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Statement of Senator Dianne Feinstein on Today’s Supreme Court Ruling on School Desegregation

“Elections matter.  And so do judicial confirmations. 

Today’s Supreme Court decision -- along with other recent decisions of the Roberts Court -- demonstrates this in a more immediate and tangible way then any of us could have imagined.

In this term, the Roberts Court has swept away precedent and settled law alike – and I fear that this is just the beginning.

In today’s ruling, the Court ignored the Grutter v. Bollinger decision, issued just four years ago, where Justice O’Connor cast the tie breaking vote acknowledging that diversity is a compelling governmental interest and that schools may consider race as a factor in their admission policies. 

As Justice Breyer noted today, the Robert’s decision “undermines Brown [v. Board of Education]’s promise of integrated primary and secondary education.”   Sadly, this is just one more example of a Court that is willing to overturn precedent in order to change the law.

Recently, the Court has also issued a number of major decisions that will have a profound impact on our nation:

• Eliminating the requirement from Roe and Casey that laws must protect a woman’s health;
• Forcing employees to show discrimination within 6 months, or lose their rights forever; and
• Overturning the law that prohibited issue-advocacy groups from running sham “issue ads” attacking candidates within 60 days of an election.

What is truly disconcerting is that both Roberts and Alito repeatedly discussed their respect for stare decisis with members of Senate Judiciary Committee. 

Yet, since joining the Court, when presented with an opportunity to follow precedent, both Justices have chosen not to do so, time and time again.

What this means for all Americans is that many of the rights and privileges they have come to rely on are at risk -- and that whoever chooses the next Supreme Court Justice will affect our country for generations to come.”

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