The Oath: The Obama White House and The Supreme Court by Jeffrey Toobin

Dec 27, 2012 Hadrian rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: law, nonfiction, american

A very personal, almost Robert Caro-style look at the personal relationships and political struggles between the Supreme Court and the presidency over the past two years. A very accessible and well-argued introduction to the extreme complexity of these arguments, and their histories. Makes you almost want to apply to be a lawyer or a judge yourself.

I had heard Toobin speak last month, shortly after the President's reelection. He took the occasion not to speak about the past two years, but inste...more

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Oct 21, 2012 Lisa B. rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-books

My Thoughts

It just so happened that on the day the Supreme Court was going to issue it’s ruling on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA aka Obamacare), I had an appointment with my physician whose office is located within a hospital. Hmmmm - healthcare reform + doctor + hospital - seemed like a good time to ask people their opinion of the Affordable Care Act and their perception on how it would impact them. I, along with the rest of the country was anxiously awaiting the ruling....more

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May 22, 2013 Jason rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I read this book because I recall enjoying reading Toobin's "The Nine" and I also enjoy reading about the Supreme Court and learning about the mysterious inner workings and personalities that play such an increasingly important role in our country. I wish I never picked this up, as I am now wondering if "The Nine" suffered from the same flaws and I just ignored them.

The bias in this book is palpable. Toobin worships Sandra Day O'Conner, praises the "liberal" bloc of the court and has contempt f...more

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May 19, 2013 Dan rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The thrilling middle book of Jeffrey Toobin's widely acclaimed "Robes, Gavels, and Precedent" trilogy, "The Oath" continues the story that you first fell for in "The Nine." As readers will recall, the Nine centered around the Supreme Court stories from the Rehnquist Court, most notably the fight over abortion, affirmative action, and gay rights. In the end of that tome, however, change was afoot at One First Street. With the death of the Chief Justice and - more importantly - the retirement of O...more

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Apr 10, 2013 Mac rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

While educating the reader, Toobin tells an entertaining story as well. He educates on the important Supreme Court cases during the Obama/Roberts years, describing the overarching issues, the points of contention, and the efforts to create majority opinions. At the same time, he entertains with revealing insights into the Justices' thinking, their political inclinations, and their career arcs. It all makes for an informative and enjoyable read, and it leaves you (I'm guessing no matter what your...more

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Feb 08, 2013 Pearl rated it 4 of 5 stars

Here Toobin, a Harvard-trained lawyer, CNN legal analyst, and senior staff writer at "The New Yorker" follows up his book on the Renquist Court with one on the Roberts Court, whose history, of course, is still being made. As with "The Nine," primarily about the Renquist Court, Toobin mixes insights about the Supremes personal history and character traits with legal analyses of their decisions/opinions to give us an entertaining and enlightening look at where the Supreme Court is today and how it...more Here Toobin, a Harvard-trained lawyer, CNN legal analyst, and senior staff writer at "The New Yorker" follows up his book on the Renquist Court with one on the Roberts Court, whose history, of course, is still being made. As with "The Nine," primarily about the Renquist Court, Toobin mixes insights about the Supremes personal history and character traits with legal analyses of their decisions/opinions to give us an entertaining and enlightening look at where the Supreme Court is today and how it got there. In doing so, he also sets forth the overarching theme of his book, namely that the interpretation of the law is not value free; it is tied to and influenced by political values and beliefs.

Despite the title, the book's focus is not on Obama v. the Supreme Court, although the subtext is clearly that the President's appointments are of utmost importance because they can change the meaning of the law and thus, in some ways, the direction of the country. Toobin also makes the case that Obama is the conservative Constitutional lawyer, tending toward stare decisis whereas Roberts, his testimony at his Senate confirmation hearing notwithstanding, is a change agent - he is attempting to move the Court in the direction of his own personal goals. That's his case; whether he makes that case, you can decide.

