Supreme Court Justices are supposed to be above the fray of politics and individual bias but in recent years the many 5-4 decisions of the Roberts Court have called this assumption into question. The justices would deny this, of course. Some can claim the mantle of objectivity more credibly than others but in the end the divided court looks a lot like our divided country. Political worldviews accounts for much of the divergent opinions but Bruce Allen Murphy also finds that, at least in the case of Justice Antonin Scalia, religion plays a role. In reviewing Murphy’s book (Scalia a Court of One) Dahlia Lithwick delves into the topic of Scalia’s Catholicism and the role of religion at the Supreme Court in general. (“Scalia v. Scalia: Does his faith influence his judicial decision making?”) I have not read Murphy’s book but Lithwick’s summary is thought-provoking and I think raises some important questions related the Supreme Court’s decision making process. I would highly recommend reading it.

When reading an article in the recent issue (June 5) of The New York Review of Books I came across a great quote from the conservative Chief Justice Warren Burger, who opposed the NRA individual rights version of the Second Amendment, claiming that it “has been the subject of one of the greatest pieces of fraud, I repeat the word ‘fraud,’ on the American public by special interest groups that I have ever seen in my lifetime.” Of course this version has been legitimized by the Supreme Court’s 2008 decision in District of Columbia v. Heller. It’s hard to justify this position historically but Justice Scalia insists that his decision reflects the original intent of the framers, although the decision does allow for restrictions on this “individual” right.

I would also recommend reading Cass R. Sunstein’s article, where I got this quote. He reviews the former Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens’ new book (Six Amendments: How and Why We Should Change the Constitution).

Today marks the 25th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre of Chinese citizens who had gathered at Tiananmen Square to protest government policies. The New York Times‘ Nicholas Kristof was there and recalls his memories of the event in today’s paper (“The Turning Point That Wasn’t”). I highly recommend watching Krisof’s video and his interview with Natalie Kitroeff. There is also another great article on the topic in today’s The New York Times (“Tiananmen Square: Forgotten”). This article explains how the event has been largely forgotten in China.