Requirements to Become a Supreme Court Justice

There are no explicit requirements in the U.S. Constitution for a person to be nominated to become a Supreme Court justice. No age, education, job experience, or citizenship rules exist. In fact, according to the Constitution, a Supreme Court justice does not need to even have a law degree. What Does the Constitution Say? The Supreme Court was established as a body in Article Three of the Constitution, signed in convention in 1787. Section I describes the roles of the Supreme and Lower Courts; the other two sections are for the kind of cases that should be examined by the Supreme Court (Section 2, since amended by the 11th Amendment); and a definition of treason.   The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. The Judges, both of the supreme and inferior Courts, shall hold their Offices during good Behaviour, and shall, at stated Times, receive for their Services, a Compensation, which shall not be diminished during their Continuance in Office. Article 3, U.S. Constitution However, since the Senate confirms justices, experience and background have become important factors in the confirmations, and conventions have been developed and largely followed since the first selection of the court during the first presidents term of office. George Washingtons Requirements The first U.S. President George Washington (1789–1797) had, of course, the most number of nominees to the Supreme Court—14, although only 11 made it to the court. Washington also named 28 lower court positions, and had several personal criteria that he used to pick a justice: Support and advocacy of the U.S. ConstitutionDistinguished service in the American RevolutionActive participation in the political life of a particular state or the nation as a wholePrior judicial experience on lower tribunalsEither a favorable reputation with his fellows or personally known to Washington himselfGeographic suitability—the original Supreme Court were circuit ridersLove of the country Scholars say his first criterion was the most important to Washington, that the individual had to have a strong voice in protecting the Constitution. The most any other president has been able to nominate is nine, during the four terms of office of Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1932–1945), followed by six nominated by William Howard Taft in his single term from 1909 to 1913. Qualities That Make a Good Judge Several political scientists and others have attempted to assemble a list of criteria that make a good federal judge, more as an exercise of looking at the past history of the court. American scholar Sheldon Goldmans list of eight criteria includes: Neutrality as to parties in litigation  Fair-mindedness  Being well-versed in the lawThe ability to think and write logically and lucidly  Personal integrityGood physical and mental health  Judicial temperament  Able to handle judicial power sensibly Selection Criteria Based on the 200 year history of selection criteria actually used by United States presidents, there are four which most presidents use in varying combinations: Objective meritPersonal friendshipBalancing representation or representativeness on the court (by region, race, gender, religion)Political and ideological compatibility   Sources Abraham, Henry Julian. Justices, Presidents, and Senators: A History of the U.S. Supreme Court Appointments from Washington to Clinton. Lanham, Maryland: Roman Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 1999. Print.Goldman, Sheldon. Judicial Selection and the Qualities That Make a Good Judge. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 462.1 (1982): 112-24. Print.Hulbary, William E., and Thomas G. Walker. The Supreme Court Selection Process: Presidential Motivations and Judicial Performance. The Western Political Quarterly 33.2 (1980): 185-96. Print.

