Can we blame Andrew Jackson for the fact that many states elect their judges or at least force them to occasionally win a retention vote to keep their jobs? If so, add it to the list of reasons why we shouldn’t honor the seventh president.
We can’t take the politics out of judicial appointments, but we can at least give judges some independence to issue unpopular decisions once they’re on the court. The correct system is to appoint them for a set but lengthy term, and to only remove them for unethical behavior through the process of impeachment.
Constitutional principles and human rights are not always popular, especially when the masses are fearful. We need an independent judiciary, and elected judges are the dumbest goddamned thing I’ve ever heard of.
