AUDIOBOOK
About
Seven minutes after President Obama put his signature to a landmark national health care insurance program, a lawyer in the office of Florida GOP attorney general Bill McCollum hit a computer key, sparking a legal challenge to the new law that would eventually reach the nation's highest court. Health care is only the most visible and recent front in a battle over the meaning and scope of the US Constitution. The battleground is the Supreme Court, and one of the most skilled, insightful, and trenchant of its observers takes us close up to watch it in action.
The Roberts court, seven years old, is at the center of a constitutional maelstrom. Four landmark decisions-concerning health care, money in elections, guns at home, and race in schools-reveal the fault lines in a conservative-dominated court, led by Chief Justice John Roberts, Jr.
Marcia Coyle's brilliant inside account of the high court captures how those cases began-the personalities and conflicts that catapulted them onto the national scene-and how they ultimately exposed the great divides among the justices, such as the originalists versus the pragmatists on guns and the Second Amendment, and corporate speech versus human speech in the controversial Citizens United campaign case. Most dramatically, her analysis shows how dedicated conservative lawyers and groups are strategizing to find cases and crafting them to bring up the judicial road to the Supreme Court with an eye on a receptive conservative majority. The Roberts Court offers a ringside seat at the struggle to lay down the law of the land. Introduction
Part 1: Race: Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Part 2: Guns: Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Part 3: Money: Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Part 4: Health Care: Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
"One of the best Supreme Court books in years; a
wise and deeply reported inside look at the court, its struggles, and the
justices themselves."
"In this fast-paced narrative, Marcia Coyle
brings alive the four recent cases that illuminate the emerging agenda of the
Roberts court. Everyone gets a voice in Coyle's story: litigants, lawyers,
clerks on the court, even the justices themselves. In an understated but powerful
voice, she also implies that the conservative majority on the Roberts Court is
pursuing an agenda as broad and active as any Court in our history. Coyle
concisely captures the complexities of constitutional jurisprudence."
"Richly sourced and impressively researched,
Marcia Coyle's authoritatively nonpartisan account of the inner workings of the
Roberts Court is a must-read for everyone who wants to understand why the Court
often plays a deciding role in American lives."
"Marcia Coyle has written the go-to book for
anyone who wants to understand the most conservative Supreme Court that most
Americans alive today can remember. Her acute focus on key 5–4 cases not
only shows us the Roberts court in action but also explains how conservative
social movements have made their voices heard at the court on issues that
matter to us all."
"Marcia Coyle has written a brilliant exposé of
how the Roberts court has acted on health care, gun control, campaign finance,
school racism, and more. This is jurisprudence journalism history at its
finest. And it's a joy to read. Highly recommended!"
"In her meticulously reported, eminently
readable treatment of the Roberts court, the vastly experienced Marcia Coyle
skillfully lifts the veil of ignorance enshrouding the work of our nation's
highest court. This is a wonderful addition to the literature about the Court
uniquely entrusted with the ultimate task of interpreting America's constitution."
"Richly analytical and meticulously careful…Even-handed and full of smart analysis…Coyle's shrewd reading of the cases is supplemented by skillful reporting on those who practice before
The Roberts court, seven years old, is at the center of a constitutional maelstrom. Four landmark decisions-concerning health care, money in elections, guns at home, and race in schools-reveal the fault lines in a conservative-dominated court, led by Chief Justice John Roberts, Jr.
Marcia Coyle's brilliant inside account of the high court captures how those cases began-the personalities and conflicts that catapulted them onto the national scene-and how they ultimately exposed the great divides among the justices, such as the originalists versus the pragmatists on guns and the Second Amendment, and corporate speech versus human speech in the controversial Citizens United campaign case. Most dramatically, her analysis shows how dedicated conservative lawyers and groups are strategizing to find cases and crafting them to bring up the judicial road to the Supreme Court with an eye on a receptive conservative majority. The Roberts Court offers a ringside seat at the struggle to lay down the law of the land. Introduction
Part 1: Race: Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Part 2: Guns: Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Part 3: Money: Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Part 4: Health Care: Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
"One of the best Supreme Court books in years; a
wise and deeply reported inside look at the court, its struggles, and the
justices themselves."
"In this fast-paced narrative, Marcia Coyle
brings alive the four recent cases that illuminate the emerging agenda of the
Roberts court. Everyone gets a voice in Coyle's story: litigants, lawyers,
clerks on the court, even the justices themselves. In an understated but powerful
voice, she also implies that the conservative majority on the Roberts Court is
pursuing an agenda as broad and active as any Court in our history. Coyle
concisely captures the complexities of constitutional jurisprudence."
"Richly sourced and impressively researched,
Marcia Coyle's authoritatively nonpartisan account of the inner workings of the
Roberts Court is a must-read for everyone who wants to understand why the Court
often plays a deciding role in American lives."
"Marcia Coyle has written the go-to book for
anyone who wants to understand the most conservative Supreme Court that most
Americans alive today can remember. Her acute focus on key 5–4 cases not
only shows us the Roberts court in action but also explains how conservative
social movements have made their voices heard at the court on issues that
matter to us all."
"Marcia Coyle has written a brilliant exposé of
how the Roberts court has acted on health care, gun control, campaign finance,
school racism, and more. This is jurisprudence journalism history at its
finest. And it's a joy to read. Highly recommended!"
"In her meticulously reported, eminently
readable treatment of the Roberts court, the vastly experienced Marcia Coyle
skillfully lifts the veil of ignorance enshrouding the work of our nation's
highest court. This is a wonderful addition to the literature about the Court
uniquely entrusted with the ultimate task of interpreting America's constitution."
"Richly analytical and meticulously careful…Even-handed and full of smart analysis…Coyle's shrewd reading of the cases is supplemented by skillful reporting on those who practice before