We get a good discussion of Souter and O'Conner's disillusionment with the sharp rightward turn of the Court. Both were appointees of a Republican President, but both felt the Roberts Court was overreaching, moving too fast to the right and they resigned from the Court with considerable frustration. Bush v. Gore, Toobin tells us "broke David Souter's heart. The day the music died,[Souter] called it." O'Conner, of course, supported that decision, but she was a moderate Republican legislator before becoming a justice and a gradualist in re-thinking past decisions. She was far from in agreement with the direction the Court was going. Perhaps especially interesting is Toobin's showing of Scalia's greatest victory, that of moving the Court toward his originalist view of the Constitution. Also interesting is his opinion that Thomas is even more a committed originalist than is Scalia.

In fact, Toobin asserts that Thomas has influenced the direction of the Court much more than is apparent from his rather sullen silence during questioning. Although he rarely has been assigned to write the opinion for big, controversial cases (his opinions are too extreme), he often writes concurring opinions in which he introduces new and radical ideas and these ideas gradually have found their way into serious consideration in later cases. Of all the justices, Toobin says, Thomas is the least committed to stare decisis. Or, to quote Scalia, Thomas "does not believe in stare decisis period."

Again, as in "The Nine," Toobin's likes and dislikes of the individual justices is transparent. He clearly has a warm place in his heart for Ginsburg and continues (also apparent in "The Nine") to dislike Kennedy whom he regards as pompous. I appreciated learning more about the two newest members of the Court, Sotomayor and Kagan, and what influence they have had on the Court.

Most of the major or most interesting cases that have been heard by the Roberts Court are analyzed and most often we see how the Court's decisions reveal the Court's rightward shift. Among the cases discussed are: Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire, Parents Involved in School Integration, Citizens United, and NFIB v. Sebelius (Affordable Care Act).

Toobin concludes by telling us that Roberts has clearly made the Court his. He expresses great admiration both for Roberts' administrative and legal skills and for his brilliant and clearly written opinions. But Toobin also reasserts his belief that, despite Roberts decision on the Affordable Care Act, Roberts remains "a skillful and powerful advocate for the full Republican agenda; he is still the candidate (in robes) of change." He faults Obama's lassitude toward filling the vacancies on the lower courts and the Democrats generally for failing to stake out a liberal agenda as the Republicans have done for a conservative one.

This is an insightful book for anyone wishing to understand how the Supreme Court functions. It's also interesting and is written in non-legalese.

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Jan 25, 2013 Judy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

From the moment Chief Justice John Roberts swore in President Barack Obama in January 2009, there has been a confrontational relationship between the White House and the Supreme Court. Jeffrey Toobin believes that the basis of the hostility between the President and the Chief Justice is that one is a constitutional conservative and one one is a constitutional radical. And, in his view, it is the President who is essentially conservative on constitutional issues believing in pragmatism, compromis...more

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Jan 22, 2013 Emily rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2013, nonfiction

If you know what "stare decisis" means and care about it, you should read this book and its predecessor, The Nine. This latest volume deals with the Roberts court and its various conflicts with the Obama administration, and I'm rating it slightly lower as it doesn't have the same historical sweep. Its scope is more like that of a very lengthy New Yorker article.

What comes through here is that liberals and conservatives have very different ways of looking at judicial activism. Liberals want the l...more

