America's Court of Last Resort
After reviewing History.com to learn more about the Supreme Court of the United States, I was interested to find that the basis the Court was founded upon was very different than I had previously thought. I had a perception of the Court that it was instituted as a much more powerful entity than it originally was. I see the Court as a much more political institution than it was outlined to be in Article III of the Constitution. It was also fascinating to me that Justices were originally required to hold circuit court twice a year. It seems that the Supreme Court has evolved greatly since its inception, and it is important to understand its roots.
Perhaps the most interesting thing I learned is that the first case that was heard by the court was addressing a mere financial dispute. In modern times, West v. Barnes does not seem to be a case worthy of being appealed to our highest court. When I consider what the court has done in American history, I tend to think of landmark cases such as Marbury v. Madison, Loving v. Virginia, Griswold v. Connecticut, and Roe v. Wade. These cases heavily impacted the course of America's cultural and political climates, painting a picture of an activist court. At times, it even becomes possible for the Court to legislate from the bench, which calls into question the very nature of the court itself.
Our Supreme Court was instituted to be our weakest branch of government, while still carrying out the duty of providing checks on our other branches. In the time since its institution, it has progressed greatly into a much more powerful force in our government. I would go even further to say that it has overstepped its bounds in many regards. Although the SCOTUS was never meant to function the way it currently does, it would be nearly impossible at this point to restore the court to its original status, so it is imperative that it remains as removed from modern political influence as possible.
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