Do Lifetime Supreme Court Appointments Still Make Sense?
*By Amanda Weston*
Justice Brett Kavanugh's Saturday confirmation may have awakened some Americans to a different version of the Supreme Court.
"I think if there's any silver lining to this, \[it's that]\ we should stop thinking that it was ever non-political," John Iadarola, co-host of The Young Turks, told Cheddar Monday.
"This idea that there are activist judges and there are other judges that, despite the fact that they work in politics, that they pay attention to politics every day, they did their entire lives, they're not actually swayed by any political ideology or anything like that. That's absurd. These are political figures."
Nick Givas, reporter at The Daily Caller, agreed. He told Cheddar that many have tried to convince others the Supreme Court is "this unbiased holy entity that is above reproach."
But that's not really the case, he said.
"I mean, it's appointed by presidents," Givas said. "We count them by conservatives versus liberals. Every time we break down the numbers and the balance of 'the Court' it's a political balance, and they decide cases that are going to affect the law ー the law of the land, people's everyday lives. It's hard not to be political. We're asking them to be more than just men and women. We're asking them to be completely incorruptible, and they're human."
Politics and controversy were major players in Kavanaugh's confirmation. The Senate approved him for the job Saturday by a slim 50-48 vote ー the slimmest confirmation margin since 1881 ー as some onlookers in the gallery repeatedly [shouted, "shame!"](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/06/us/politics/brett-kavanaugh-supreme-court.html)
The vote came a little over a week after dramatic testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee from both Prof. Christine Blasey Ford, who accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her when the two were in high school, and the judge who vehemently denied the allegations.
Democrats slammed the [ensuing FBI investigation](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/grassley-says-new-fbi-report-kavanaugh-includes-no-new-info-n916601) as incomplete, whereas many Republicans praised it. Even President Donald Trump weighed in.
"This is now the 7th time the FBI has investigated Judge Kavanaugh. If we made it 100, it would still not be good enough for the Obstructionist Democrats," [he tweeted](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1047853098365079553).
Iadarola alluded to the "popular mythology" that Justices are driven only by Constitutional concerns, not party.
"That might be true to some extent, but they are political people," he said. "And Brett Kavanaugh just makes that even more obvious, especially with his rant during his testimony about some sort of bizarre Clinton revenge plot."
Givas said another possible effect of Kavanaugh's confirmation has yet to be seen.
"Obviously the Democrats are getting a boost because they lost this fight, so they're going to come out and definitely vote," Givas said. "But I think Republicans, I think they're upset about this process, whether he was going to be confirmed or not. This has awoken a party that was asleep."
Givas said those who weren't planning to vote may now cast ballots for the GOP, potentially contributing to an unforeseen "red wave."
"I think they're going to defy conventional wisdom and the current polling," Givas said. "I think they are going to hold the House, and they're going to hold the Senate."
Kavanaugh officially begins his duties as Justice on Tuesday.
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/kavanaugh-confirmation-makes-waves-through-washington).
A Gallup poll finds that now 7.1% of American adults identify as LGBTQ, jumping from 3.5% in 2012. The increase is driven by Generation-Z – those born between 1997 and 2003 – of whom one out of five identify as LGBTQ. Cheddar News speaks with Washington Blade reporter Chris Johnson about the significant shift.
As the Biden administration continues to see the potential for an imminent invasion of Ukraine after contradictory reports of a Russian troop pullback or buildup, Rep. Ami Bera (D-Calif. 7th District), a member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, joined Cheddar News to give his insight into the tense situation. "When I was in Ukraine a couple of weeks ago and we were talking with the Ukrainian leadership with President Zelensky, they said we ought to approach Vladimir Putin as though he was a poker player," he said. "So this could be one of those head fakes where he's saying one thing and doing another thing."
The Biden Administration has now issued new guidelines when it comes to carbon capture. The new guidelines handed down this week encouraged the widespread use of climate attacks that traps and stores carbon emissions. The goal here is the process would help keep carbon out of the atmosphere without requiring a whole lot of change by big companies and manufacturing plants. Several scientists say that this method would be crucial to help us decrease the use of carbon emissions by the year 2050. Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Stanford University, Mark Jacobson, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Natalie Fertig, federal cannabis policy reporter for Politico Pro, joins Cheddar News to discuss the latest in marijuana legalization in the United States.
The Biden administration is launching a new task force to promote the use of 'cleaner' construction materials with lower life cycle emissions. This comes as the White House works to speed up government purchases of greener products. Sweta Chakraborty, climate change expert and U.S. president of "We Don't Have Time," joins Cheddar News to discuss.
Due to the staffing shortages of teachers in New Mexico, the state has been encouraging its National Guard members to fill in as licensed substitutes to keep schools open. Kurt Steinhaus, New Mexico secretary of education, joined Cheddar News to explain the state's stopgap measure amid its lack of teaching professionals. "The first thing they have to go through a fingerprint background check, just like any other substitute new Mexico. The second thing they have to do is go through some online training, and then we provided some in-person professional development about classroom management," Steinhaus explained about the qualifications process.
With contradictory reports about Russian troops pulling back or being added to the border with Ukraine and the expulsion of a U.S. diplomat from Russia, tensions in the region appear to be escalating. Jack Detsch, a Pentagon and national security reporter for Foreign Policy, joined Cheddar News to break down the situation. "Certainly a different tone out of Moscow today and a different tone out of the West. Even as the Kremlin has made the case that troops are moving back, the U.S. is saying that is certainly not the case with the satellite imagery that we have pouring in," he said.
New York City's famous subway system is currently facing scrutiny after several recent attacks on platforms. Now, local leaders in the Big Apple are calling on the MTA. To step in and take action.
