I did a search for this article and using the keyword search feature and didn't see this article posted. Though the article is a day old, I thought it was still relevant.
FReepers who follow the Supreme Court might recall that Justice Scalia had made simlar remarks in a public speech a couple of weeks ago.
Isn't there a group of elected "servants" whose job it is to write the laws? What's that group? Congo, Conduit, Con..., oh, I remember, Congress. Yea, that's what it is. We have the opportunity to elect these people and not elect them if they don't do the job well. (Not that we pay much attention to this opportunity, right and DUTY.) But none the less, that was the intent. It was never intended for judges to write laws. Who in the heck do they think they are? More money. Nah! I don't think so. Even their judging has taken on a suspicious political air. But can we fire them?
Reports blasts???
Well, then perhaps the salaries of deans and law professors at top schools, should be sliced in half.
$165,000 per year is a lot of money for a single salary. Most Americans can only dream of earning that much. I understand Justice Roberts point that current salaries are not attracting the best for the judiciary, but he will receive little understanding and sympathy from most Americans.
"Inadequate compensation directly threatens the viability of life tenure, and if tenure in office is made uncertain, the strength and independence judges need to uphold the rule of law - even when it is unpopular to do so - will be seriously eroded," Roberts wrote."
Sounds like blackmail to me.
He was able to hire a law clerk and two secretaries to help him do his work. He could have hired two law clerks and a secretary, but he chose to have one law clerk and have a very well paid staff.
No one told him what to do, or when to do it, with the exception of some oral arguments and conferences to decide cases. He started his day when he felt it was appropriate and left when he felt it was appropriate. He did not eat lunch, but worked straight through powered by coffee and pipe tobacco. He typed on a manual typewriter.
He had his job for a 12 year term, and could not be fired before the end of that term. Federal judges have it even better, in that they cannot be fired except by impeachment and conviction, and in one of the rare cases that that has happened in 200 years, the judge got himself elected to Congress and nearly got appointed by Speaker Pelosi to head a key intelligence committee.
The State Supreme Court's decisions on questions of purely state law could not be overturned. That is, if the legislature says X, the court could interpret it as Y. If the legislature went back and said "We really meant X," the court could go back and say "No. It has to be Y. We really don't care what you write into your petty laws. We are the last word on state law."
Did you get that last part. This means that in a lot of the cases the court heard, it simply could not be overturned by anyone for any reason at all. That is a whole lot of power. If there were federal legal or Constitutional issues involved, a federal court could get involved.
I'm all for increasing the pay of judges who understand the US Constitution and are seldom overturned by higher courts. I'm all for cutting the pay of courts that continually get overturned. Perhaps the Ninth Circuit loons should pay the taxpayer for being allowed to crank out nonsense that continually get overturned. Sort of a meritocracy kind of thing.
This is just fine for judges.
I'm sure there are a lot of lawyers who'd be willing to do it for less, and who would perform better.
While I'm sure that's true, it's also irrelevant. High level military personnel aren't paid anywhere near what they could command in the private sector either. That's due to the limitation on not being paid more than the President and Congressmen. Gonna raise their pay too? Most of them at least are competent at their jobs, something that cannot be said for far too many federal judges, who after all, are political appointees. They've got lifetime tenure, now they should have high salaries too?
The man never was supreme court justice material and should have never been appointed.
I'm told the reason they pay the military McDonalds wages is because you're suppose to volunteer to serve your country rather than the prospect of monetary compensation. Why shouldn't the same standard apply to judges? I just don't buy this argument that we need "great minds" who will leave the court if the sacks of gold aren't forthcoming, I don't think Americans want such minds interpreting their constitution.
If a pay increase would make the judges more intelligent, I would be all for it. Unfortunately, a pay increase just means stupid arrogant judges will be better paid.
For the life they have to lead and the confirmation process, yep they need more money. Just getting past the left wing pacs is tough enough, but getting past schumer is worth millions. Add to this that they really can't invest or moonlight at anything, but they are expected to be the absolute best in their field, yeah they ought to get paid pretty well. How much is a 2500 square foot house in VA these days?
I don't get it. That's a lot of money for a salary -- I don't even make close to that, somehow I get by and do pretty well.
Perhaps they should consider stacking the courts with illegal aliens - they could pay them $8/hour under-the-table.
/sarcasm...
Nice balance, I would say.
Run of hte mill Commies can be hired anywhere in Eastern Europe for 10% of what we now pay the "ASSinine'.
Worst of all, is that Scalia and Thomas are paid equally with Ginsberg and Souter.
To all of the Judges
I make between 40 and 50k per year. Bust A$$ work hard and put in about 50 hrs per week.
Please look at my right hand between the thumb and the forefinger and try to imagine as the fingers play "my heart bleeds purple peanut butter for you"
Next for the LIFETIME APPOINTMENT. That is a joke
this is a problem because conservatives in general don't like working for the govt...if they're successful they could make a TON of money private sector. Libs like govt more in general, so low pay in general would help the libs.
Some bartenders make big bucks, others barely scratch a living. Do we get better congresscritters every time their salaries are raised? Is Alex Smith the 49rs quarterback worth the $42 mill he is (or will be) taking home? Is dead Elvis Presley worth the $42 mill he brought home last year (Strange conincidence, isn't it? What does it mean?)