A “view” from the South Lawn: The constitutional oath

[Elderberry]

SCOTUSblog by Mark Walsh 10/27/2020

“Upon administration of that oath, she will be able to begin to participate in the work of the court,” the press release says. I mention the release to the handful of reporters and photographers hanging around the White House press briefing room waiting for this evening’s ceremony.

“So, the oath tonight is just for show?” one photographer asks.

Well, glad you asked. No, tonight’s oath is not just ceremonial. It is one of the two oaths required for the office. While the chief justice will administer the judicial oath, Justice Clarence Thomas will be administering the constitutional oath.

A few minutes after 9 p.m., a voice announces the entrance of the president, “accompanied by Justice Clarence Thomas and Justice Amy Coney Barrett.”

Not so fast. Barrett hasn’t taken any oaths yet. And the event is reminiscent of the last time a White House swearing-in ceremony was held on the South Lawn. That was Thomas’s ceremony in 1991. At that event, Justice Byron White administered the constitutional oath, but noted in a brief prelude that Thomas wouldn’t be a fully installed justice until he took his judicial oath as well, which was scheduled for several days later at the court. (The second oath was moved up. Again, it’s all in this lovingly detailed account.)

Trump thanks Barrett’s husband, Jesse, and notes that the seven Barrett children, “who have become, really, just very, very popular in this nation,” are back home in Indiana. One wonders if the household, which Barrett has noted is the same number as a full Supreme Court, will hit the road to move from South Bend to Washington at some point. Nine scorpions in a minivan.

“Justice Barrett has made clear she will issue rulings based solely upon a faithful reading of the law and the Constitution as written, not legislate from the bench,” the president continues.

Soon, he asks Thomas to administer the oath. Similar to what happened with Gorsuch’s Rose Garden ceremony is 2017, Barrett and Thomas step away from the lectern and apparently no one on the White House’s audio-visual team has thought about mic-ing up the area where they are standing. So as Thomas begins the constitutional oath, some guests in the back turn to each other, with one asking, “Is he saying the oath?”

Barrett moves back to the lectern for a round of “thank you”s and a few remarks.

“Federal judges don’t stand for election,” she says. “Thus, they have no basis for claiming that their preferences reflect those of the people. This separation of duty from political preference is what makes the judiciary distinct among the three branches of government.”

She continues: “A judge declares independence not only from Congress and the president, but also from the private beliefs that might otherwise move her. The judicial oath captures the essence of the judicial duty the rule of law must always control.”

Tonight, as the president promised, has been a nice event. When Barrett takes that second oath, on Tuesday at the court, she will become the 115th justice of the Supreme Court.

More: https://www.scotusblog.com/2020/10/a-view-from-the-south-lawn-the-constitutional-oath/#more-297263