Blog #2: Supreme Court

     The Supreme Court holds some of the highest and most important power in the United States government. Made up of nine justices the Supreme Court hold the power to check the actions of the legislative and executive branch of our government.     

In 1789 our founding fathers established the Supreme Court and gave it its power through Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. Through the words of the Constitution it was decided that Congress would have the primary say in the organization of the Supreme Court. 

    Through the early meetings of the Supreme Court they focused on the organization and creating procurers that would form the court into what it is today. 

    During my research I learned about the first case of the Supreme Court. West Vs. Barns was a case where the court was debating an overturn on a Rhode Island state statue. This case reached the supreme court in its second year. During this case there was a 5-0 decision made in favor of Barnes. The case resulted in West loosing his farm. Before doing my research I was unsure of what the early cases of the Supreme Court were but I found it interesting to learn about the first few cases that founded and developed our system today. 

       The processes of being elected for the Supreme Court first require a nomination by the President then then an approval or a denial by the U.S Senate. The chief justice is the highest judicial officer in the nation. The countries current Chief Justice is John G. Roberts and he is serving as the 17th Chief Justice. This fact was surprising to me that since the start of the Supreme Court there has only been 17 Chief Justices. 

    Under the Chief Justices there are other seats in the Supreme Court. Through my research I learned that the first court was comprised of six justices. Later however Congress changed the number of seats to make it have a low of 5 to a high of 10. 

    Before watching the video on the Supreme Court it changed my knowledge on the power the Supreme Court held. My prior knowledge I knew the Supreme Court had a lot of power in the government system but I was surprised to learn about their power regarding the Impeachment of Presidents. 

    While learning about the power the Supreme Court held I read into a past Chief Justice named John Marshall. Marshall was considered to be one of the most influential justices the Supreme Court has seen. Marshall is best known for defining the relationship between the judicial branch of the government and the rest of the government. The case Marbury V. Maddison came up in this research because during this he established the power of the Supreme Court to review whether federal laws were constitutional. Marshall served as Chief Justice for more than 34 years making it the longest term of any Chief Justice. 

    I wanted to do some research to further my knowledge about how and why cases are brought to the Supreme Court. I read that cases typically start in lower level court systems like state courts. If the case appears to need more serious attention or there is a constitutional issue it has the ability to be brought to the Supreme Court. However before being accepted into the Supreme Court four out of the nine justices must vote and accept the case. 

    The Supreme Court may deny the case if they agree with the decision made by the lower court. They are also able to deny a case if there doesn't appear to be no national significance. If the case does not make it to the Supreme Court the decision of the lower court stands. 

    To conclude my research I was able to learn about multiple specifics regarding the Supreme Court. Prior to my research I knew basic facts however I wanted to spend more time learning about influential cases, chief justices and facts regarding the origin of the court and how it came to be what it is today.