Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) spent her weekend lambasting the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing the bench operates as a right-wing forum and warning the Court could end up “as a wholly owned subsidiary of Big Business.”
Warren made the comments when she addressed delegates from the AFL-CIO at the organization’s convention Sunday. While speaking before the crowd, the Massachusetts Senator slammed the U.S. Supreme Court and warned conference attendees of a “corporate capture of the federal courts,” according to POLITICO.
“You follow this pro-corporate trend to its logical conclusion, and sooner or later you’ll end up with a Supreme Court that functions as a wholly owned subsidiary of Big Business,” Warren said.
The Supreme Court is currently made up of four right-leaning justices, with Justice Anthony Kennedy typically serving as the swing vote. However, Chief Justice John Roberts — who usually rules with the conservative wing of the Court — stunned Washington when he aligned with the bench’s left-wing over the Affordable Care Act.
Warren, though, assailed the High Court, saying it served the interests of corporate America and Wall Street. According to POLITICO, the Senator referenced an academic study calling the right-wing of the bench among the “top 10 most pro-corporate justices in half a century.”
The former Harvard Law professor’s speech echoed rhetoric strikingly similar to that of AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, who lambasted the Supreme Court when speaking with reporters Sunday.
Trumka said the current bench was the “best champion of corporate America” and urged for a constitutional amendment to reverse last year’s ruling on campaign finance regulation in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission.
“It may take a constitutional amendment, because this Supreme Court, as currently constituted, equates money with free speech,” he said.
In a 5-4 ruling in favor of Citizens United, the Court held portions of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act violated the First Amendment. It’s opinion received much criticism from the Left and drew ire from President Barack Obama.
Despite both Warren and Trumka’s criticisms of the Supreme Court serving as a conservative entity, it has flexed both its conservative and liberal muscles through a series of decisions between its 2012 and 2013 terms. The Court appeased many Democrats after upholding Obamacare’s individual mandate last year and ruled against the Defense of Marriage Act and California Prop 8 — delivering a huge win for gay rights proponents.
To the contrary, the Court ruled against Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act, pleasing many in favor of states’ rights and those on the Right as states now work to enact Voter ID laws following the decision.
Still, Warren’s lambasting of the High Court was well received by the progressive base, and particularly by those at the AFL-CIO’s gathering.
“From tax policy to retirement security, the voices of hard-working people get drowned out by powerful industries and well-financed front groups,” Warren said, according to the Wall Street Journal.
“The fight continues to rage, and the powerful interests continue to be guided by their age-old principle: ‘I’ve got mine, the rest of you are on your own,’” she continued. “However steep our climb, I am proud to stand with you, to march with you, and to fight side-by-side with you.”
