Viewpoints: The Supreme influence on 2020 campaign
By Morgan Marietta / For The Conversation
The Supreme Court began its annual session Oct. 7 and will take up a series of cases likely to have political reverberations in the 2020 elections.
Major cases this year address the immigration program for young people (Dreamers) known as DACA, the Affordable Care Act (again), and public money for religious schools.
Justices will also consider cases that involve several aspects of defendants rights: whether criminal convictions require a unanimous jury, minors can be given a life sentence and a state can abolish the insanity defense.
Some of the most important rulings will address the recognition of rights by the conservative court: gay rights, gun rights and Native rights.
These cases focus on perhaps the deepest divide on the court: Should the justices base their rulings on the contemporary meaning of words in our laws (or in the Constitution itself) as the public understanding of those concepts changes over time?
Or should they insist that our laws can only be changed from their original meaning by the countrys democratic representatives, who are directly accountable to the people?
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