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Jan 19, 2013 Whitney rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I really enjoyed this book even though I had to stop reading it before bed because I got so riled up about the current Supreme Court! Toobin's argument is that the Roberts' court is dominated by a new breed of conservatives who claim they are protecting the original intent of the Constitution, but in fact are extremely activist judges who are rewriting centuries worth of law. When it comes to the judiciary, Toobin argues that Obama is the conservative and Roberts is the activist with Obama defer...more I really enjoyed this book even though I had to stop reading it before bed because I got so riled up about the current Supreme Court! Toobin's argument is that the Roberts' court is dominated by a new breed of conservatives who claim they are protecting the original intent of the Constitution, but in fact are extremely activist judges who are rewriting centuries worth of law. When it comes to the judiciary, Toobin argues that Obama is the conservative and Roberts is the activist with Obama deferring to precedent and Roberts pursuing a radically different understanding of the Constitution and the Supreme Court than has been seen this century. He describes each of the justices on the current court as well as the recent retirees, Sandra Day O'Connor and John Paul Stevens. He describes each justice's path to the court and the evolution of their judicial philosophy. Toobin is a great storyteller; he makes campaign finance law riveting. One of the most timely chapters is Toobin's discussion of the Second Amendment. Toobin points out that the Supreme Court never recognized an individual right to bear arms until very recently. In discussing a gun control case from 2008, Toobin writes "Scholars, lawyers, politicians, and activists created a new understanding of the Second Amendment that eventually commanded five votes on the Supreme Court. Notwithstanding his denials, Scalia had demonstrated precisely how the Constitution is not dead at all - but a vibrant, living thing. In other words ,there was less to the originalism revolution than met the eye. Originalism was no more principled or honorable than any other way of interpreting the Constitution. It was, as [the Heller case] demonstrated, just another way for justices to achieve their political goals." (115) The judicial activism of the current court is a real shift. In describing this shift, Toobin writes "This case, like so many others, revealed how the parties had switched places at the Supreme Court since the 1960s. Then, it had been the Democrats who were the activists, striking down laws that were not to their liking. Now it was the Republicans." (260) This book is fascinating. My only picky objective is that when referring to Chief Justice Roberts in the possessive, Toobin writes Roberts's and not Roberts'. (less)

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Jan 10, 2013 Harry Lane rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

At one level, this is a book encapsulating recent history of the Supreme Court. Toobin does a nice job of mixing well-known public events with anecdotes of behind the scenes interaction. His writing and organization of the material make for easy reading. And it seems to be fairly well balanced from a political point of view, though Toobin is not the least bit shy about attributing partisanship to the people he is writing about.

However, on another level, the narrative paints a stark picture of th...more

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Dec 18, 2012 Jay Connor rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

"The Oath" is an excellent discussion of the perverse, hypocritical direction the Court has been on and has seen accelerate under Chief Justice John Roberts.

While Citizens v. United and the ruling on the Affordable Care Act are ostensibly at the center of this examination, much of the truth is in the periphery. Clearly it is uncontested that the Court has been moving rightward since the Reagan Administration. What is more telling is that the three most recent retirees -- Stevens, O'Connor, and S...more

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Nov 17, 2012 Marissa Morrison rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

As with The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court, I feel like I now know the Supreme Court justices much better. (The only news I ever seem to hear about them comes from Nina Totenberg's flatly delivered quotes from the bench.)

While respecting the intellect and work ethics of conservative justices, Toobin explains how they are f*cking up the country. He notes the sharp disappointment felt by outgoing Republican appointees Sandra Day O'Connor and David Souter (both were appalled by...more

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Nov 03, 2012 Bill Preston rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

While the profiles of the current Supreme Court justices are very engaging and the recaps of the issues and decisions of the Court in the last four years are very well presented, it was the reinforcement of the importance of who gets to select the judges that caused me to have the greatest concern about the upcoming election. Appointed for life for heavens sake, these nine people are in a position to basically overturn any decision the constitutionally elected congress puts in place. The Court i...more

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Oct 29, 2012 Judie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Everyone

