It is to the credit of the chief justice that he recognizes that there is a problem.
By Rep. Hank Johnson
D-GA
I have a deep, abiding respect for the judiciary as an independent, co-equal branch of our government, and it is because of that deep respect I believe congressional action is needed to save the court from itself.
Americans’ constitutional rights are best protected when the people of this country have access to our courthouse doors. When corporations seek to take advantage of us, when our elected leaders seek to erode our civil rights, our citizens should be able to trust the court system with their complaints.
Much of the power of the judicial branch is founded in the trust placed in it by the American public. But that trust has been systematically eroded over the last several years. In a July 2023 report, the Pew Research Center found that a majority of Americans have an unfavorable view of the Supreme Court for the first time since their polling began more than 35 years ago. Decline in Americans’ trust was significant and sudden — in just three years, 1 in 4 Americans went from having a positive opinion of the Court to a negative opinion.
It’s not hard to see why the American public has lost trust in the judicial branch. Confirmations to the bench that once took months have been rushed through the Senate. Senators talk about “flipping” courts from blue to red, as though they’re swing states.
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