The Supreme Court: The American Judicial System

The Supreme Court is the highest court of the judicial system and can shape the direction of the American judicial system and the morals of society. All other courts reside under the Supreme Court and adhere to the standards set in cases decided by the Supreme Court. The importance of the Supreme Court explains why the nomination of a new justice to the court can be a heated and contentious situation between the two parties that reside in the American political system. President Trump nominated Neil Gorsuch to fill a vacant seat on the court’s bench. This decision created a debate that led to a historic and unusual confirmation of a Supreme Court nominee. There was much animosity between members of the Senate because of unique situations and …show more content…
The first step in appointing a Supreme Court Justice is the President nominating the person he sees fit for the seat in the court. Once the individual is nominated by the President, the individual attends hearings by the Senate Judicial Committee. These hearings allow the Senate to question the nominee’s views on legal proceedings and their interpretation of the law. If there are any doubts regarding the nominee’s morals, legal precedent, or interests, the judicial committee can deny the nominee and force the President to choose a new nominee and the process will have to start over. However, the Senate Judicial Committee can also vote on whether to send the nominee to the floor of the Senate for further deliberation and a vote. A vote is then taken on the Senate floor on whether the nominee should be confirmed to the …show more content…
The opposing side of a topic can perform a filibuster on the Senate floor that can delay a vote. A filibuster is when a member of the Senate talks on the floor of the Senate until the session of Congress is adjourned. This would allow the issue to not be voted upon. Traditionally, to end a filibuster the Senate must have two thirds of the members of the Senate to vote to end debate on the topic; this is called cloture. However, there are ways around these issues of delaying a vote. There is the nuclear option, this option allows the majority party that controls the Senate to change the rules on voting and debating a topic and initiate cloture for a filibuster by a simple majority vote. In 2013 Democrats employed the nuclear option to change the rules for executive nominees to be confirmed by a majority vote because they controlled the Senate. Now, Republicans control the Senate and are returning the favor. To confirm Neil Gorsuch, Republicans implemented the nuclear option and changed the rules for initiating cloture to a simple majority vote. Therefore, the nomination and confirmation of a Supreme Court Justice can be a tense issue to arise in the Senate. There are many ways to confirm or deny topics in the Senate through the use of loopholes such the nuclear option and