Exceptional The present court is a joke. Change Needed by HarryT      There oughta be a law! Contest Winner

Our country is being led by an all-powerful, undemocratic, institution that is demolishing the First Amendment, which establishes the separation of church and state. To make matters worse, at least two members are accepting expensive gifts from donors, thus corrupting a fair and lawful judicial process. The court is severely unbalanced. Seven of the justices are Catholic, one is Protestant, and one is Jewish. Republican presidents appointed six of the justices, thus creating a supermajority and unbalancing the court in favor of radical conservative ideology. As Justice Ellen Kagan stated: “The majority disdains restraint, and grasps for power.” It is abundantly clear that several justices are consistently ignoring long-standing judicial principles in favor or their political party and personal faith, thus imposing their personal convictions upon the American people. I’m sick of the corruption and the religious ideology consistently on display in the decisions by several of the justices. Their decisions have taken medical decisions out of the hands of women and doctors and placed such matters in the hands of politicians. They have also encouraged the rise of Christian Nationalism in many of the Republican controlled states, thus violating the founding fathers’ concept of the separation of church and state. The new laws ought to be:  1) The term of a justice is limited to 12 years. 2) The court shall consist of four judges from each party with the Chief Justice voting only if there is a tie. Should a justice die or become incapacitated the House majority or minority leader of the party from which the judge was a member shall appoint a new person with the advice and consent of the House. 3) The Chief Justice shall be nominated by the President of the United States with the advice and consent of the senate. If one of the seating justices is selected as chief, then the House majority or minority leader of the party from which the Chief Justice is selected shall appoint a qualified person to the vacant position with the advice and consent of the House. 4) A justice shall be terminated if found to have accepted a gift that exceeds $100 dollars or engages in any corruption that influences his or her fair and lawful determination of a case. 5) A mandatory ethics pledge shall be drafted by a select Senate committee with an equal number of members from each party. A justice shall sign the document before he or she can begin serving on the court. Violation of the pledge shall merit immediate dismissal from the court. It is important to acknowledge that a term of office “for life” has no place in a democracy. The present Supreme Court is a laughingstock; unfortunately, the joke is on the American people and it is not funny. Writing Prompt This is open to both poetry and prose. You decide. No word count expectation but limited to 1000 words. There oughta be a law! Contest Winner

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