The Chief
The Life and Turbulent Times of Chief Justice John Roberts
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The Chief
Narrated by:
Jennywren Walker
Buy Now for $26.99
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Narrated by:
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Jennywren Walker
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By:
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Joan Biskupic
About this listen
John Roberts was named to the Supreme Court in 2005 claiming he would act as a neutral umpire in deciding cases. His critics argue he has been anything but, pointing to his conservative victories on voting rights and campaign finance. Yet he broke from orthodoxy in his decision to preserve Obamacare. How are we to understand the motives of the most powerful judge in the land?
In The Chief, award-winning journalist Joan Biskupic contends that Roberts is torn between two, often divergent, priorities: to carry out a conservative agenda, and to protect the Court's image and his place in history. Biskupic shows how Roberts's dual commitments have fostered distrust among his colleagues, with major consequences for the law. Trenchant and authoritative, The Chief reveals the making of a justice and the drama on this nation's highest court.
Critic Reviews
"The Chief offers an extraordinarily insightful, thoughtful and accessible analysis of Roberts's personal life, professional career, judicial experience and approach to constitutional interpretation. It is essential reading for anyone who truly wants to understand this pivotal moment in Supreme Court history."—Washington Post
"Assiduously reported and briskly written...[Biskupic] suggests that [Roberts] is pulled by two often-conflicting instincts. One is ideological: a desire to move the court rightward on race, religion and other issues. The other is institutional: an interest in the court being respected and seen as nonpolitical."—New York Times Book Review
"An approachable volume about subjects often unapproachable. Biskupic, who has covered the Supreme Court for a quarter century, captures the tensions within the group, the interplay among the justices, and the pressures brought to bear on them by outsiders...The Chief is an ample and amiable companion to such insider accounts as The Brethren, the classic 1979 book by Bob Woodward and Scott Armstrong, and The Nine, the influential 2007 book by Jeffrey Toobin."—Boston Globe
"A well-reported book, it sheds new light...As our attention spans dwindle to each frantic day's headlines, we can forget that the position of chief justice is one of long-term consequence."—Atlantic
"As Joan Biskupic's invaluable biography shows, Roberts is at once a committed Republican with very conservative policy preferences and ties to the conservative community, and an institutionalist who cares deeply about the nonpartisan character of the Court."—New York Review of Books
"Biskupic takes readers behind the scenes, revealing for the first time how Roberts swung back and forth in his deliberations before shocking everyone with his conclusion, preserving Obamacare on the slimmest of threads...Among [her] most valuable insights is how hard Roberts strives to be seen as apolitical when, in fact, he is not only savvy about politics but also is leading a body that is, inevitably, political."—Christian Science Monitor
"Ms. Biskupic is a skillful writer and a diligent scholar, and the John Roberts she presents here is a sympathetic and complex character."—Wall Street Journal
"Magnificent."—Slate
"[Biskupic] makes painfully clear that the defining feature of Roberts's legal career has been his relentless efforts to roll back any measures to combat racial inequality...Biskupic is unfailingly evenhanded, but what she describes is a calculated, sustained assault on the nation's civil rights laws by the most powerful judge in the country"—Washington Monthly
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