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Jeffrey Rosen explores how the US Supreme Court, once derided as the third branch of government, has become the busiest and most powerful institution in American politics, and how that makes the court’s current vacancy a particularly valuable prize in this presidential year.

With the justices’ black robes, sober judgements and air of mystique, people often imagine that the Court acts as a kind of impartial arbiter in the America body politic. But that has rarely been true, and in recent decades the Court has become a battleground for some of the most contentious issues in American society, from abortion and contraception to civil and voting rights, affirmative action and immigration reform.

As the current session comes to an end, Jeffrey will hear from some of those whose lives are affected by decisions and from interest groups explaining their tactics. He will hear from the partisan activists who carefully groom lawyers from their side, from White House insiders who vet them, and members of the Senate who must confirm them. And he will reveal how the current dysfunction elsewhere in Washington is pushing the Court to take on even more contentious cases.

Supreme Court appointments rarely feature in presidential elections, but that may be different in 2016, and Jeffrey will explore the dangers to the Court in appearing to be just another part of the political process, and show how hard the justices themselves work to avoid that impression.

(Photo: People wait in line to enter the US Supreme Court building, Washington, DC, 2016. Credit: Mark Wilson/Getty Images)