A visit to the United States Supreme Court -- the marbled home of the judicial branch of our government in Washington, D.C. -- begs reverence.
The Court’s current home did not open until 1935. Before, they convened in a cramped, damp basement room of Congress. Sitting in the actual courtroom, it was insuperable to ponder the important decisions made there -- good and bad -- that affect each of us: the Korematsu decision, the Brown decision, Miranda, Bakke, Bush v. Gore, Citizens United, the Obergefell decision, and more.
Recently I have heard some people question why the justices on the Supreme Court think they can overturn laws and tell us what is right and wrong. Well, it’s because of a unanimous ruling in 1803 in the Marbury v. Madison case. The first Chief Justice of the United States, John Marshall, wrote, “It is emphatically the province and duty of the Judicial Department to say what the law is.”
Politics is politics, but each branch has its own responsibility laid out in our Constitution.
Standing in the halls of the Supreme Court, I felt the gravity and weight of those historic decisions and can only respect the brilliance of our founding fathers and their drive to ensure there is always a referee keeping Congress and the Executive branches in line -- and vigilantly protecting the rights of all!
By all means, visit the Supreme Court, for it is one of the most important places any citizen can see. And, it is a sublimely beautiful building.
I am Joseph Flynn, and that is my perspective.
