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The most dangerous branch : inside the Supreme Court's assault on the Constitution / David A. Kaplan.

By: Material type: TextTextPublisher: New York : Crown, 2018Edition: First editionDescription: xiv, 446 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, most of which are in colour ; 24 cmContent type:
  • text
Media type:
  • unmediated
Carrier type:
  • volume
ISBN:
  • 9781524759902
  • 1524759902
Subject(s):
Contents:
Introduction: The end of the world as they knew it ; Prologue: Death at the ranch -- Part I: Characters. The marble temple ; No. 9 ; Confirmation world ; Deploying the warhead ; The institutionalist and the notorious ; The left flank ; The right flank ; Deus ex machina -- Part II: Cases. Sleeping giant ; The runaway court ; Revenge of the right ; James Madison made us do it ; For the love of money ; A disdain for democracy ; Roe by any other name? -- Epilogue: A less dangerous branch.
Summary: "Taking us inside the secret world of the Supreme Court, [this book] is an incisive look at how the justices undermine the rule of the other branches of government--and how we've come to accept it at our peril. Never before has the Supreme Court been more central in American life. It is the nine justices who too often now decide the controversial issues of our time--from abortion and same-sex marriage to gun control, campaign finance, and voting rights. The Court is so crucial that many voters in 2016 made their choice for president based on whom they thought their candidate would name to the Court. Donald Trump picked Neil Gorsuch--the key decision of his new administration. The next justice--replacing Anthony Kennedy--will be even more important, holding the swing vote over so much social policy. Is that really how democracy is supposed to work? Based on exclusive interviews with the justices and dozens of their law clerks, prize-winning legal journalist David A. Kaplan provides fresh details about life behind the scenes at the Court--Clarence Thomas's simmering rage, Antonin Scalia's death, Ruth Bader Ginsburg"s celebrity, Breyer Bingo, the petty feuding between Gorsuch and the chief justice, and what John Roberts thinks about his critics. In the bestselling tradition of The Nine and The Brethren, Kaplan presents a sweeping narrative of the justices' aggrandizement of power over the decades--from Roe v. Wade to Bush v. Gore to Citizens United to the rulings of the 2017-18 term. But the arrogance of the Court isn't partisan: Conservative and liberal justices alike are guilty of overreach. Challenging conventional wisdom about the Court's transcendent power, [this book] is sure to rile both sides of the political aisle."--Dust jacket.
Holdings
Item type Home library Collection Call number Materials specified Status Date due Barcode Item holds
Adult Book Adult Book Main Library NonFiction 347.7326 K17 Available 33111009270204
Total holds: 0

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

In the bestselling tradition of The Nine and The Brethren , The Most Dangerous Branch takes us inside the secret world of the Supreme Court. David A. Kaplan, the former legal affairs editor of Newsweek, shows how the justices subvert the role of the other branches of government--and how we've come to accept it at our peril.

Never before has the Court been more central in American life. It is now the nine justices who too often decide the biggest issues of our time--from abortion and same-sex marriage to gun control, campaign finance, and voting rights. The Court is so crucial that many voters in 2016 made their choice based on whom they thought their presidential candidate would name to the Court. Donald Trump picked Neil Gorsuch--the key decision of his new administration. The newest justice, Brett Kavanaugh--replacing Anthony Kennedy--is even more important, holding the swing vote over so much social policy. With the 2020 campaign underway, and with two justices in their '80s, the Court looms even larger. Is that really how democracy is supposed to work?

Based on exclusive interviews with the justices, Kaplan provides fresh details about life behind the scenes at the Court: the reaction to Kavanaugh's controversial arrival, the new role for Chief Justice John Roberts, Clarence Thomas's simmering rage, Antonin Scalia's death, Ruth Bader Ginsburg's celebrity, Breyer Bingo, and the petty feuding between Gorsuch and the chief justice.

Kaplan offers a sweeping narrative of the justices' aggrandizement of power over the decades--from Roe v. Wade to Bush v. Gore to Citizens United. (He also faults the Court for not getting involved when it should--for example, to limit partisan gerrymandering.) But the arrogance of the Court isn't partisan: Conservative and liberal justices alike are guilty of overreach. Challenging conventional wisdom about the Court's transcendent power, as well as presenting an intimate inside look at the Court, The Most Dangerous Branch is sure to rile both sides of the political aisle.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 375-417) and index.

Introduction: The end of the world as they knew it ; Prologue: Death at the ranch -- Part I: Characters. The marble temple ; No. 9 ; Confirmation world ; Deploying the warhead ; The institutionalist and the notorious ; The left flank ; The right flank ; Deus ex machina -- Part II: Cases. Sleeping giant ; The runaway court ; Revenge of the right ; James Madison made us do it ; For the love of money ; A disdain for democracy ; Roe by any other name? -- Epilogue: A less dangerous branch.

"Taking us inside the secret world of the Supreme Court, [this book] is an incisive look at how the justices undermine the rule of the other branches of government--and how we've come to accept it at our peril. Never before has the Supreme Court been more central in American life. It is the nine justices who too often now decide the controversial issues of our time--from abortion and same-sex marriage to gun control, campaign finance, and voting rights. The Court is so crucial that many voters in 2016 made their choice for president based on whom they thought their candidate would name to the Court. Donald Trump picked Neil Gorsuch--the key decision of his new administration. The next justice--replacing Anthony Kennedy--will be even more important, holding the swing vote over so much social policy. Is that really how democracy is supposed to work? Based on exclusive interviews with the justices and dozens of their law clerks, prize-winning legal journalist David A. Kaplan provides fresh details about life behind the scenes at the Court--Clarence Thomas's simmering rage, Antonin Scalia's death, Ruth Bader Ginsburg"s celebrity, Breyer Bingo, the petty feuding between Gorsuch and the chief justice, and what John Roberts thinks about his critics. In the bestselling tradition of The Nine and The Brethren, Kaplan presents a sweeping narrative of the justices' aggrandizement of power over the decades--from Roe v. Wade to Bush v. Gore to Citizens United to the rulings of the 2017-18 term. But the arrogance of the Court isn't partisan: Conservative and liberal justices alike are guilty of overreach. Challenging conventional wisdom about the Court's transcendent power, [this book] is sure to rile both sides of the political aisle."--Dust jacket.

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