This was a fascinating look at the United States Supreme Court and how it decided recent important cases, including Citizens' United and Obamacare. Toobin provides the reader with the background of the justices to better understand them as well as a look at how their decisions impacted President Obama's legislative legacy. The Supreme Court impacts our lives in so many ways, many which I did not fully appreciate before reading this book. ( )

The author discusses how both political parties try to stack the Supreme Court membership and the lesser judgeships in order to gain political advantage. Readers might come to the conclusion that the Supreme Court doesn't actually debate the merits of the law and then issue findings based on their legal opinion, but rather decides the law based on personal political beliefs. Once you have an understanding of the process the reason for there being so many 5-4 decisions becomes readily apparent. For this reason some cases have come before The Court on more than one occasion. ( )

Toobin's writing about the Supreme Court is always well worth reading, and this book is no exception. It traces the difficult relationship between President Obama and the Court from its ill-starred beginning to the ambiguous upholding of most of the Affordable Care Act in 2013. At the beginning, of course, Chief Justice Roberts made mistakes in administering the President's oath of office, and the process had to be repeated. And at the end, the Chief Justice astonished many observers by voting to uphold most of the provisions of the ACA. Many felt that this showed an unexpected liberal side to the Chief, but Toobin argues that he was still playing a conservative game, but in a long term context. The book is elegantly organized, basically chronologically but featuring one justice and one issue in turn. The short biographies of the justices are illuminating and very helpful, as is the review of the major cases that came before the court.
The book is also strongly opinionated -- moreso than I expected. He argues forcefully that Roberts came to the court with a "conservative" agenda in mind that was at the root the opposite of conservative. The Roberts court, in his view, was on a mission to overturn much of the law settled by Supreme Court decisions from the New Deal on. Toobin argues this compellingly, and argues that it was a radical rather than a conservative approach. I found his arguments convincing, but his political views are in line with my own. A more conservative -- or more Republican -- reader might find the arguments less convincing. Whether or not you agree, however, this book is well worth reading, both informative and thought provoking. ( )

A confused and often confusing book. It provided interesting context on court decisions and background on the justices but overall it moved around in an almost nonsensical fashion. ( )

The Oath: The Obama White House and the Supreme Court
Living Constitution
The US Supreme Court, in a range of crucial matters, is a divided house. Five conservatives judges and four liberals ones dispute constitutional interpretation. The results sometimes seems unpredictable. Jeffrey Toobin, in a continuation of his previous book (The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court), describes the relationship about the Obama administration and the Supreme Court (2010-2013). The nominations of Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Keagan, their backgrounds, the facts leading to some importants decisions (Citizens United and Obama Care) are exposed. Toobin's text is clear and informative. The language is understandable for the non expert and suitable for the law professional. ( )