Will the Supreme Court Vanish?

If current trends in nominations and confirmation battles continue, the US Supreme Court could disappear before too long. Stuart Taylor, Jr. proposes a scenario under which it could happen, destroying both a check on the elected branches of government and the moral authority of the federal courts.

Taylor rightly points out that the focus on ideology in judicial nominees over the last two decades, combined with the trend towards filibustering nominees declared "outside the mainstream" by politicians who are themselves on the fringes of American public opinion could reduce the court to as few as four justices by the next presidential election. While one might hope for greater wisdom on the part of our elected leaders, consider how few people have ever gone broke underestimating politicians.