THE SUPREME COURT

foreign [Applause] among the newest and most imposing of public buildings in Washington is the home of the highest judicial Authority in the land the Supreme Court of the United States established by the Constitution as one of the three branches of the federal government the Supreme Court enjoys equal Prestige with Congress and the presidency and exercise is tremendous influence in the Affairs of the nation more the size of the court has changed from time to time today it consists of the Chief Justice of the United States and eight associate justices all are appointed for Life by the president subject to confirmation by the Senate the Supreme Court has not always been held in the same awe as it is today originally little more than an Arbiter of disputes among the states the court assumed real importance in 1803 under Chief Justice John Marshall who took a broad view of the powers of the federal government a milestone in the history of the Court was its Assumption of the power of judicial review the authority to review legislative Acts in 1857 this power was used by Chief Justice Roger B Tony in invalidating the Missouri Compromise in the famed Dred Scott decision as the authority of the Supreme Court became more and more apparent in the life of the nation its members became almost as familiar to the man in the street as the president himself still fondly remembered and respected by most Americans is the first of the modern liberals of the Court the highly articulate associate Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes whose descents were often later cited in support of majority opinions following in the great tradition of homes where the scholarly associate justices Louis D Brandeis and Benjamin n Cardozo the non-partisan nature of the high bench was exemplified in the appointment of Harlan fist Stone to the court by a Republican and his elevation to the Chief Justice Ship by a Democrat early in the 1930s the U.S found itself in the midst of an economic depression unparalleled in history with industry virtually at a standstill almost 13 million Americans were jobless and suffering was widespread along with General business stagnation the country was plagued with drought and dust storms which left vast areas of once fertile farmlands exhausted and ruined unable to work their eroded lands Farmers gathered up whatever possessions they could and headed for the city only to swell the ranks of the unemployed to rescue the nation from economic and social disaster emergency legislation was immediately needed and when congress met in Washington in the spring of 1933 a new deal for the American people was demanded by President Roosevelt the president's remedial legislation was quickly passed by Congress and the program to bring federal aid to the stricken nation was put into effect without delay millions of workers began to get back on the payroll as U.S Industries cooperating with the government voluntarily adopted codes of fair practice under the National Recovery Act the AAA another New Deal measure sought to control agricultural output to ensure a stable market and better prices but the constitutionality of the government's emergency measures was soon challenged and lawsuits were brought in the federal district courts the decisions of the lower courts were reviewed by the Circuit Court of Appeals finally by 1937 the cases had been carried to the Supreme Court at that time the decisions of the nation's highest tribunal often hinged upon the opinions of two members one of whom was chief justice Charles Evans Hughes who was neither a rigid conservative nor a predictable liberal when the Supreme Court declared one act after another unconstitutional all new deal legislation seemed likely to be voided to a nation whose economic health appeared largely dependent on these measures the decisions of the high court were disruptive and bewildering as plain citizens everywhere sought to understand the new conditions imposed by the action of the court from the White House in Washington the decisions were attacked as a return to the horse and buggy era our difficulty with the court today Rises not from the court as an institution but from human beings within it but we cannot yield our constitutional destiny to the personal Judgment of a few men who being fearful of the future would deny us the necessary means of dealing with the present to overcome the Obstacle of an unfriendly Judiciary President Roosevelt urged Congress to use its constitutional power to increase the membership of the court so that additional jurists with more liberal views might be appointed the president's plan was widely condemned as a thinly veiled attempt to render the court ineffective more strictly political purposes because it would give the president control of the Court The Proposal was overwhelmingly rejected by Congress as a threat to the Constitutional balance of power between the branches of government but the echo of congressional debate had scarcely subsided before the character of the Supreme Court underwent inevitable natural changes as some of its members retired and others died younger and more liberal jurists were appointed bringing the court into closer alignment with the main political trends of the nation but whatever the changes in its Personnel whatever the political temper of the land the Supreme Court has a sacred trust as the ultimate guardian of liberty and justice for all [Music]