Most of you know (or maybe not) that I have a bit of an obsession with the Supreme Court.
As the only of the three branches of government that I really have any respect for, I enjoy reading and listening to the workings and decision making process of the justices. To be clear, respect does not always mean I agree with the decisions, but even when I don’t, I fully respect the members of the court and the institution as operating in a way I like. Contrast that to the other two branches of government where I sometimes agree and sometimes disagree with the outcomes, but I rarely respect the process and motivations of the members.
Right after the State of the Union, I was poking around iTunes to see if anyone had posted the audio (to no avail), but came across a set of interviews that C-SPAN did with each of the Justices. They are available as podcasts. Each runs between 30 minutes and an hour and it is just a one-on-one interview with the justice. So far, I have listened to Justice Alito, Justice Scalia, Justice Sotomayor, Justice Kennedy, and former Justice O’Connor. Each is unique as you would expect, but I have loved them all. While I have had the pleasure of seeing Justice O’Connor, Justice Scalia, and Justice Ginsburg speak in person, it is not often that most people hear the Justices speak publicly; this is a great opportunity if you are curious.
If you are interested in more resources, I also recommend American Original: The Life and Constitution of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia which I read on our cruise last month. A few other books I have enjoyed on the court are Becoming Justice Blackmun: Harry Blackmun’s Supreme Court Journey, The Majesty of the Law: Reflections of a Supreme Court Justice by former Justice O’Connor, The Supreme Court by former Chief Justice Rehnquist, and The Brethren: Inside the Supreme Court.