What Divides the Justices—Differences in Approach or in Values?
Political scientists who study the Supreme Court have long known what lawyers are constantly surprised to discover: That in the sorts of cases that reach the high court—that is, cases in which plausible arguments can be made for a variety of outcomes—the justices’ general ideological leanings are highly determinative of the results. Conservative justices typically rule against abortion rights, against gay rights, against affirmative action, for the death penalty, for the rights of business and corporate interests, and for states’ rights; liberal justices reverse those tendencies; and moderates fall in between. In his University of Florida speech, Justice Thomas acknowledged—and, indeed, went so far as to celebrate—the fact that different judges decide cases differently. Different approaches, he said, “strengthen and inform our legal system.” Accordingly, Justice Thomas went on, no one should be surprised that there will be disagreements about how to decide cases. Yet the pattern of res
