The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court

Readable, informative, even handed and filled with details both mundane and anecdotal, this book gives much insight into the inner workings of the Supreme Court. Fascinating conclusions drawn from the study of the various personalities and character traits as well as conclusions drawn from effects of various world events make it hard to set aside. One wants to know more and more about these endlessly interesting choices and the paths that brought them to their powerful positions.

Jeffrey Toobin delivers a very fast-paced and readable synopsis of the past 30+ years of the Supreme Court. This book moves very fast but covers the highlights of the Court that we know today.

The best part of the book is his biographical sketches of the Justices. Toobin really makes them come to life and has some very interesting behind-the-scenes vignettes of them. Especially interesting is his analysis of the Clinton and Bush II nominees - especially the Harriet Miers debacle and the John Roberts nomination.

The book sometimes wanders when it discusses the actual cases and his analysis of Bush v. Gore is too partisan for my tastes (and I am a Democrat). But for someone who didn't take Constitutional Law in law school, this will be a good summary of the most important recent decisions.

The only main criticism I have is the structure. Toobin never gives a roadmap as to what he is going to cover and the chapter headings don't allow the reader to know what the chapter is going to be about (e.g. "Just Deserts" or "Question Presented"). He was being too cute here and took me a while to figure out where the book was heading (it's fairly chronological after the first 50 pages).

In all, I found myself tearing through this book and for a topic that could be potentially very boring, I will tip my hat to Toobin.

Jeffery Toobin's inside look of today's Supreme Court is as compelling, immediate and intimate a look at the Court since The Brethren. His detailed accounts of several landmark cases provides an intimate look at how each justice operates and how the court of public opinion shapes the Opinions of the Court.

Jeffrey Toobin does an amazing job analyzing the Supreme Court's major decisions and he brings the Justice's mindset out into the public. A great work of literature, useful for any scholarly study of the Supreme Court.

Toobin's book covers the history of the US Supreme Court from the summer of 1991 through the spring of 2007. Throughout his work, he provides biographical information of the Nine (Rehnquist, Stevens, O'Connor, Scalia, Kennedy, Souter, Thomas, Ginsburg, Breyer), plus the most recent two (Roberts & Alito). Toobin interviewed all 11 justices, as well as a number of former law clerks, journalists and numerous others involved in the courts and politics. The two major themes that run throughout the 340 pages are (1) the push and pull between the conservatives and the liberals on the court and (2) the evolution of the jurisprudence of a number of the justices (especially O'Connor and Kennedy).

After a stinging defeat in Thornburgh v. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (a Pennsylvania law which attempted to restrict abortions) in 1985, the Reagan Administration and conservatives had an epiphany: "they didn't need better arguments; they just needed new justices" (17).

Christian conservatives began to increase their power within the GOP in the 1980's (led by men like James Dobson, Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson). By 1990, their stated goals included the following: "Reverse Roe. Expand executive power. Speed executions. Welcome religion into the public sphere. Return the Constitution from its exile since the New Deal" (272).

Clarence Thomas was nominated to replace Thurgood Marshall during the summer of 1991. Even though George H.W. Bush and Thomas expressed their opposition to affirmative action, Thomas clearly was the beneficiary of it. Marshall's negative view of Thomas is captured vividly in chapter 2, as is the battle between Anita Hill and Thomas during his confirmation hearings in October, 1991.

Rehnquist ran the court very differently than Burger. This is how he ran the court's conferences: (1) he would summarize the case and state his position; (2) justices would do the same in order of seniority; (3) no one spoke twice until everyone spoke once; (4) no one received a writing assignment until he/she had finished the previous one; (5) every justice had an assignment before someone was given a second; and (6) the senior justice on the majority gave the assignment, as did the senior justice on the minority.

Despite being a popular and efficient Chief Justice, even Rehnquist knew that the court truly belonged to Sandra Day O'Connor. In the 1992 abortion case Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Robert P. Casey, O'Connor wrote that state restrictions on abortion procedures could be upheld as long as they don't cause an undue burden. Her term of "undue burden" would redefine Roe and helped guarantee women's autonomy and health (58-59).

Toobin devotes over 40 pages to Bush v. Gore and the problems with the votes in Florida. The roles of the Florida legislature, the Florida Supreme Court and the Supreme Court (all three appeared to be biased) are detailed and contrasted against each other.

We learn about Stephen Breyer's increasing influence on the court (128) and Anthony Kennedy's movement to the left based on his contact with judges and legal scholars from around the world (182). Kennedy gave the majority opinion in the Lawrence vs. Texas (2003) case, which struck down laws that seek to inhibit homosexual relations between two consenting adults within their home (189-190).

The Michigan Cases in 2003 about race and admissions in college and law school are described in chapters 16 and 17. The court's ruling against the Bush administration about Gitmo is dealt with in chapters 18 and 19.

Part Four of the book focuses on the nominations of Roberts and Alito. Special attention is devoted to the savaging of Alberto Gonzalez (who was only rumored to be a potential nominee) and Harriet Miers (who was nominated in the summer of 2005) by Christian Conservatives, who believed that neither Gonzalez nor Miers were ideologically strong enough to merit a seat on the court (it is eerily reminiscent of some scenes from 1984).

The book finishes with Breyer's role in two religious cases in 2005
(regarding public displays of religious works in government buildings) and Ginsburg's scathing dissent (a rarity) regarding the 2007 Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (the ruling stated that a woman must file within 180 days of being discriminated against in the workplace in regards to pay - Ginsburg stated that it might be years before a woman realized that she had been the victim of an unfair system).

It is an exceptionally well-written book and a joy to read.