who is responsible for nominating judges to the supreme court
Appointment and confirmation to the Supreme Court of the United States The appointment and confirmation of Justices to the Supreme Court of the United States involves several steps set forth by the United States Constitution, which have been further refined and developed by decades of tradition. Candidates are nominated by the President of the United States and must face a series of hearings in which both the nominee and other witnesses make statements and answer questions before the Senate Judiciary Committee, which can vote to send the nomination to the full United States Senate. Confirmation by the Senate allows the President to formally appoint the candidate to the court.
Nuclear option In November 2013, Senate Democrats led by Harry Reid used the nuclear option to eliminate the 60-vote rule on executive branch nominations and federal judicial appointments, but not for the Supreme Court[1]. In April 2017, Senate Republicans led by Mitch McConnell extended the nuclear option to Supreme Court and the nomination of Neil Gorsuch ending the debate[2].[3][4]
List of Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States There are currently nine justices serving on the Supreme Court; listed in order of seniority, they are:
Supreme Court of the United States Critic Larry Sabato wrote: "The insularity of lifetime tenure, combined with the appointments of relatively young attorneys who give long service on the bench, produces senior judges representing the views of past generations better than views of the current day."[226] Sanford Levinson has been critical of justices who stayed in office despite medical deterioration based on longevity.[254] James MacGregor Burns stated lifelong tenure has "produced a critical time lag, with the Supreme Court institutionally almost always behind the times."[210] Proposals to solve these problems include term limits for justices, as proposed by Levinson[255] and Sabato[226][256] as well as a mandatory retirement age proposed by Richard Epstein,[257] among others.[258] However, others suggest lifetime tenure brings substantial benefits, such as impartiality and freedom from political pressure. Alexander Hamilton in Federalist 78 wrote "nothing can contribute so much to its firmness and independence as permanency in office."[259]