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There's a job out there with a great
deal of power, pay, prestige,
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and near-perfect job security.
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And there's only one way to be hired -
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get appointed to the US Supreme Court.
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If you want to become
a Justice on the Supreme Court,
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the highest federal court
in the United States,
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three things have to happen.
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You have to be nominated by
the President of the United States,
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your nomination needs to be
approved by the Senate,
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and finally, the President must
formally appoint you to the court.
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Because the Constitution doesn't specify
any qualifications,
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in other words, that there's no age,
education, profession,
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or even native-born
citizenship requirement,
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a President can nominate any individual
to serve.
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So far, six Justices
have been foreign-born,
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at least one never graduated
from high school,
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and another was one 32 years old
when he joined the bench.
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Most presidents nominate individuals
who broadly share their ideological view,
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so a president with a liberal ideology
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will tend to appoint
liberals to the court.
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Of course, a Justice's leanings
are not always so predictable.
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For example, when President Eisenhower,
a Republican,
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nominated Earl Warren for Chief Justice,
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Eisenhower expected him
to make conservative decisions.
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Instead, Warren's judgements have gone
down as some of the most liberal
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in the Court's history.
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Eisenhower later remarked on that
appointment
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as "the biggest damned-fool mistake"
he ever made.
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Many other factors come up
for consideration, as well,
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including experience, personal loyalties,
ethnicity, and gender.
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The candidates are then thoroughly vetted
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down to their tax records
and payments to domestic help.
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Once the president interviews
the candidate
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and makes a formal nomination
announcement,
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the Senate leadership traditionally
turns the nomination over to hearings
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by the Senate Judiciary Committee.
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Depending on the contentiousness
of the choice,
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that can stretch over many days.
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Since the Nixon administration,
these hearings have averaged 60 days.
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The nominee is interviewed
about their law record, if applicable,
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and where they stand on key issues
to discern how they might vote.
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And especially in more recent history,
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the committee tries to unearth
any dark secrets or past indiscretions.
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The Judiciary Committee votes to send
the nomination to the full Senate
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with a positive
or negative recommendation,
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often reflective of political leanings,
or no recommendation at all.
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Most rejections have happened
when the Senate majority
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has been a different political
party than the president.
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When the Senate does approve,
it's by a simple majority vote,
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with ties broken by the vice president.
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With the Senate's consent,
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the president issues
a written appointment,
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allowing the nominee to complete
the final steps
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to take the constitutional
and judicial oaths.
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In doing so,
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they solemnly swear to administer
justice without respect to persons
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and do equal right to the poor
and the rich
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and faithfully and impartially discharge
and perform all the duties encumbent
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upon a US Supreme Court Justice.
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This job is for life,
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barring resignation, retirement,
or removal from the court by impeachment.
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And of the 112 Justices who have held
the position,
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not one has yet been removed from
office as a result of an impeachment.
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One of their roles is to protect
the fundamental rights of all Americans,
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even has different parties take power.
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With the tremendous impact
of this responsibility,
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it's no wonder that a US Supreme
Court Justice is expected to be,
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in the words of Irving R. Kaufman,
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"a paragon of virtue,
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an intellectual Titan,
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and an administrative wizard."
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Of course, not every member of the Court
turns out to be an exemplar of justice.
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Each leaves behind a legacy
of decisions and opinions
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to be debated and dissected
by the ultimate judges,
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time and history.