THE OATH: The Obama White House and the Supreme Court is more a history of the current Supreme Court than of the relationship between President Obama and the Court. However, that relationship does play a vital part of the book.
Author Jeffrey Toobin provides a very readable and captivating exploration of how and why the current members of the Supreme Court were selected, how they differ from their predecessors, and how those changes have affected our country. He writes, “‘Trial lawyers’...are p...more THE OATH: The Obama White House and the Supreme Court is more a history of the current Supreme Court than of the relationship between President Obama and the Court. However, that relationship does play a vital part of the book.
Author Jeffrey Toobin provides a very readable and captivating exploration of how and why the current members of the Supreme Court were selected, how they differ from their predecessors, and how those changes have affected our country. He writes, “‘Trial lawyers’...are plaintiffs’ lawyers who tend to represent individuals and skew overwhelmingly Democratic. The ’defense’ bar’ represents corporations, often insurance companies, and are usually Republicans.” He mentions a D.C. Circuit conservative who gave a cash bonus to his clerks if they could find a procedural issue that would allow the court to dismiss a case.
In John Robert’s second year as Chief Justice, the court overturned decades of precedents on abortion, civil procedure, immigration, women’s rights, freedom of speech, the death penalty, and anti-trust. Justice Stephen Breyer lamented, “It is not often in the law that so few have so quickly changed so much.”
Toobin examines how a court that at one time was able to work together and compromise on cases became extremely divided as some of the justices, primarily Antonin Scalia, became more political than judicial. Justices who were Republican became more and more disenchanted with the way cases were decided. As some of them left the court, they were replaced by others who held more extreme political views. The Justices appointed by President Obama helped uphold the liberal side, but they were outnumbered by the conservatives. He tells how the Tea Party got started.
There has been a lot of talk about how the Constitution should be read and interpreted. Some justices see it as a living document that should be adjusted to meet a changing society. Others, who call themselves “originalists,” believe they are obligated to interpret it exactly as it was written. Toobin points out problems with that in that there were different interpretations when it was written and sometimes the “originalists” are finding different meanings. One example is the Second Amendment, The Right to Bear Arms. He notes that while many recent decisions claim the Amendment was written for self-protection and meant private citizens could own arms, hand guns were not available. He adds, it that was the purpose, why start by mentioning a militia?
The book covers some of the most important and discussed cases in recent years, such as Roe v Wade and attempts to overturn it, the Lilly Ledbetter fair pay case, and Citizen’s United. He explains how sometimes the final decision has little to do with the merits of the case but hangs on technicalities.
A few times I resorted to Google to read the dissents written by Justice Ginsberg and found them very enlightening (and understood her anger and frustration).
I felt I was in the courtroom sometimes when Toobin was describing how some of the justices acted and how they questioned witnesses. He mentions that Scalia craves attention and will sometimes say or do things primarily to receive it.
He discusses the poor relationship between President Obama and Chief Justice Roberts and provides interesting background on the Chief Justice’s monumental decision in the Affordable Care Act hearing.
At the end of the book, he states that after Obama appointed two women justices, he seemed to lose interest in the federal courts. There were 77 vacancies on the federal bench, Even though the Republicans were blocking all of his nominations, he didn’t bother offering any nominees for 43 of those posts.
As I write this, it is one week and one day before the 2012 election. The next President will be appointing at least one and probably more justices but that issue, which will play a major role in determining the future of our country did not come up in the debates and hasn’t been mention on the campaign trail. How tragic.
THE OATH is a must read for anyone who wants to understand the direction our country is heading (even beyond the Court) and how it got that way.

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Oct 06, 2012 Diane Dubay rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Don't let the name "Obama" fool you. This is the best, so far, of Jeffrey Toobin's books on the Supreme Court, a peek at the "uber-politicization" of the Supreme Court that tells us, not what to think, but what to think about. My thinking about this well-written book is about where the extreme politicization of the Supreme Court has gotten us: the first woman appointee left a job she loved to care for her ailing husband (no Supreme Court justice of the male persuasion has ever resigned to care f...more

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Sep 19, 2012 Jorge rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: politics-economics

The Oath: The Obama White House and the Supreme Court by Jeffrey Toobin

“The Oath: The Obama White House and the Supreme Court” is the riveting book that covers the evolution of the Supreme Court with a focus on how it relates to President Obama’s administration. It discusses many of the hot-button issues of today by the Roberts-led Supreme Court while making precise historical references. It provides enlightening characterizations of the current justices including recent retirees. Award-winning...more

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Feb 18, 2013 Chadwick rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Toobin's writing style is completely engrossing - something I consider quite an accomplishment given the subject matter of his books. As a political news junkie, I followed the major topics and decisions discussed in The Oath real-time, but Toobin adds just enough detail and background perspective to the political maneuvering of the Supreme Court, Congress, and the President throughout Obama's first term to make the cases discussed seem newly fresh and interesting. Although his political leaning...more

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Oct 06, 2012 Parker F rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A great update to the excellent THE NINE, and probably more interesting because of reading the earlier work. Toobin succeeds in making a non-legally minded reader feel like a Constitutional scholar and in making familiar, recent history seem like a cliffhanger. I regard the book as fair; however, some partisans might disagree with the characterization of Roberts as a judicial activist or the statement that Anita Hill's allegations against Clarence Thomas are almost certainly true. The more "cons...more

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Jan 13, 2013 Mike rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

OVERALL SENTIMENT:

I LOVED reading this book. Even reading a book about the Supreme Court seems like it could be really boring, I found myself picking up the book as if it were a drug.

