Over at The Dispatch, I have a new piece on the State of the Union address and why the justices should stay home. After President Obama caused a stir by criticizing the Court for its Citizens United decision during the State of the Union address, I wrote an article on presidential criticisms of the judiciary in public speeches and on the evolution of the State of the Union address. Chief Justice John Roberts complained after that episode that the event seemed like a presidential pep rally. Well, no duh. The State of the Union is a presidential pep rally. That was Woodrow Wilson's goal when he started the modern tradition of an annual in-person speech to a joint session of Congress.
One can see why such a platform is politically useful to the president. But no one else should play along, or pretend that the State of the Union is some kind civic ceremony. It is, and has always been, a vehicle for the president to bully Congress into doing what he wants. There is no reason for the justices to attend such an event, and no reason for the opposition members of Congress to show up either.
From the piece:
