Why Americans Must Pay More Attention to Our Legal System
In the summer of 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court made the controversial decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case, a landmark case that protected the right to abortion. For those who had taken this right for granted, this decision came out of nowhere. Others, however, had been working for years to overturn Roe v. Wade.
The overturning of Roe was the result of years of work by conservative legal activists and organizations, namely, Leonard Leo and The Federalist Society (or FedSoc), The Judicial Education Project, and the Concord Fund. These organizations, and Leo himself, have been working for years to appoint conservative justices on the Supreme Court and other major courts across the country to push a conservative agenda that included overturning Roe.
During the George Bush administration, Leo helped in the confirmation “campaigns” of both Justices John Roberts and Samuel Alito. He assisted by raising over $15 million combined in these races to help promote these Justices during their confirmation hearings. Both of these justices voted to overturn Roe.
For example, in 2016, during Donald Trump’s first presidential campaign, Leo created a list of potential Supreme Court Justices for Trump to nominate. During Trump’s time in office, he placed three Justices on the Court–Neil Gorsuch, Amy Coney Barret, and Brett Kavanaugh–all three of whom were on Leo’s list and who voted to overturn Roe.
Leo’s work doesn’t stop at the highest court in the United States. In 2008, Leo worked to get Judge Micheal Gableman elected to the Wisconsin Supreme Court. That was the first time an incumbent Justice had been unseated in over 40 years. In 2011, Leo continued to work in Wisconsin, helping to get Judge David Prosser re-elected. This all culminated in 2015 when the Wisconsin Supreme Court decided to protect the Republican Governor from prosecution. Both Gableman and Prosser voted to protect him.
Despite the 5-4 ruling in Dobbs, the overturning of Roe v. Wade was an unpopular decision. According to Pew Research, around 57% of adults in the U.S. disapprove of the decision. Because of strong public disapproval of the decision, the Court has faced strong scrutiny lately due to its practices. Reporting by ProPublica has uncovered corruption in the Court, especially the relationship between Justice Clarence Thomas and Harlan Crowe. This public audit of the Court has led to some measures, like an Ethics Code, however, some argue that the Ethics Code is not strong enough to make a strong impact as it does not include any real consequences if a rule is broken.
Although the public is starting to pay close attention to the movements of the Court, several Court decisions have already set impactful precedents. If the American people had been paying close attention all along, these changes and ethics violations may not have occurred in the first place. Though the Supreme Court is powerful, there are other courts, like the appeals courts and state Supreme Courts that affect our lives just as much.
Americans must pay attention to their local and state judicial elections and appointments. These judges have as much, if not more, power over the changes that happen to our daily lives than the Supreme Court. If the spotlight of scrutiny is not shining on them, they can get away with whatever they want. We must pay attention to the judicial system and hold our judges accountable.
Ruby Belt is a senior at Pacific Ridge School in Carlsbad, California. She is passionate about increasing engagement, especially among young people, in voting and local politics. When she is not volunteering or writing for NGP, you can find her baking cookies or making pasta.