The Supreme Court's Shadow Docket
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Explore "shadow docket" with insightful episodes like "The Supreme Court's Shadow Docket", "The Shadow Docket with Stephen Vladeck", "The Supreme Court’s “shadow docket” is in the spotlight" and "Steve Vladeck: The Supreme Court's Shadow Docket" from podcasts like ""The NPR Politics Podcast", "Here's Where It Gets Interesting", "Make Me Smart" and "The Bulwark Podcast"" and more!
On today’s episode of Here’s Where It Gets Interesting, Sharon welcomes law professor Stephen Vladeck to nerd out about all things The Supreme Court. Stephen dives into the elusive behind-the-scenes “shadow docket,” and how 99% of what the court does is in the shadows – without public hearings, and without explanation. With approval ratings of the The Supreme Court at a historic low, what can Congress and the average American citizen do to hold the court accountable, and foster transparency?
Special thanks to our guest, Stephen Vladeck, for joining us today.
Hosted by: Sharon McMahon
Guest: Stephen Vladeck
Executive Producer: Heather Jackson
Audio Producer: Jenny Snyder
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
It’s that time of year when the Supreme Court issues a bunch of important decisions on high-profile cases before its summer recess. But it turns out there’s a whole other docket of decisions that usually fly under the radar.
It’s called the emergency docket, or “shadow docket.” And the use of this lesser-known docket is changing the way the Supreme Court engages with wide-reaching, often divisive issues, and shaping law on the ground.
“We’re seeing every big fight in contemporary American public policy getting to the Supreme Court faster through these emergency applications, and provoking the justices to take a position sooner because of these emergency applications,” said Stephen Vladeck, law professor at the University of Texas and author of the new book “The Shadow Docket: How the Supreme Court Uses Stealth Rulings to Amass Power and Undermine the Republic.”
On the show today, Vladeck explains what the shadow docket is, why emergency decisions by the Supreme Court have become more common over the past decade, and what this all means for the credibility of the court in the eyes of the American public.
In the News Fix: Speaking of the Supreme Court, we’ll get into how its upcoming decision on affirmative action could muddle diversity efforts at colleges across the country. And we’ll explain why pharmaceutical companies are pushing back against the new Medicare drug price negotiation program.
Later, listeners weigh in on local dog bars and virtual reality headsets. Plus, this week’s answer to the Make Me Smart question comes from singer, songwriter and condiment lover, Priska Neely.
Here’s everything we talked about today:
We love to hear from you. Send us your questions and comments to makemesmart@marketplace.org or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.
Justice Alito frequently complains that critics of the court are trying to delegitimize it. But it's the Supreme Court's own actions—including its late-night, unsigned, and unexplained decisions on the shadow docket— that are undermining the institution. Steve Vladeck joins Charlie Sykes today.
show notes
https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/contributor/stephen-vladeck/
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