STRENGTHS:

(1) Toobin's sentences are short, and clear, so the sentences breeze by.

(2) The book teaches you a lot of stuff, even for people who currently know next-to-nothing about the Supreme Court. A main theme is that, according to Toobin, the John Roberts Supreme Court is reviving an originalist interpretation o...more
OVERALL SENTIMENT:

I LOVED reading this book. Even reading a book about the Supreme Court seems like it could be really boring, I found myself picking up the book as if it were a drug.

STRENGTHS:

(1) Toobin's sentences are short, and clear, so the sentences breeze by.

(2) The book teaches you a lot of stuff, even for people who currently know next-to-nothing about the Supreme Court. A main theme is that, according to Toobin, the John Roberts Supreme Court is reviving an originalist interpretation of the Constitution, asking: what did the founders think about things back in the 1700's? One such resuscitated view: Congress is ONLY allowed to legislate "commerce between states." Nothing more. As a result, the Justices have been knocking down acts of Congress and voter propositions that were meant to support things like women's rights, universal health care, non-corrupt elections, etc.

(3) Toobin has insider's insight into the Supreme Court. Some of the coloring you wouldn't get anywhere else. Toobin apparently interviewed all the Supreme Court justices and something like 200 Supreme Court clerks.

LIMITATIONS

(1) Toobin reads the Supreme Court from a liberal perspective....Its easy to feel kind of alarmed reading this book. I'm curious how a conservative would describe the Roberts Court. So if you want a balanced view, you'll need to supplement.

(2) The flow between chapters is very meandering, and so the book's chapters don't seem to fit together well. Sometimes the book seems to be about the history of the Supreme Court, sometimes about recent landmark decisions, sometimes about the Court's relationship to Obama, and sometimes even about Obama himself (separate from the Supreme Court). What do all these things have in common? Is the appropriate title for this book "Thoughts about the Supreme Court and/or Obama?" Toobin doesn't ever really fit these topics together in an integrated way. Still, Toobin's book comes across as natural, organic, and conversational. The organization wanders around in a stream-of-consciousness kind of style, but so do good conservations.
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Oct 21, 2012 Mike Carey rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Another well written and entertaining book on a subject that few authors could make entertaining. Some of the ground covered here is the same ground that Toobin covered in The Nine. The crux of the book is the stunning win for Obama Care. The source of the win certainly wasn't the Obama White House and their defense but instead The Chief Justice and his ability to put the Court and the nation ahead of his political agenda. A courageous decision by John Roberts who saw the need to save the conser...more

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Mar 06, 2013 Erik Simon rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a really terrific book that very accessibly elucidates recent major cases, both their decisions and their legal history. It also gives nice, concise bios on each of the recent judges. I surprised myself by walking away with much greater respect for Thomas than Scalia, even though I think Scalia would probably be more fun to have dinner with. Thomas is just bats, but there's a consistency and intellectual honesty to his craziness. Scalia, as Toobin calls him, has descended into being no m...more

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Oct 27, 2012 JDK1962 rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Excellent, but saddening. I can see the conservative viewpoint around the misuse of the commerce clause to excuse federal intervention into virtually anything, but the conservatives are equally at fault for using parts of the constitution for their ends with equally tortured logic (their "originalist" interpretation of the 2nd Amendment is completely absurd...I personally have no problems with states legislating gun ownership, but to twist the 2nd Amendment--basically ignoring the context of "A...more

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Oct 10, 2012 Hani Omar rated it 5 of 5 stars

Toobin continues to be one of the most accessible and astute observers of America’s courts today, in particular The Court (as anyone well-enough-versed in the Bluebook would know it). While covering a much shorter span of time than “The Nine” (which focused mainly on the second decade of the Rehnquist Court), “The Oath” vividly portrays an institution undergoing sweeping, unprecedented, and (for some) deeply vexing change at the dawn of the Roberts Era. Where “The Nine” intimately rendered the i...more

