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Magazine Opinions Donald Trump Supreme Court United States US politics

America’s compromised Supreme Court

With Kavanaugh on the bench, the court will struggle to retain its authority

By Dahlia Lithwick  
October 12, 2018
November 2018

Lofty judge, crusading conservative: Chief Justice John Roberts. Photo: AP/SHUTTERSTOCK

As the Brett Kavanaugh confirmation nightmare sinks into American memory, some things will happen very quickly. Donald Trump’s celebratory shouts will fade, and Kavanaugh will quietly settle into his seat on the Supreme Court. The other eight justices, regardless of their personal view of his furious, partisan testimony at a Senate hearing dominated by sexual assault allegations, will give him cover, papering over the cracks to insist that the family is a happy one. Elena Kagan, one of the…

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Dahlia Lithwick

Dahlia Lithwick is a senior editor at Slate

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