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There are four conservative judges on the Supreme Court: Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Anthony Scalia and Chief Justice John Roberts. With a new administration in the White House and the possibility of three liberal judges, Ruth Ginsburg, John Paul Stevens and David Souter, retiring, it is predicted the court will become strongly conservative.

An Obama administration is likely to ensure a balance of conservatives and liberal judges while a McCain administration would create a court oriented towards the right. Due to the election year, of the 35 cases heard before the Supreme Court, only one had a 5-4 divided decision.  Judge John Paul Steven, the apparent leader of the liberal bloc, had to compromise often this term.  Despite the fact that, in 2005, Chief Justice Roberts assured narrow decisions, he, being young and very intelligent, is likely to become a strong conservative influence on the court. He has received criticism from conservatives for not having a greater influence as Chief Justice, this year.

As a result, liberals have to rely less on liberal judges for decisions in cases related to Guantanamo Bay and gay marriages.  They will have to begin the practice of using stronger persuasion despite who becomes the next president. To a young liberal, the possibility of Roe v. Wade being overturned and the decreasing separation between Church and State does indeed make a strong conservative court seem as if it is a disaster.

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