Essay about Detente and the Cold War - 1017 Words

The United States developed into a world super power following World War II. Many of the Allies were deeply affected by the war financially and were struggling, thus leaving a vacuum that needed to be filled. The United States was thrust into the position of â€Å"policing† and assisting nations around the world. The Cold War was in many ways a psychological illusion however there were many factors that led to this illusion which were well founded. The Cold War stemmed from a multitude of factors, the difficult war against Nazi’s and Japan, Stalin behaviors were not trustworthy, Berlin blockade, Poland puppet government, the fall of China, the build up of arms and the birth nuclear weapons all fed fear-based anti-communist policies. In†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å" (Cox p.32) In 1960’s these factors began to falter in large part to the Vietnam War, which was taking economic and psychological toll on America. In 1960’s America was becoming di vided at home and struggling to understand the America’s intervention in foreign nations especially South Vietnam. When Nixon took office he wanted to quiet the protests, he wanted to get America out of Vietnam and focus on the falling economy at home. Thus Nixon purposed a period of relaxation with the Soviet Union. â€Å" Nixon and Kissinger hoped that such a relationship, which they deemed dà ©tente would lessen the threat of nuclear war, encourage the Soviets to pressure North Vietnam into a peace settlement.† (Gillon p. 1114) â€Å" President Nixon and Henry Kissinger wanted to abandon the costly pursuit of weapons superiority and instead focus on peaceful economic competition.† (Gillon p.1114) The idea of dà ©tente or relaxation of the Cold War â€Å"was more abstract proposition.† (Gillon p. 1114) It intentions were to modify relations between the United States and the Soviet Union and the Peoples Republic of China. The hope was that dà ©tente would slowly alter Soviet policy overtime and eventually end of the Cold War. Kissinger believed that Soviet and U.S. could establish a partnership, believing that U.S.S.R would grow to become dependent upon the U.S. through dà ©tente. In the 1960’s the Soviet Union had a â€Å"struggling economy in desperate need ofShow MoreRelatedWhy The Detente Didn t End The Cold War2437 Words   |  10 Pages3-315 Leonid Brezhnev Vs. Mikhail Gorbachev Why the dà ©tente didn’t end the cold war The cold war, which lasted from approximately 1947- 1991, was a state of political and military tension between the powers of the western and the eastern bloc- as championed by the United States and the Soviet Union. 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Energy Policy in Canada Free Essays

Each day millions of tons of fossil fuels are being consumed by the world. As most people already energy is the basis of industrial civilization; without energy, modern life would cease to exist. Presently, fossil fuels make up a large portion of present day energy sources. We will write a custom essay sample on Energy Policy in Canada or any similar topic only for you Order Now Canada, one of the world’s largest industrialized nations uses an abundance energy to support its ever growing society. However, the population of Canada is slowly growing each day and with that the closer demise of fossil fuels. For this reason Canada has implemented an energy policy which in turn is to establish guidelines and standards. In Canada, natural resource ownership is largely controlled by the various national provinces, which are allowed to legislate in the areas of resource development, production control, taxation, and resource extraction. Provincial governments have major responsibility for both the management of resources and environmental protection within their boundaries. The provinces are assisted in varying degrees by private companies in the exploration, development and distribution of natural resources. Because so much of Canadian energy policy lies outside of federal jurisdiction, strategic partnerships and linkages among provinces themselves and between provinces and the government are very important. In many cases, these take the form of shared commitments to provincial and territorial energy programs, building codes, environmental goals, and efficiency targets. However, the government’s resolve n environmental issues is still being questioned, however, due to a sharp debate over the matter of legislative versus voluntary measures on climate change For this reason it can be stated that Canada’s energy policy has some good policies but is still greatly flawed. Moreover, it is essential that alternatives to hazardous fossil fuels are found and efficiently implemented before the demise of fossil fuels is soon a reality. Also it is imperative that people of the world learn to conserve and prevent further abuse of fossil fuels. How to cite Energy Policy in Canada, Essay examples

Bankruptcy of the Kmart Corporation free essay sample

An analysis of the reasons behind the companys move to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. This paper presents an analysis of the corporations financial records in an effort to find out why the company chose to file for bankruptcy. It conducts a financial analysis comparison of Wal-Mart, Target and Kmart. Suggestions are made as to what Kmart can do to regain their status in the market. Kmart is a discount retailer with over 2,000 stores worldwide and at one time the chain was the leading discount retailer. Much of Kmarts troubles were made evident in November of last year when the company released its SEC quarterly report. The company cited an operating loss of $76 million compared at only $28 million for the same period the prior year. Kmarts operating losses had jumped from .3% in 2000 to 1% in 2001. In addition to the increase in operating loss there was an increase in the companys selling, general and administrative expenses. We will write a custom essay sample on Bankruptcy of the Kmart Corporation or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This increase was $145 million for the 39-week period, which ended on October 31, 2001. (Kmart Corp (KM))