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Typology of Judicial Conservativism
Over the years, people have offered many different ways of typologizing different approaches to serving on the judiciary. This reflects the reality that a one-dimensional conservative/moderate/liberal continuum is very inadequate for characterizing justices. Here's a recent article in the NYT which offers one way to break down the different flavors of "conservativism."
Perhaps the most interesting distinctions are between the "originalist," "libertarian," and "pragmatist" camps. While many would like to think that the libertarian and originalist positions are the same, the historical record shows this not to be case in many areas. And so there is an interesting conflict, at least in theory, there. I find the idea of judicial pragmatism interesting because these people are always labeled as moderates, although in some ways they tend to hold typical conservative beliefs but simply practice a type of deference that rankles the "true believers." |
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Re: Typology of Judicial Conservativism
[ QUOTE ]
Over the years, people have offered many different ways of typologizing different approaches to serving on the judiciary. This reflects the reality that a one-dimensional conservative/moderate/liberal continuum is very inadequate for characterizing justices. Here's a recent article in the NYT which offers one way to break down the different flavors of "conservativism." Perhaps the most interesting distinctions are between the "originalist," "libertarian," and "pragmatist" camps. While many would like to think that the libertarian and originalist positions are the same, the historical record shows this not to be case in many areas. And so there is an interesting conflict, at least in theory, there. I find the idea of judicial pragmatism interesting because these people are always labeled as moderates, although in some ways they tend to hold typical conservative beliefs but simply practice a type of deference that rankles the "true believers." [/ QUOTE ] Sam, George Will has written several columns on the basic futility of trying cast judges (or SCOTUS decisions) as conservative or liberal. I tend to agree with him, based on my limited knowledge of legal theory and jurisprudence. |
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