I want my SCOTUS TV!
Television cameras and term limits at the Supreme Court?
That seems to be what the majority of Americans want, according to a new poll.
A survey by Fairleigh Dickinson University’s PublicMind shows that 60 percent of respondents think televising oral arguments and other Supreme Court proceedings would be “good for democracy,” the National Law Journal‘s Tony Mauro reports.
The results of the poll are similar to those found in a study by C-SPAN, which would air Supreme Court proceedings if the ban on cameras is ever lifted. Some lawmakers including Sen. Arlen Specter have pushed for legislation allowing cameras in the Court, but some justices and the Judicial Conference have expressed apprehension.
Despite the strong support for putting cameras in the courtroom of the nation’s highest court, it seems not many folks would set SCOTUS TV on their TiVos to watch Justice Antonin Scalia crack wise. Only 17 percent of those surveys said they’d watch such programming regularly, and about a third said they’d watch it at all.
The poll also shows support for 18-year term limits for Supreme Court justices. Currently four jurists on the high court – Justices John Paul Stevens, Scalia, Anthony Kennedy and Clarence Thomas – have been on the court longer than 18 years.
As a non-lawyer, and not even in the legal community at all, I’d love to see SCOTUS TV. As an American citizen I’d love to see the workings of the court. Reading the transcripts is one thing, but seeing it makes it much more accessible!
However, I must firmly disagree with the idea of term limits. Thankfully the limit isn’t a multiple of 4, but still the founders made the appointments for life for a reason. Once you’re appointed you’re free to “do the right thing” and not worry about the consequences. As I see the SCOTUS their job is to apply the constitution to the law and not worry about the consequences. Adding any artificial limit to their term would undermine that charge.