voter Suppression ID laws that are now being challenged in courts around the country, because it's been proven that such laws disproportionately affect minority voters. Attorney General Eric Holder has called such laws "poll taxes," which are explicitly prohibited in the Constitution. The debate over voting rights has become partisan - with mostly Republicans pushing for more voter suppression laws - and Democrats fighting back. Again - with the 5-4 Conservative advantage on the Supreme Court - the Right's effort to kick Democratic voters off the rolls could be upheld. This term will once again highlight the incredible amount of power the Supreme Court has seized over our government and, thus, our lives. What was once considered the third of three co-equal branches of government - has become the most powerful branch of government - a mini-Royal Court, if you will - able to strike down laws - and create news laws on it's own - overriding Congress and the President - and without any input from "we the people."

And that brings us to this year's Presidential election between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney. There are currently four sitting Supreme Court justices over the age of 70 - and three over the age of 75 - which means we could see some new Supreme Court members appointed by whoever is elected in November. Which means the next President - either Barack Obama or Mitt Romney - will play a critical role in shaping the direction this nation goes over the next generation - through their Supreme Court appointees. An Obama victory could tilt the court back to the center - preserving rulings like Roe v. Wade - and perhaps in the future doing away with rulings like Citizens United \\

On the other hand - a Romney victory could strengthen the fringe Right's harsh majority on the court - which already has been very good to corporate interests - and move us all closer and closer to a nation totally captive to corporate rule. So, say want you want about "choice of candidates" in this presidential election - and whether there is a real difference between the two candidates - but the reality is that this election will have a profound impact on the Supreme Court - and thus a profound impact on the nation that will last long after the next four years.

The Big Picture with Thom Hartmann on RT TV & FSTV "live" 9pm and 11pm check www.thomhartmann.com/tv for local listings

[Zen Democrat]

1. That Malta trip was in the works for months for Roberts to teach a law school class.

He didn't run away, he planned to go for quite a while. But he did delay reading the decision until the Court's last day.