Greg Stohr, Supreme Court Reporter for Bloomberg News, analyzes the views of presidential candidates Senators Barack Obama (D-IL) and John McCain (R-AZ) and their comments made on the current make up of the Supreme Court during the Saddleback Ranch forum held on August 16, 2008.

Discussion Questions

1. What does Sen. Obama regard as one of the most important jobs of the Supreme Court? What does he mean when he refers to "the encroachment of the executive branch on the power of the other branches"? Why might this be problematic?
2. List the 3 justices Sen. Obama identifies as those he would not have nominated for the Supreme Court if he were president. Why do you think that Sen. Obama references those specific justices? Which justice does he state has given the administration “more power than I think the Constitution had originally intended”?
3. On what basis does Sen. McCain believe a Supreme Court justice should be nominated? What does he mean by “legislating from the bench”?
4. List the 4 justices Sen. McCain identifies as those he would not have nominated for the Supreme Court if he were president. Why do you think that Sen. McCain references those specific justices?
5. What factors come into consideration when describing a Supreme Court justice as "conservative" or "liberal"? What does it mean to "overturn precedents"? Give some examples of this being done in the past.
6. Click here to view an additional clip of democratic vice presidential nominee Senator Joe Biden discussing the potential impact of this year’s elections on the makeup of the Supreme Court.