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Dec 08, 2012 Michael rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

I have always greatly admired Jeffrey Toobin's insightful reporting and analysis on CNN, covering the most significant legal events in the country. I rely on him and Nina Totenberg, of NPR, to provide inside knowledge on the legal issues of the day and how the court may go along in deciding them. This is the first of Toobin's books that I have read.
Toobin does a great job in capturing the personalities of the Court and providing the perspective as to how, with the arrival of John Roberts, it has...more I have always greatly admired Jeffrey Toobin's insightful reporting and analysis on CNN, covering the most significant legal events in the country. I rely on him and Nina Totenberg, of NPR, to provide inside knowledge on the legal issues of the day and how the court may go along in deciding them. This is the first of Toobin's books that I have read.
Toobin does a great job in capturing the personalities of the Court and providing the perspective as to how, with the arrival of John Roberts, it has shifted dramatically to the opposite pole of the Earl Warren Court of 60 years ago. The liberal activists of that era have now been replaced with conservative activists who are determined to undo precedent and laws passed by Congress with which they have personal disagreement.
Toobin contrasts the philosophy between the Obama Administration and the Roberts Court in their views about the role of the Court vs. Congress. He even chides Obama in his seeming disinterest in making juducial appointments a high priority as opposed to recent Republican Presidents. Interestingly, it is Obama who has brought the belief that change is best accomplished through legislation rather than judicial activism. It would have seemed at the time of Roberts confirmation hearings that he felt the same way when he said that he saw his role on the court as that of an umpire calling balls and strikes rather than re-writing the rules. He expressed a reverence for precedent as well. However, once he assumed his position it was quickly seen that he was now going to be the one who would shape and control the unbridled passions of his conservative brethren (Scalia, Thomas,Alito) on the court to advance his philosophy of restricting the role of government legislation to promote social, political, and economic change. Roberts was a brilliant manager/tactician in funneling those passions into reasoned and unemotional positions which advanced his agenda. His brilliance was demonstrated with the "Citizens United" ruling whereby he was able to maneuver the Court into a greatly expanded judgment beyond anything thought possible from the original suit’s arguments.
Toobin also makes the case that Robert's seeming betrayal of the conservative cause in the Affordable Care Act ruling was in reality a masterful strategy for his long term agenda of limiting future government legislation based on the Commerce clause.
What Toobin does so well in this book is to examine each of the Justice’s evolution through past cases ( e.g.., gun control, campaign finance, affirmative action, etc.) in getting to where the Court sits today. Although he doesn't paint a very complimentary picture of Alito, Thomas, Scalia or especially Kennedy who is described as grandiose and wavering all over the place for a consistent philosophy, he does show how each of them has been a pathfinder in evolving the Court to where it is today. He even compliments the strange Clarence Thomas as among the most significant in this regard. He also discusses the context of “Originalism” first put forth by Scalia and now the hallmark of conservative thought. Somehow this concept pre-supposes how the Constitution's framers felt at the time and is able to translate it to today’s issues. One has to wonder if that were the case, how slavery and women’s suffrage would be treated if looked at under that criteria.
It will be extremely interesting to see where this Court goes in it's ruling on DOMA, California's Prop 8 Gay marriage, and the Affirmative Action suits that the Court has now scheduled for hearing in 2013. I sense that Toobin will have material for his most interesting book yet.(less)

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Nov 04, 2012 Carlin rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

What a great book! I've heard Jeffrey Tobin interviewed and admired his intelligence & insights into legal matters. This was the first book I've read of his and it confirmed my impressions. Since I graduated from law school in 1994 so much has changed on the Supreme Court & in politics in this Country. Tobin, by giving the backstories of significant cases, details of the litigants & their attorneys, the shadowy financial backers of the appeals, & especially the prejudices, and ye...more

