Reshaping the Supreme Court

As the U.S. Senate debated the nomination of Judge John Roberts, Jr. to become the 17th chief justice of the United States, the Brookings Institution held a panel discussion on the issues likely to be raised in the Senate floor debate on the nomination as well as the important issues the court is expected to decide over the next twenty years. This session was the fifth Judicial Issues Forum, in an ongoing series of public discussions sponsored by the Brookings Governance Studies Program.

The Senate’s first confirmation hearing for a chief justice in nearly two decades, and the second vacancy on the nation’s highest court, will undoubtedly play crucial roles in determining the shape of the court’s direction for decades to come. The upcoming Senate debate will also be an important reflection of the emergence of the judiciary as a crucial battleground in American politics.