Dec 11, 2018 in this essay, i examine justice ginsburgs dissenting opinion in bush v. Oct 01, 2020 democrat al gore and republican george w. For a penetrating study of the history of per curiam opinions, which explains why the device was properly used in this case and why justices souter and. The premise of this article is that historys verdict on a supreme court ruling depends more on whether public opinion ultimately supports the outcome than on the quality of the legal reasoning or the craftsmanship.
Gore 4 the per curiam majority opinion was joined by chief justice rehnquist and justices oconnor, scalia, kennedy, and thomas. He told them that he believed that the work of the court was not in any way. Oct 08, 2015 in this essay, i examine justice ginsburgs dissenting opinion in bush v. Balkin shortly after the supreme courts 54 decision in bush v. Gore levels in public opinion and the structure of support did not reveal new levels of racial or partisan polarization. After many more suits were filed oral arguments in bush v. Concurring opinion by scalia, j dissenting opinion by stevens, j. Gore decision gave a nod to federalism, and it displayed the concept of the supremacy clause. The main candidates were democrat al gore the vice president, republican george w.
The continuing hamilton county judicial election dispute, however, has a significant focus on the equal protection principles and claims enunciated in bush v. Nov 05, 2020 gore was the sitting vice president to thenpresident bill clinton, while bush was the governor of texas and son of former president george h. People have a better opinion of the texas governor personally than they had in. I look critically at justice ginsburgs invocation of federalismbased deference to the florida courts interpretations of state election law in the recount controversy. Gore 20 years ago, turning over the presidential election to the republican nominee and it might now be at it again. Gores critics have not agreed on just where the court went wrong, and even. On december 8, 2000, the florida supreme court ordered, inter alia, that manual recounts of ballots for the recent presidential election were.
In the decade since the courts decision, no survey has been conducted that asks about bush v. Before attending law school, waters was an awardwinning reporter with the gannett newspapers, his last stint covering state government in floridas capital. The supreme court decision that handed the 2000 election to george w. Gore and the uses of limiting following the supreme courts decision in bush v. Gore for the legitimacy and effectiveness of the presidency and the. Pdf in this article we assess the ramifications of the courts decision in bush v. The proceedings leading to the present controversy are discussed in some detail in our opinion inbush v. Meese, the majority decision vindicated the rule of law and upheld the u. Florida supreme courts november 21 decision to extend the time for ballot certification past the date set by florida statute. Supreme court reversed a florida supreme courts recount order of the states presidential ballots in 2000. Gore and the boundary between law and politics jack m.
Florida secretary of state katherine harris announced she would reject any revised totals from those counties if they were not turned in by november 14, the statutory deadline for amended returns. Gore legal information institute cornell university. Gore, federalism, and the distrust of politics bradley w. Gore most of the postelectoral controversy revolved around gore s request for hand recounts in four counties as provided under florida state law. Gore1 was a straightforward and legally correct decision. Turnout factors could help bush voter opinions stalled. If one were familiar only with the commentary that ensued in the decision s wake, this claim might sound almost lunatic. Framing support for the supreme court in the aftermath of. Gore,1 one member of the majority, associate justice clarence thomas, addressed a group of students in the washington, d. Objectives at the end of the lesson, students will be able to. Gore for the courts institutional standing and legitimacy. During this debate, many scholars have argued that the courts decision was fundamentally incompatible with its previous federalism.
During this debate, many scholars have argued that the courts decision was fundamentally incompatible with its previous federalism decisions. Blanket consent to the filing of amicus briefs in support of. Gore in the first place, that it should have remained solely within the florida courts ginsburg, j. Gore, sparked a considerable amount of criticism and discussion. The perceived strengths and weaknesses of both candidates continue to drive voter indecision.
A fight over the recount ultimately reached the supreme court. The drama of incorrectly marked ballots, chads, improper ordering of candidate names, and undercounts ulti mately was resolved by the supreme court in bush v. Contributor names supreme court of the united states author. Gore was a case argued before the supreme court of the united states on december 11, 2000, and decided on december 12, 2000.
