Public opinion re the Court.

Like any other governmental institution in a free society, the Supreme Court is ultimately accountable to the people of the United States. Unlike the legislative and executive branches of government, the Court is not directly accountable to the people because its justices are not elected and serve for life. The Framers deliberately insulated the Court from the electoral process to ensure that the judges would render independent decisions that were not swayed by political pressure or popular caprice. The Court, however, is in some ways even more dependent on the goodwill of the public than are the other two branches of government because, in Alexander Hamilton’s famous phrase, it is possessed of neither the power of the purse nor the power of the sword. Insofar as the Court’s only real power is its ability to command public respect, the Court must always remain mindful of public opinion.