Do you know your Supremes?
It was only twelve months ago that President Obama's first nominee, the Honorable Sonia Sotomayor, was confirmed and sworn in as the newest member of the Supreme Court bench. Now, the President must carefully consider the best nominee to replace the long-serving Justice Stevens.
This is not the first time that a sitting President has been given the opportunity to nominate multiple individuals to the Supreme Court.
In fact, President Franklin Roosevelt attempted to change the Constitution so that there were more than 9 Justices. In his latest book, Supreme Power, author Jeff Shesol examines the events that occurred in 1936, centering on FDR's attempt to intervene on the court's power and opposition to his New Deal plans. FDR made a proposal to be able to nominate a judge for every sitting Justice over the age of 70, raising the question of age as a qualifier for the Supreme Court. In these times, age is once again a source of discussion, considering that Justice Stevens is the fourth-longest serving Justice, retiring at the age of 90.
Other places to learn more about our Supreme Court:
Cornell Law School- listing of recent decisions, as well as historical ones grouped by party, by author, and the yearly highlights.
Supreme Court of the United States - includes a calendar of events, oral arguments, opinions presented by the bench, and transcripts of arguments made.
Supreme Court Justices Biographies- one paragraph biographies of the sitting Justices. (Requires Adobe Reader)
SCOTUSBlog- this blog is frequently updated to reflect current happenings in the Supreme Court. Current features include a nomination analysis, a reflection on Justice Stevens' legal impact in the past 35 years, as well as petitions to watch in upcoming arguments.
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