My latest installment on SCOTUSBlog urges the Justices to get out of the beltway, and hold oral argument across the fruited plane.
The most likely sites would be the courthouses where the federal courts of appeals sit en banc, or all together: the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit sits in Boston, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit sits in Manhattan, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit sits in Philadelphia, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit sits in Richmond, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit sits in New Orleans, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit sits in Cincinnati, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit sits in Chicago, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit sits in St. Louis, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit primarily sits in San Francisco, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit sits in Denver, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit sits in Atlanta. These cities fully represent the different regions of our glorious republic. (The D.C. Circuit, which is a few blocks from the Supreme Court, does not count.) The justices would see New England, the Mid-Atlantic, the South, the Deep South, the Midwest, the West, and what Justice Antonin Scalia called the "vast expanse in-between." All of these courthouses are equipped with benches to seat the nine members of the Supreme Court. There would also be chambers where the justices and their clerks could work. These federal buildings are already secure, and could provide the appropriate accommodations for the justices.
I also think the Justices should hold goodwill missions that are not part of book tours. They could promote the reputation of the Court without changing any opinions:
