Supreme Court: Mack Truck v. Motor Scooter

Judicial independence is a matter of constitutional law and American tradition. By the strict design of our Founders, our separate court system has been independent of party politics, and therefore not guided by party platforms and party leaders as are the other two branches of our government.

In 1938, President Franklin D. Roosevelt tested that separation. Frustrated by the U.S. Supreme Court’s resistance to his New Deal programs, FDR backed legislation to essentially expand the court from nine to 15 members. With his overwhelming Democratic majorities in Congress, Roosevelt thought that for...