''Nine Black Robes: Inside the Supreme Court's Drive to the Right and Its Historic Consequences'' is a nonfiction book written by

Joan Biskupic Joan Marie Biskupic (born ) is an American journalist, biographer, and lawyer who has covered the United States Supreme Court since 1989. Early life and education Biskupic is one of nine siblings born to a Catholic family of Croatian and Irish ...

. It was published by William Morrow in 2023. Full text available o
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Synopsis

Biskupic depicts the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...

's rightward shift after

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

's appointment of three justices and the consequences of that shift. She also tells the collective story of the Supreme Court. And in this story, the public events that happened during Trump's presidency mesh with lesser-known internal conflicts, as well as behind-the-scenes disagreements among the justices. Also included in this story are others who helped Trump find and select the nominees, and in what manner the nominees themselves were directed through the vetting and Senate hearings. Furthermore, Biskupic sheds light on a reticent Supreme Court, an institution usually closed off to public scrutiny. The book additionally shows that the court is struggling with serious issues.

Background

Biskupic has extensive experience as a journalist. She was a reporter for the ''

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' and is currently a

CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...

analyst. Prior to writing ''Nine Black Robes'', she wrote four well-received individual

Supreme Court Justice The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest-ranking judicial body in the United States. Its membership, as set by the Judiciary Act of 1869, consists of the chief justice of the United States and eight associate justices, any six of ...

s' biographies: Chief Justice

John Roberts John Glover Roberts Jr. (born January 27, 1955) is an American jurist serving since 2005 as the 17th chief justice of the United States. He has been described as having a Moderate conservatism, moderate conservative judicial philosophy, thoug ...

, and Justices

Antonin Scalia Antonin Gregory Scalia (March 11, 1936 – February 13, 2016) was an American jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1986 until his death in 2016. He was described as the intellectual an ...

Sandra Day O'Connor Sandra Day O'Connor (March 26, 1930 – December 1, 2023) was an American attorney, politician, and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1981 to 2006. Nominated by President Ronald Reagan, O' ...

, and

Sonia Sotomayor Sonia Maria Sotomayor (, ; born June 25, 1954) is an American lawyer and jurist who serves as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. She was nominated by President Barack Obama on May 26, 2009, and has served since ...

. The book chronicles six years from the 2016 death of Justice Antonin Scalia to Justice

Ketanji Brown Jackson Ketanji Onyika Brown Jackson (née Brown; ; born September 14, 1970) is an American lawyer and jurist who is an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Jackson Ketanji Brown Jackson Supreme Court nomination, was nominated ...

's nomination in 2022 by President

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

. The author conducted more than one hundred interviews for this book, including "a majority of the justices".

Contrasting views

Contrasting views about the tenor of this book are presented and discussed in the American media.

Sam Tanenhaus Sam Tanenhaus (born October 31, 1955) is an American historian, biographer, and journalist. He currently is a writer for '' Prospect''. Early years Tanenhaus received his B.A. in English from Grinnell College in 1977 and a M.A. in English Liter ...

, writing for the ''New York Times'', says this book is "informative, briskly paced and gracefully written."

Laurence Tribe Laurence Henry Tribe (born October 10, 1941) is an American legal scholar known for his studies of United States constitutional law. Tribe was a professor at Harvard Law School from 1968 until his retirement in 2020. He currently holds the posit ...

, for the '' New York Review'' refers to this book as "notable" and that the author "pulls no punches". Quinta Jurecic of the ''Washington Post'' says, "Biskupic opens a window onto the opaque, insular world of the justices..." However, Kyle Peterson, reviewing this book for ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...

'', contrasts with those other media outlets by describing Biskupic's book as partisan rather than objective. Likewise, George Leef, who wrote a short review of this book for the ''

National Review ''National Review'' is an American conservative editorial magazine, focusing on news and commentary pieces on political, social, and cultural affairs. The magazine was founded by William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. Its editor-in-chief is Rich L ...

'', also assessed the book as partisan. In his review, Leef cites a critique of this book by John O. McGinnis writing for '' Law & Liberty''.

References

External links

* {{Official, https://www.harpercollins.com/products/nine-black-robes-joan-biskupic
Justice Antonin Scalia
Interview. ''Uncommon Knowledge''. The Hoover Institution. Video. YouTube. 2013.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor on Life on the Supreme Court
American Constitution Society annual conference. Video. C-SPAN. 2022.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg & Justice Antonin Scalia
The Kaleb Report. Video. The National Press Club. 2014. 2023 non-fiction books American non-fiction books HarperCollins books Books about politics of the United States Books about Joe Biden Books about Donald Trump Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States United States Supreme Court candidates by president

Synopsis

Background

Contrasting views

See also

References

Further reading

External links