AHC: More politicians on the Supreme Court after Earl Warren

[Nofix]

Chief Justice Earl Warren was a popular California Governor before he got elected, and before him several Justices openly participated in politics. Chief Justice John Jay resigned to run for New York Governor, Taft was President before being Chief Justice, Charles Hughes was New York Governor Secretary of State, and actually resigned his seat in 1916 to run for President, and became the only man to serve non-consecutively on the Court. There are more examples, but those are just a precedent.

After Warren, no more politicians served on the court, by whatever means necessary, find some more OTL politicians to serve on the Court. House and Senate members, Cabinet positions, even an ex-President if you can.

 

[Yossarian]

The real obstacle is increasingly contentious politics making it hard to get anybody with a clear record onto the court, which would go doubly for actual politicians. You might be able to get the occasional well respected pol onto the court regardless, but for it to remain a common practice we'd need a generally better mannered and less divisive political culture.

 

[Plumber]

Mario Cuomo was this close to getting on the Clinton Supreme Court. Barbara Jordan also, had her health been better. Clinton wanted to reverse the trend of professional judges dominating the Court (but he ended up not doing so).

Orrin Hatch has been proposed as a possible Republican nominee (decades ago, of course).

Also, I don't know why Sandra Day O'Connor isn't considered a politician. Probably because she was in the obscurity that is state politics, but she was a state senator from Arizona, and majority leader, too.

 

[Nofix]

Mario Cuomo was this close to getting on the Clinton Supreme Court. Barbara Jordan also, had her health been better. Clinton wanted to reverse the trend of professional judges dominating the Court (but he ended up not doing so).

Justice Cuomo? That would have been pretty awesome in it's own right.

Orrin Hatch has been proposed as a possible Republican nominee (decades ago, of course).

Given his views on abortion, copyright, and health care, probably best. But it would have been interesting for a Mormon to be on the SCOTUS. It's either a Jew, a Catholic, or a Protestant. No representation I swear .

Also, I don't know why Sandra Day O'Connor isn't considered a politician. Probably because she was in the obscurity that is state politics, but she was a state senator from Arizona, and majority leader, too.

Seriously? I never knew that, but given that it was a relatively small position, in a relatively small state, no one was going to mind or care, hell Wikipedia doesn't even have a subpage for her political career. Compare that to Earl Warren, the 3 time elected governor, and VP nominee, of one of the biggest and fastest growing states at the time, or of Cuomo and Hatch. Much bigger deals, and much more partisan.

 

[Plumber]

Seriously? I never knew that, but given that it was a relatively small position, in a relatively small state, no one was going to mind or care, hell Wikipedia doesn't even have a subpage for her political career. Compare that to Earl Warren, the 3 time elected governor, and VP nominee, of one of the biggest and fastest growing states at the time, or of Cuomo and Hatch. Much bigger deals, and much more partisan.

Oh, O'Connor's politician past shouldn't be overlooked, even if it is minor in comparison. She was a partisan Republican, though in high-profile cases she dressed up public opinion in constitutional terms. Bush v. Gore was not an aberration.