1 00:00:08,754 --> 00:00:13,444 There's a job out there with a great deal of power, pay, prestige, 2 00:00:13,444 --> 00:00:16,244 and near-perfect job security. 3 00:00:16,244 --> 00:00:18,485 And there's only one way to be hired - 4 00:00:18,485 --> 00:00:21,874 get appointed to the US Supreme Court. 5 00:00:21,874 --> 00:00:24,494 If you want to become a Justice on the Supreme Court, 6 00:00:24,494 --> 00:00:27,204 the highest federal court in the United States, 7 00:00:27,204 --> 00:00:29,334 three things have to happen. 8 00:00:29,334 --> 00:00:32,395 You have to be nominated by the President of the United States, 9 00:00:32,395 --> 00:00:35,455 your nomination needs to be approved by the Senate, 10 00:00:35,455 --> 00:00:39,944 and finally, the President must formally appoint you to the court. 11 00:00:39,944 --> 00:00:43,554 Because the Constitution doesn't specify any qualifications, 12 00:00:43,554 --> 00:00:47,025 in other words, that there's no age, education, profession, 13 00:00:47,025 --> 00:00:50,216 or even native-born citizenship requirement, 14 00:00:50,216 --> 00:00:54,145 a President can nominate any individual to serve. 15 00:00:54,145 --> 00:00:57,305 So far, six Justices have been foreign-born, 16 00:00:57,305 --> 00:00:59,855 at least one never graduated from high school, 17 00:00:59,855 --> 00:01:04,375 and another was one 32 years old when he joined the bench. 18 00:01:04,375 --> 00:01:09,815 Most presidents nominate individuals who broadly share their ideological view, 19 00:01:09,815 --> 00:01:11,785 so a president with a liberal ideology 20 00:01:11,785 --> 00:01:14,493 will tend to appoint liberals to the court. 21 00:01:14,493 --> 00:01:18,376 Of course, a Justice's leanings are not always so predictable. 22 00:01:18,376 --> 00:01:21,396 For example, when President Eisenhower, a Republican, 23 00:01:21,396 --> 00:01:24,285 nominated Earl Warren for Chief Justice, 24 00:01:24,285 --> 00:01:27,616 Eisenhower expected him to make conservative decisions. 25 00:01:27,616 --> 00:01:31,342 Instead, Warren's judgements have gone down as some of the most liberal 26 00:01:31,342 --> 00:01:32,976 in the Court's history. 27 00:01:32,976 --> 00:01:35,106 Eisenhower later remarked on that appointment 28 00:01:35,106 --> 00:01:39,256 as "the biggest damned-fool mistake" he ever made. 29 00:01:39,256 --> 00:01:42,196 Many other factors come up for consideration, as well, 30 00:01:42,196 --> 00:01:47,155 including experience, personal loyalties, ethnicity, and gender. 31 00:01:47,155 --> 00:01:49,236 The candidates are then thoroughly vetted 32 00:01:49,236 --> 00:01:53,127 down to their tax records and payments to domestic help. 33 00:01:53,127 --> 00:01:55,186 Once the president interviews the candidate 34 00:01:55,186 --> 00:01:57,406 and makes a formal nomination announcement, 35 00:01:57,406 --> 00:02:01,417 the Senate leadership traditionally turns the nomination over to hearings 36 00:02:01,417 --> 00:02:04,106 by the Senate Judiciary Committee. 37 00:02:04,106 --> 00:02:06,316 Depending on the contentiousness of the choice, 38 00:02:06,316 --> 00:02:08,766 that can stretch over many days. 39 00:02:08,766 --> 00:02:13,127 Since the Nixon administration, these hearings have averaged 60 days. 40 00:02:13,127 --> 00:02:16,796 The nominee is interviewed about their law record, if applicable, 41 00:02:16,796 --> 00:02:21,246 and where they stand on key issues to discern how they might vote. 42 00:02:21,246 --> 00:02:23,718 And especially in more recent history, 43 00:02:23,718 --> 00:02:28,656 the committee tries to unearth any dark secrets or past indiscretions. 44 00:02:28,656 --> 00:02:32,627 The Judiciary Committee votes to send the nomination to the full Senate 45 00:02:32,627 --> 00:02:35,518 with a positive or negative recommendation, 46 00:02:35,518 --> 00:02:40,648 often reflective of political leanings, or no recommendation at all. 47 00:02:40,648 --> 00:02:43,357 Most rejections have happened when the Senate majority 48 00:02:43,357 --> 00:02:47,148 has been a different political party than the president. 49 00:02:47,148 --> 00:02:50,028 When the Senate does approve, it's by a simple majority vote, 50 00:02:50,028 --> 00:02:53,297 with ties broken by the vice president. 51 00:02:53,297 --> 00:02:54,547 With the Senate's consent, 52 00:02:54,547 --> 00:02:57,034 the president issues a written appointment, 53 00:02:57,034 --> 00:02:59,568 allowing the nominee to complete the final steps 54 00:02:59,568 --> 00:03:02,963 to take the constitutional and judicial oaths. 55 00:03:02,963 --> 00:03:03,963 In doing so, 56 00:03:03,963 --> 00:03:08,030 they solemnly swear to administer justice without respect to persons 57 00:03:08,030 --> 00:03:10,669 and do equal right to the poor and the rich 58 00:03:10,669 --> 00:03:15,918 and faithfully and impartially discharge and perform all the duties encumbent 59 00:03:15,918 --> 00:03:19,113 upon a US Supreme Court Justice. 60 00:03:19,113 --> 00:03:20,773 This job is for life, 61 00:03:20,773 --> 00:03:25,371 barring resignation, retirement, or removal from the court by impeachment. 62 00:03:25,371 --> 00:03:28,713 And of the 112 Justices who have held the position, 63 00:03:28,713 --> 00:03:33,868 not one has yet been removed from office as a result of an impeachment. 64 00:03:33,868 --> 00:03:37,959 One of their roles is to protect the fundamental rights of all Americans, 65 00:03:37,959 --> 00:03:40,300 even has different parties take power. 66 00:03:40,300 --> 00:03:43,399 With the tremendous impact of this responsibility, 67 00:03:43,399 --> 00:03:47,398 it's no wonder that a US Supreme Court Justice is expected to be, 68 00:03:47,398 --> 00:03:49,419 in the words of Irving R. Kaufman, 69 00:03:49,419 --> 00:03:51,339 "a paragon of virtue, 70 00:03:51,339 --> 00:03:53,000 an intellectual Titan, 71 00:03:53,000 --> 00:03:56,190 and an administrative wizard." 72 00:03:56,190 --> 00:04:00,563 Of course, not every member of the Court turns out to be an exemplar of justice. 73 00:04:00,563 --> 00:04:03,740 Each leaves behind a legacy of decisions and opinions 74 00:04:03,740 --> 00:04:07,200 to be debated and dissected by the ultimate judges, 75 00:04:07,200 --> 00:04:09,203 time and history.