Taco Bell fans get it.
What visitors tend to mix up is the name of a building and the name of it's occupants. The Supreme Court is ... the court. The all-powerful judges that interpret a document written more than 200 years ago by a completely different class of people. The United States Supreme Court Building is the columned structure across the street from the Capitol.
The reason the distinction is important is the nearly 150 years that separate the establishment of the two.
THE COURT
The Supreme Court was establish when America was established- for the second time - under the Constitution. We've all heard about the three branches of government and checks and balances, this is one them - Judicial.
It's kind of like when you and your sister have a fight and when you asked dad and he said it was okay, but then your sister argued back to mom. And we all know who really holds the power in a house ;) Technically, it's called appellate. It decides mostly appeals - a lower court ruled one way, someone didn't like it, so they went higher and higher until the Supreme Court issues the final say. Though, it does have jurisdiction over some kinds of cases. State vs. State: the boundary that separate Mississippi and Louisiana is a river, a big hurricane comes and the course of the river changes, does that boundary change, too? (Of course, Louisiana has civil law where as every other state has common law so ... who knows how that would pan out?!)
There are 9 justices, though that number has fluctuated through the earlier years. One Chief Justice and 8 Associate Justices.
You do not need to be American, of a certain age, education, rank, class, with a certain amount of experience or even a lawyer. The only requirements to be a Justice is to be appointed by the President and approved by Congress. And you serve for life, or until you retire.
At the moment (Feb 2012) they are Chief Justice is John Roberts. Associates are Scalia, Ginsburg, Kennedy, Thomas, Breyer, Alito, Sotomeyer, Kagan.
That is the Supreme Court. They meet in the Courtroom of the Supreme Court Building. So when visiting DC, you may not visit the Supreme Court, but you may visit it's seat.
THE BUILDING
The Supreme Court followed to justices and they followed the government. They met in The Merchants Exchange in NYC, in Independence Hall in Philadelphia, in the Capitol in D.C.
We have these beautiful buildings of white marble and columns built in the late 1700s-1800s. But this classical temple of justice was built in ... 1935. Not old at all. It was Chief Justice William Howard Taft who got permission to have it's own building. He had a bit of sway, being a past president and all.
The grandeur of the building is thanks to Architect Cass Gilbert and is made of American marble. Except the Courtrooms 24 columns, they are Italian Marble personally guaranteed as the best by none other than ... Mussolini. I just find that kind of funny seeing as we'd be at war with in a few years, but he selected the marble for the highest court in our country. (Ok, probably not personally selected)
Most of the Justices of the time did not like the new building. They thought it too grand and audacious. If they building was going to look like that, they "might as well ride in on elephants!"
The building has 5 floors, the fifth being the "highest court in the land" ... no, not that Court. It's where the basketball court is! Yeah, I made that joke.
The west facade that most people see as the "front" of the building depicts a variety of seated figures including Cass Gilbert and Robert Ingersoll Aitken. Who are they? The architect and the sculptor, a little presumptuous if I do say so myself. Others are Taft, other justices whose names I've never heard of, Marshall and three allegorical figured of Liberty, Order, Authority.
But what is great about this building, in all it's beautiful, complicated sculptures is that it was completed on time and $94,000 under budget. Which it returned. Very un-DC government building like.
What visitors tend to mix up is the name of a building and the name of it's occupants. The Supreme Court is ... the court. The all-powerful judges that interpret a document written more than 200 years ago by a completely different class of people. The United States Supreme Court Building is the columned structure across the street from the Capitol.
The reason the distinction is important is the nearly 150 years that separate the establishment of the two.
THE COURT
The Supreme Court was establish when America was established- for the second time - under the Constitution. We've all heard about the three branches of government and checks and balances, this is one them - Judicial.
It's kind of like when you and your sister have a fight and when you asked dad and he said it was okay, but then your sister argued back to mom. And we all know who really holds the power in a house ;) Technically, it's called appellate. It decides mostly appeals - a lower court ruled one way, someone didn't like it, so they went higher and higher until the Supreme Court issues the final say. Though, it does have jurisdiction over some kinds of cases. State vs. State: the boundary that separate Mississippi and Louisiana is a river, a big hurricane comes and the course of the river changes, does that boundary change, too? (Of course, Louisiana has civil law where as every other state has common law so ... who knows how that would pan out?!)
There are 9 justices, though that number has fluctuated through the earlier years. One Chief Justice and 8 Associate Justices.
You do not need to be American, of a certain age, education, rank, class, with a certain amount of experience or even a lawyer. The only requirements to be a Justice is to be appointed by the President and approved by Congress. And you serve for life, or until you retire.
At the moment (Feb 2012) they are Chief Justice is John Roberts. Associates are Scalia, Ginsburg, Kennedy, Thomas, Breyer, Alito, Sotomeyer, Kagan.
That is the Supreme Court. They meet in the Courtroom of the Supreme Court Building. So when visiting DC, you may not visit the Supreme Court, but you may visit it's seat.
THE BUILDING
The Supreme Court followed to justices and they followed the government. They met in The Merchants Exchange in NYC, in Independence Hall in Philadelphia, in the Capitol in D.C.
We have these beautiful buildings of white marble and columns built in the late 1700s-1800s. But this classical temple of justice was built in ... 1935. Not old at all. It was Chief Justice William Howard Taft who got permission to have it's own building. He had a bit of sway, being a past president and all.
The grandeur of the building is thanks to Architect Cass Gilbert and is made of American marble. Except the Courtrooms 24 columns, they are Italian Marble personally guaranteed as the best by none other than ... Mussolini. I just find that kind of funny seeing as we'd be at war with in a few years, but he selected the marble for the highest court in our country. (Ok, probably not personally selected)
Most of the Justices of the time did not like the new building. They thought it too grand and audacious. If they building was going to look like that, they "might as well ride in on elephants!"
The building has 5 floors, the fifth being the "highest court in the land" ... no, not that Court. It's where the basketball court is! Yeah, I made that joke.
The west facade that most people see as the "front" of the building depicts a variety of seated figures including Cass Gilbert and Robert Ingersoll Aitken. Who are they? The architect and the sculptor, a little presumptuous if I do say so myself. Others are Taft, other justices whose names I've never heard of, Marshall and three allegorical figured of Liberty, Order, Authority.
But what is great about this building, in all it's beautiful, complicated sculptures is that it was completed on time and $94,000 under budget. Which it returned. Very un-DC government building like.
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