Supreme Court Rulings Mirror American Sentiments on Key Social Issues This Term
In a term that saw intense debate over highly contentious social issues, the Supreme Court’s decisions aligned mainly with public opinion, according to new data from The New York Times and the SCOTUSPoll project.
Despite strong objections from some Democratic lawmakers, the Court’s stance in ten significant cases, including those on religious opt-outs, age verification for online pornography, and state-level bans on transgender procedures for minors, found broad public backing.
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The findings from the SCOTUSPoll project, conducted by researchers at Harvard, Stanford, and the University of Texas, surveyed 2,201 adults between April 10 and 16. The data reveals compelling numbers:
- Religious Opt-Outs: A significant 77% of Americans believe schools should allow religious opt-outs for instruction on gender and sexuality.
- Age Verification for Pornography: 80% of those surveyed agree that states should be able to require websites to verify user ages for adult content.
- Transgender Procedures for Minors: 64% of Americans support state laws banning transgender procedures for minors.
These figures indicate a notable congruence between the Court’s majority opinions and the views of the general populace, even as only 20% of Americans, according to a June Reuters/Ipsos poll, perceive the Supreme Court as politically neutral. This neutrality perception varies starkly across party lines, with 67% of Republicans viewing the Court favorably, compared to just 26% of Democrats.
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The Court’s rulings, particularly in cases like Mahmoud v. Taylor (upholding religious parental opt-outs) and United States v. Skrmetti (supporting state bans on transgender procedures for minors), drew sharp criticism from the three liberal justices. Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in her Mahmoud v. Taylor dissent, warned of “chaos for this Nation’s public schools” and, in her United States v. Skrmetti dissent, claimed the majority authorized “untold harm to transgender children and the parents and families who love them.” Democratic Senators Dick Durbin and Jeff Merkley echoed these sentiments, calling the Skrmetti decision a “full-fledged license for states to discriminate against vulnerable kids” and a “playbook for extremist politicians.”
Beyond these hot-button issues, the Supreme Court also aligned with public sentiment on other significant matters. It garnered public support when it upheld the Biden administration’s regulations on “ghost guns” (75% agreement) and backed the Food and Drug Administration’s decision to reject applications from vape manufacturers (65% agreement). Unanimous rulings, such as upholding a potential TikTok ban (58% agreement) and clarifying employment discrimination standards for majority groups (70% agreement), also found favor with the public.
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Interestingly, while Democrats also opposed the Court’s decision to rein in district court judges’ use of nationwide injunctions, many had previously expressed opposition to their use. The Court did not rule on the merits of birthright citizenship this term, an issue which 64% of Americans believe to be constitutional, according to New York Times data.
This term, 42% of the Supreme Court’s decisions were unanimous, a slight decrease from 44% last term. Only 9% of cases saw ideological splits, with the six conservative justices forming the majority.
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