Supreme Court - HISTORY

Learn all about how a Supreme Court nominee gets confirmed to the highest authority in the U.S.

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On May 26, 2009, President Barack Obama announces his nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to the U.S. Supreme Court. When Sotomayor was sworn in on August 8, she became the first Hispanic justice to serve on the Supreme Court.

Learn how Florida ended up determining whether Al Gore or George W. Bush would win the U.S. presidency in 2000. See how a vote recount in the state led to the U.S. Supreme Court giving the election to Bush and subsequently changed voting standards.

In this This Day in History video clip, learn about different events that have occurred on September 24. Some of the events include Black Friday and the USS Enterprise being launched. Also, Nirvana released their first album and the Supreme court was established.

What power does the U.S. Constitution grant the president over laws passed by Congress? Learn more about the purpose of veto power and how presidents have used it.

In an effort to pass his New Deal legislation, President Franklin D. Roosevelt proposed adding extra Supreme Court justices sympathetic to his policies. In an address about the situation, Sen. Robert M. La Follette supports the plan.

How did the legislative branch of the U.S. government come to be? How does Congress work? And how does a bill get passed?