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Mar 27, 2013 Deb rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I loved Toobin's previous book on the Supreme Court, called The Nine. The title this time refers to the moment when new Supreme Court Chief Justice Roberts mangles the oath of office when Barack Obama is inaugurated in January 2009. They have to do it all over again the next day to be sure that everything is correct and legal! The botched oath can, in many ways, be seen as a metaphor for the relationship between the two men. Both are young, charismatic and determined to make their mark upon publ...more

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Mar 16, 2013 Darlene rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book, The Oath by Jeffrey Toobin, is the story of the John Roberts Court (at least so far!) and is the follow up to Mr. Toobin's book about the Rehnquist Court, The Nine. I have to confess that I am a Court 'watcher'. I look forward to the end of each term when the latest decisions are announced. Because what happens in the Supreme Court goes virtually unnoticed much of the time, there seems to be an aura of mystery surrounding the Supreme Court and the Justices; that is one of the reasons...more This book, The Oath by Jeffrey Toobin, is the story of the John Roberts Court (at least so far!) and is the follow up to Mr. Toobin's book about the Rehnquist Court, The Nine. I have to confess that I am a Court 'watcher'. I look forward to the end of each term when the latest decisions are announced. Because what happens in the Supreme Court goes virtually unnoticed much of the time, there seems to be an aura of mystery surrounding the Supreme Court and the Justices; that is one of the reasons books like this one are so fascinating.

In The Oath, Mr. Toobin provides a very interesting look into the workings of Chief Justice John Robert's Court; and he also provides some comparisons and contrasts between Chief Justice Roberts and President Barack Obama... giving his impressions and perhaps a few predictions about what the country might expect from these two branches of government in the coming years. Interestingly (and also a little surprisingly), there actually are a number of similarities between President Obama and Chief Justice Roberts... besides the fact that both men are intelligent and honorable, both have backgrounds in and ties to the city of Chicago; both are graduates of Harvard Law School; and both served on the Harvard Law Review. The similarities, however, end there. The differences between them helped set up the adversarial relationship that characterized the President's first term and judging from the cases the Court has agreed to hear for the current term (such as the Voting Rights Act of 1965), this adversarial relationship will most likely continue through this next term.

Mr. Toobin sums up the judicial philosophies of both men perfectly and provides a lot of insight... "The greatest difference between the two concerned the work of the Supreme Court. It was John Roberts who was determined to use his position as Chief Justice as an apostle of change. He was the one who wanted to usher in a new understanding of the Constitution, with dramatic implications for both the law and the larger society. And it was President Obama who was determined to hold onto an older version of the meaning of the Constitution. Obama was the fellow who was, in the words of a famous conservative, standing athwart history yelling 'stop'."

Most interesting to me were Mr. Toobin's impressions of the current justices.... as people,judges and public personalities. This book is full of stories and information about the justices, their interactions with each other and even some insight into their families. These descriptions add to the 'flavor' of the narrative Mr. Toobin creates and makes the books very enjoyable and entertaining... as well as educational.

Mr. Toobin also tackles a couple of cases from the Roberts Court which were of particular interest to me... Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission and the National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius (Affordable Care Act). He describes step-by-step what happened in each case; described what was occurring behind the scenes with the justices and even what the thinking was on the part of the White House. He accomplished this in a way that was very easy to understand (not written in legalese) and was entertaining at the same time.

If you are a Court 'watcher'like I am or even if you are just curious about the workings of the Supreme Court, The Oath is a book you will enjoy!(less)

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Dec 28, 2012 Trudy rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Fascinating account of current Supreme Court justices,their philosophies, along with a description of cases on important issues that have come before them during Obama's presidency. It begins with Roberts' botched administration of the presidential oath (along with its redo )and ends with the rather dense and technical surprise ruling on the Affordable Care Act (and the individual mandate). Toobin's thesis seems to be that while everyone points fingers at the"liberals" for having a "radical" age...more

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Oct 08, 2012 Arnold Pamplona rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is the second book I have read by Jeffrey Toobin (the first was The Nine), and several things are clear to me: he loves Justice Souter's jurisprudence; he hates Justice Scalia's jurisprudence but likes him as a person; and he thinks Justice Thomas is both a bad judge and a bad person.