Gore decision, the opinion has played only a minor only minor or no role at all in the resolution of the s. Nov 05, 2020 however, opinions by justices samuel alito and neil gorsuch appended to the october 28 decisions, when read together with kavanaughs opinion, suggest more is afoot. Gore or tries to link attitudes toward the decision to opinion of the court. Gore,1 the controversial case that decided the 2000 election, many scholars debated the meaning of the courts explicit admonition that its consideration was limited to the present circumstances. The endless election 2015 was an interesting documentary, listening to the accounts of the people that lived through it, 15 years after the fact made their perspectives even more intriguing. Joondeph the supreme courts per curiam decision in bush v. The supreme court noted that petitioner, governor george w. Pdf in the stiff competition for worst supreme court decision ever, two candidates stand heads above the others for the simple reason that they. Gore per curiam cation as a petition for a writ of certiorari, and granted certiorari.
Supreme court did not give its reasons for granting the stay, but justice scalia wrote a separate opinion noting that it suffices to say that the issuance of the stay suggests that a. Gore and predict that decision s longterm consequences. It proved that the constitution, federal statutes, and supreme court can supersede state election laws and decisions of state supreme courts. Turnout factors could help bush voter opinions stalled with two weeks to go until election day, voters still cant choose between al gore and george w. A historically close race, the final electoral college tally came down to a disputed vote total in florida. The case concerned a complaint from both parties contesting certification of state results in presidential elections. He argues that florida does have a uniform standard, and furthermore it is the same standard used in ten or eleven other states. This article examines this opinion to see if these charges are justified, and demonstrates that seven justices not five, concluded that the florida supreme court acted. Gore, when he frequently announced florida supreme court decisions on live television from the courthouse steps.
Gore decision ended the 2000 presidential election, but as this paper will assert and prove this decision solidified the bond that exists between the equal protection clause of xiv amendment and voting rights in the united states. Gore were brought before the us supreme court on december 11, 2000 by lawyers representing both sides. First, the article argues that if the courts legitimacy turns on the legal soundness of its reasoning. Bush is widely believed not to be a precedent, yet its been cited in hundreds of. This paper will argue that the court was correct to intervene but that the resulting decision was flawed and inconsistent, with potentially serious, adverse implications for the federal judiciary if the court. The county election board decides how many provisional ballots to provide to different precincts on the basis of irresponsible assumptions, resulting in voters in. Due to the nature of the case the court gave its opinion in only 16 hours after hearing the arguments.
Gore s team stated the case was already decided by the state. Nov 09, 2020 december 9 th, 2000 bush appealed the u. By 2am, bush was in the lead in florida, and the television networks declared him the winner. The decision directly impacted the result of the 2000 presidential election because it stopped the statewide recount that was occurring in florida and allowed florida to certify george w. Then i shall consider how those variables apply to bush v. December 11 th, 2000 scotus heard oral arguments in bush v.
Gore as a decision grounded in legal principle and precedent. Election results between al gore and george bush too close to. The proceedings leading to the present controversy are. Typical detractors claim that a bare majority of five justices decided the case based on their political preference, not precedent. Gore generate a new domain of meritorious equal protection challenges to voting inequalities. Pdf the presidency and the supreme court after bush v. For one, i didnt remember how close the 2000 presidential election was because of the errors. Smith, professor of political science at the university of pennsylvania. On december 12, 2000, a controversial decision by the supreme court of the united states effectively ended the disputed presidential contest between george w. Gore, the decision that ended the 2000 controversy over the winner of the presidency. Bush the texas governor, and the green partys ralph nader. Klarmant this article considers the longterm implications of bush v. How the 2000 election came down to a supreme court decision. According to busch, the supreme court had telegraphed its displeasure with how things were going in florida a week or so before by sending the first bush.
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