The Supreme Court

 What did I learn?

I didn't know that the court specifically had to deem things either constitutional or unconstitutional. In their rulings, they must base their decision on their interpretations of the constitution.

The Fourteenth Amendment has been referred to as the "second Bill of Rights" due to its power to defend people against excessive state power as the Bill of Rights defends against excess federal power. 

This is less something I learned and more something I never really thought about, but the way that the Supreme Court has to interpret laws and rulings to include marginalized groups that weren't intended to matter to the system such as women and people of color. 

Before they begin a meeting or conference, every justice shakes every other justice's hand. That is just a good rule, helps keeps things civil. 

I had no idea that the court hearings were public.

What is most important about the Supreme Court

Supreme Court Justices cannot opt to change or fix something in their day to day lives. They have to wait for the country to decide it is a large enough issue so much so that only the Supreme Court can tackle it. Therefore, any ruling made wasn't because they wanted to change or fix it themselves, but rather because the American society wanted it changed or fixed and took it to them. 

What was most surprising?

I find it so fascinating that it (the Supreme Court) isn't based on anything more than, as Justice Antonin Scalia put it, "interpretive philosophy". Of course, they think about contemporary standings, their own political beliefs, and legal proceedings, but truly what most of their rulings come down to is how they read the original constitution. 

How did it change how I see the Supreme Court?

It humanized them for me. I mean I see every once in a while that these esoteric beings that have been doing this for years made a decision from these Olympian positions and think "how could they have any idea what is good for the American Populus when they are so disconnected from the everyday reality of American life". This reminded me that they are also still Americans who are affected by these decisions and have to live their everyday lives with the decisions they make.