Supreme Court Reflection

The Supreme Court are Interpreters of our Constitution and the Law of our Land

Before watching this video, I understood that the U.S. Supreme Court held significant power. What I did not fully appreciate was how quietly that power operates or how much responsibility the justices carry.

Supreme Court Office, Washington D.C.

The Court receives thousands of requests for action, and every petition receives review. Petitions are distributed to individual justices, who consider their validity and whether they deserve debate before the full Court.

I was impressed that, despite the size of the country, every petition receives equal treatment. That process reflects how seriously the Court approaches its role, even though it accepts only certain cases for full consideration.

One important point stood out to me: When the Supreme Court declines to consider a case, that does not mean it supports or approves the lower court’s ruling.

The Court has been described as a quiet force, yet it is also the most powerful court in the world. Everyone is subject to its rulings and its interpretations of the Constitution.

I was also surprised to learn that barely more than 100 justices have served throughout the Court’s history. Many serve for 16 years or longer, remaining on the bench long after the president who appointed them has left office.

Former Chief Justice John Marshall

The justices help define the limits of government power by keeping Congress and the president in check. However, the Supreme Court was not always taken seriously. It gained greater authority by exerting Constitutional power over the other branches of government.

The Dred Scott Case showed how damaging a Supreme Court decision can be. The Court decided that it had no authority to end slavery, even though the Constitution could have allowed it to act. That mistake was not corrected until the Civil War.

The video also changed how I think about constitutional interpretation. The justices must apply a document written more than 200 years ago, during a time of slavery and when women could not vote, to the nation as it exists today.

“We must never forget that it is a Constitution we are expounding.” - John Marshall

For me, the biggest takeaway is that Supreme Court decisions can create lasting change, but precedent can also make future decisions more difficult.

My Top 5 Sources of News

I live in a very sports-dominated world with my desire to be a broadcaster, which means my number one source of news tends to be social media. Most specifically, Instagram. This is because the sports world is all about timeliness, or being able to break a story first. It is not uncommon for speed to surpass accuracy with sports reporting, which is why it has found such an effective home on social media, where you can reach the world in seconds. I am not sure I would recommend always trusting news from social media, but if you follow reliable sources like Adam Schefter or other reputable reporters, it can be a valuable tool for getting the "scoop" first.

ESPN Headquarters, Bristol, CT

My second most used source of news is ESPN. It does not necessarily have to be ESPN specifically, but other dependable, sports-dedicated websites and companies who do have a reputation for accuracy to uphold. I go to places like this most often to confirm the breaking news and information I see on social media, as well as to gather more details. I would recommend anyone who uses social media as a news source verify all the information they see there, but professional sports specifically run on trade rumors and all sorts of "he said she said" that make it hard to trust every clickbait post you see about your favorite teams. 

My third most-used source of news is specifically the website "Ground News." I am a big believer in staying at least somewhat up to date with politics so that you can be a responsible voter when another four years roll by and you unfortunately have to choose someone. I like Ground News because it offers multiple articles on the same topic and labels they with how left, right, or center leaning they are politically. One of the hardest things in our day and age is finding any type of unbiased political news source, and unfortunately in my searching, this is the closest I have found. I would recommend both this site, and always using a variety of sources, to anyone who likes to keep up with politics.

WLWT in Cincinnati, OH

Coming in fourth is the local channel nightly news on television. This habit started with me as a kid because my parents were very education-centric, and if I noticed it was getting late while doing my homework, I always knew that telling them I wanted to watch the 11 o'clock news with them would be a surefire way to stay up even longer (As all kids desire for whatever reason). Old habits die hard, though, and whenever I happen to be up extra late, I tend to throw on the news for a little entertainment. I would definitely recommend tuning in to local channels for anyone who wants to get the breaking national coverage as well as information about their area they may find surprisingly useful.

My fifth and final source is simply the Apple News app on my phone. I distinguish it from social media because I don't tell to really scroll through it or actively use the app itself, but I do get notifications from time to time of the really big headlines that everyone across the country should now. It is definitely not a source of news I rely on very heavily, but it can be very useful when it notifies me of breaking news or a big story. I know when I see that notification pop up that it is an important headline. I would recommend that everyone have some sort of outlet that notifies them of urgent national news.