A Study on the Loyalty of Trump-Appointed Supreme Court Justices
SONG Zifeng
As Alexis de Tocqueville famously observed, “Scarcely any political question arises in the United States that is not resolved, sooner or later, into a judicial question.” Decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States not only reflect the evolving characteristics of American society across different historical periods, but also possess substantial power to shape its broader trajectory. Amid intensifying political polarization and deepening social divisions, polarization within the Court itself has become increasingly pronounced. During his first term, Donald Trump successfully appointed three conservative justices, accelerating the Court’s rightward shift.
This study examines the question of political loyalty to the president among Trump-appointed justices. A comprehensive analysis of their judicial behavior shows a consistently high level of support for Trump, both in merits decisions and in emergency applications. The study first employs historical case data to conduct a comparative assessment of their overall voting patterns, and then develops a quantitative measure of their political loyalty. It further investigates four pivotal cases to explore how the contemporary Court has expanded the boundaries of presidential power, with particular attention to its use of the “shadow docket” as a mechanism for providing distinctive judicial support.
Empirical voting data indicate that the three Trump-appointed justices have largely voted in line with their ideological orientations, advancing long-term conservative objectives across major issue areas and exhibiting a high degree of alignment with Trump. In a series of landmark rulings, the Court has reinforced the legitimacy and operational scope of executive authority while weakening the capacity of lower courts to impose immediate constraints on presidential actions, thereby effectively expanding the boundaries of presidential power. Notably, the Court has not only strengthened presidential authority through its regular docket, but has also, in an unprecedented fashion, increasingly relied on the expedited procedures of the shadow docket to adjudicate urgent cases, affording Trump distinctive judicial support. Through these three consequential appointments, Trump has not only reshaped the Court’s ideological balance but also left a lasting imprint on the trajectory of American constitutional development.
About the author
Dr. SONG Zifeng is a lecturer at the College of International Studies, Shenzhen University, and holds a Ph.D. in Literature from Beijing Foreign Studies University. He completed both his master’s and doctoral studies at the American Studies Center, School of English and International Studies, Beijing Foreign Studies University. His research focuses on U.S. politics, with particular emphasis on the U.S. Supreme Court, as well as China–U.S. relations. He has published multiple articles in academic journals such as Contemporary American Review and Country and Area Studies.