Overall, I thought this was a pretty informative dissection of National Fed'n of Indep. Bus. v. Sebelius from a liberal point of view (including some great insights on the jurisprudence of Chief Justice Roberts...more

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Oct 04, 2012 Everyday eBook rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to Everyday by: Joe Muscolino

In a gross oversimplification of American culture that probably warrants the thwack of a gavel, I’ve often said that most of us “concerned citizens” understand our legal system on three basic levels:

-The Judge Judy level (drama law)
-The OJ Simpson level (pop law)
-The C-SPAN level (stale law)

Now, we have two choices. We can plod on for years with this exquisitely simple T.V.-based framework, forever plotting our interests to a matrix of judicial stereotypes. Or, if we’re feeling a little thoughtf...more In a gross oversimplification of American culture that probably warrants the thwack of a gavel, I’ve often said that most of us “concerned citizens” understand our legal system on three basic levels:

-The Judge Judy level (drama law)
-The OJ Simpson level (pop law)
-The C-SPAN level (stale law)

Now, we have two choices. We can plod on for years with this exquisitely simple T.V.-based framework, forever plotting our interests to a matrix of judicial stereotypes. Or, if we’re feeling a little thoughtful, we can pick up The Oath by Jeffrey Toobin and respectfully object. (If you chose the former, stop reading now.)

Granted, to many of us, keeping up with the American Judicial System is as compelling as reading iTunes’ most recent Terms of Service. Just uttering the words “American Judicial System” is like verbal Nyquil. So yes, law can be obscure and remarkably irrelevant. But for every antiquated pickle law there is in New Jersey, you’ll find a law that is actually relevant and important to your everyday life. Toobin reminds us that it isn’t all deep-cut and dry as dust, and with The Oath – which builds on his bestselling book The Nine, a behind-the-scenes chronicle of the Supreme Court – you’ll be blazing a trail through its pages as you sweat out the high-stakes head-butting between the Associate Justices and the heavyweights – President Obama and Chief Justice John Roberts.

Much like the naming convention of a typical court case (“A v. B”), Toobin constructs The Oath like an epic legal showdown, pitting Obama’s surprisingly conservative interpretation of our Constitution against Roberts’s “living constitution” approach. Thus we begin to read The Oath like a courtroom summary, a personality sketch of “Obama v. Roberts,” two of the most influential men in America today locking horns. Their backgrounds are similar (Harvard-educated, Chicago-influenced, law-bound), but what makes them tick is drastically different, and therein lies the propelling tension of The Oath. And when they do come together – you know, like that whole healthcare thing – you’re left with the sweet taste of reconciliation.

As a reader, Obama v. Roberts is a fascinating narrative by itself. But it’s what Toobin wraps the storyline around that makes The Oath a memorable read. At the edges, outside of the scuffle in the spotlight, Toobin takes us on a revelatory journey through legal proceedings and popular issues: Obama’s shifting stance on gun control by the time he took office, the murky territory of international law as applied to Gitmo, and the vulnerable foundation of Roe v. Wade. To the laymen of law, he familiarizes us with the concept of precedent and the plain yet brilliant reasoning behind why we bother opening the floor to dissenting opinions. As explained by former Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes: “A dissent in a Court of last resort is an appeal to the intelligence of a future day, when a later decision may possibly correct the error into which the dissenting judge believes the court to have been betrayed.” In other words: Hold onto those spoils, victors, they might just be fleeting.

If you’re dulled by the prospects of a heavy read, fret not. First off, Toobin writes in an accessible style that never makes reading a chore. Secondly, our Chief Justices may seem tired and staid in appearance, but they are perhaps the greatest group of unsung poets America has to offer. If Hughes’ quote above wasn’t enough, you’ll be pleased to find Toobin quoting our robed wordsmiths on a frequent basis, as in Justice Brennan’s lead opinion on an issue of gender equality: “There can be no doubt that our Nation has had a long and unfortunate history of sex discrimination. Traditionally, such discrimination was rationalized by an attitude of ‘romantic paternalism’ which, in practical effect, put women not on a pedestal, but in a cage.” And, Judge Judy notwithstanding, the poetry continues on and off the pages of The Oath.

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The Oath: The Obama White House and The Supreme Court

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