NRPLUS MEMBER ARTICLE

I
n the era of stewardship by Chief Justice John Roberts, the Supreme Court has fretted more about the public perception of the Court as a non-partisan institution than about doing what is most necessary to shore up its reputation: Do its job. Decide the tough questions in accordance with what the law requires, and stop worrying so much about what it looks like.

The justices have no way of controlling how their work is perceived. The federal courts are insulated from politics by design, because the right answer is frequently not the popular answer. Indeed, as our Michael Brendan Dougherty deftly …