History | Politics | Law

Why Is Ruth Ginsburg’s Death So Important?

The Supreme Court Described In Simple Terms

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was an inspiration to women and a powerful advocate for gender equality and women’s rights.

She was one of the last liberal justices and it is feared that Mr. Trump will appoint a conservative justice to replace her before he leaves the White House.

This will tilt the power balance directly in favor of the conservatives, effectively removing any hope of challenging legislation that affects abortion rights, Dreamer deportation, and other human rights issues.

One of the first rulings to be affected by her absence will be an upcoming challenge to Obamacare, also called the Affordable Care Act, which the Republicans are determined to overturn.

The Supreme Court of the United States

This court is the highest in the land and will hear appeals to lower court decisions if four of the supreme court justices agree the case has merit. The concept of this court was established by the Constitution and created by the Judiciary Act of 1789.

The court’s goal is to ensure Equal Justice For All Americans under the law.

Currently, the court is made up of the Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices. The president is responsible to nominate any new Associate Justices. The positions are lifetime appointments.

How is the voting split now?

There are nine positions on the Supreme Court, with a firm split of five conservatives and four liberals. Justice Ginsberg held a liberal seat. One of the conservative justices, Chief Justice Roberts, has sometimes split from the other conservatives and cast his vote with the liberals.

If Justice Ginsburg is replaced by a conservative justice, it will require two conservative justices to shift their vote to the liberals in order to prevent major precedent-setting decisions such as overturning Roe vs Wade, a long-standing abortion rights decision.

Women’s rights have been teetering on the edge for years.

As an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, Ruth was appointed to the supreme court in 1993. She was the only woman on the court for more than ten years.

A character and an icon, she died on September 18, 2020, after a long fight with pancreatic cancer.

Her last stated wish was that her replacement is to be made by the new President, after the election.

”Justice Ginsburg paved the way for so many women, including me. There will never be another like her. “Thank you RBG. — Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) September 19, 2020

8 reasons why her death is significant at this moment in history.

1. She was a strong leader of the liberal block on the Supreme Court, providing consistent direction for her fellow Associates and support against the powerful conservative majority.
2. Her vote on the Supreme Court facilitated the support of human rights and women's rights, especially in closely contested cases. If she is replaced by a Trump nominee, the conservatives will hold the balance of power in the Court.
3. The appointment of an Associate Justice is for their lifetime, so if the current president is able to fill her position it will affect the concept of ‘Equal Justice For All Americans Under the Law’ for years to come.
4. This vacancy now moves into the spotlight of the presidential campaign, making a contested appointment even more polarized.
5. She was a staunch advocate for women's rights and equality, her voice will be missed. Her favorite Amendment to the Constitution is the Fourteenth Amendment, which granted citizenship to “All persons born or naturalized in the United States.” Initially, this focused on former slaves but more recently it has been used to support children of immigrants.
6. She was and still is an inspiration to women around the world.
7. She was a mother and a grandmother, devoted to making the world a better place for her grandchildren.
8. She was kind and a generous friend and colleague, with an ironic sense of humor.

What are the steps required to replace an Associate Justice?

1. The President chooses a replacement and forwards his recommendation to the Senate.
2. The Senate Judiciary Committee reviews the nomination using a three-step process to determine their recommendation to the Senate.
3. The Senate majority leader asks the Senate for unanimous consent to open an executive session to consider the nomination.
4. After a series of complex maneuvers, if the nomination moves forward, there is a vote to confirm.
5. The President is able to use a loophole to bypass the Senate confirmation process and appoint an Associate Justice under Article II of the Constitution.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1993 until her death in 2020.

She was a powerful inspiration and an advocate for gender equality and women’s rights.

In order to win over a staunchly conservative male-dominated Supreme Court, she gradually laid out a trail of cases establishing the fact that laws created to protect women usually had the opposite effect of harming them. In this way, she eventually won over many conservative votes to her viewpoint.

The nominee chosen to replace her on the Supreme Court will have very large shoes to fill.

References:

Online document:

Richard Wolf, USA TODAY, Ruth Bader Ginsburg: Second woman on Supreme Court had been nation’s leading litigator for women’s rights. n.d. Retrieved Sept 19, 2020, from https://www.usatoday.com/

Caren Morrison, Associate Professor of Law, Georgia State University, Four steps to appointing a Supreme Court justice. n.d. Retrieved Sept 19, 2020, from https://theconversation.com/

Online Video:

MsMojo, YouTube, Top 10 Amazing Facts About Ruth Bader Ginsburg. n.d. Retrieved Sept 19, 2020 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4f1yyerc4Xk

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