Introduction
Christopher Buckley’s Supreme Courtship is a must-read chef-d’oeuvre heavy laden with ridicule behind Washington institutions’ appointment of Supreme Court judges. The book is a package meant to provoke curiosity in the reader. Although it is satirical, it addresses how the political class plays tricks with key organs of the government like the judiciary whereby they appoint people who serve their interests in propagating their interests. For instance, as opposed to other residents, the president is not willing to serve for the second time, and therefore he is finding it difficult to find a new justice that would assist him in the approval process. Therefore, President Donald Vander damp decides on a TV courtroom star judge who presents a show called courtroom six of whom he appoints to the judicial committee to aid him to achieve his interests. The president makes this decision while surfing the internet. The president does not know that the hurdles and the obstacles that are ahead of him “…the president finally realized he was fighting a losing battle…” (Buckley para.1) This book passes for a satirical. What the people expect of the president is not what he does. For instance, the president is not willing to vie for his presidential seat or the second term, as expected of him. This is a move that is opposite of what is expected.
The author’s purposes or rather reasons for writing this book were to illustrate how people carry out the politics of the day. Many appointments in the government are not done genuinely but rather are done with the aim of satisfying the leaders who govern the people. For instance, in the case of President Donald’s appointments, he appoints Cartwright to facilitate his mission. The theme of the book is the relationship that exists between the Supreme Court and the reality TV star. The author has brought out instances of biasness in the sense that those who carry out the appointments base the task on the relationships and the degree of favoritism and leniency a person will be in their favor. The author has used a case study methodology by providing various illustrations and examples and explaining the turn of events. His point of view in the book is that judicial systems have their own predispositions in dealing with cases. For instance, the author has gone ahead in explaining various points that illustrate pathetic leadership.
The Author’s Say
There are various main points that the author has tried to point out in his book. First and foremost, the author has clearly brought out the fact that there is a misapplication of the constitution in that some political icons misuse the powers conferred to them by appointing people to key offices without following the right procedure. For instance, in the case of President Donald, he decides to select Pepper Cartwright to the judicial committee to facilitate his own interests in approvals. The president because of “… difficulty of finding a new justice who can jump all the hurdles of the approval process…” (Buckley Para.2) his position picks Pepper for the position of Supreme Court contender to assist him in meeting his interest. The author also brings out the indented and disorganized court and lack of fair justice. The courts are there to administer justice that is not appropriate. Courts are therefore accepting cases that interest them and which they find strange for instance cases dealing with the presidential elections and many others.
The author has also presented his views in an amusing way. For instance, he presents a society in which people are overwhelmed with the law and therefore they are sensitive to national issues and any steps that are taken by their leaders. For instance, the president before his term elapses uses his capacity unlawful to fill the vacancies with the TV show star Pepper Cartwright in the judicial committees as other nominees are rejected. The president revenges this rejection by choosing Cartwright Pepper the star of the favorite courtroom drama in America. In addition, because of the unpopularity of the current president Donald Vandersdamp, “…there are national efforts to amend the constitution to limit the number of the term to one so us to kick out the sitting president to vie for a second term” (Buckley Para.4). It is satirical as brought by the author when the unpopular president decides not to view for second term presidential elections, which becomes popular with the American electorate who welcomes this turn of event. Therefore, this book is full of lessons that can be learned from the political tricks as it gives insights into the leadership and how the electorate should be able to pursue their rights.
Criticism of the Author
This book has positive thoughts and opinions about the governed people. The author has brought out his ideas in a satirical way, which clearly illustrates how the current leaders in politics play around with the electorate and make appointments, which serves their own interests. The author therefore through his use of satire empowers the electorate and the governed people to be alert and use their right to demand better leadership whereby leaders will not be able to flaw the laws in place. The author, therefore, empowers the electorate to always demand their rights. The way the author has brought about his thought is interesting and humorous in some sense. It is well placed and complete. This idea represents what really goes through in various nations. Therefore, the author has successfully managed to pinpoint how the politics and judicial systems can be manipulated by the political classes for their own interests.
While reading the book, the most compelling arguments I found out were that the nationals, through their understanding of law were able to fight for the amendment of the constitution. In addition, they were in a position to kick out the unpopular president but the funny thing was that the president gained popularity from the electorate from his earlier unpopularity after he himself decides to resign and quit to run for the second term. However, the author surprised me when he appoints a TV reality star Pepper Cartwright to the position of justice in the judicial committees when vacancies arose in the committee after his earlier nominees were rejected. He uses the famous of the star in order to ensure that the majority of the people accept her so that he does not face further rejection. The way the author has brought about this has actually surprised me, in that how could the role TV star be able to carry out the duties of justice well without compromise. He does this despite the many qualified and experienced law people who could have executed the duties of the docket well. He convinces through comparing her to other well-known personalities like Clarence Thomas, which makes many believe and be satisfied that she is able to execute the duties.
Although the author has done a successful work, he has not been able to present adequately the other staff members of the supreme courts have not been adequately identifiable in his work apart from Cartwright and Justice Samantamaria. This, therefore, brings a lapse in his authenticity and arguments, as it does not represent reality. The author could have used more humor to capture the attention of the audience and to arouse the reader’s interest in wanting to read the book. He also could have employed suspense in his work to make the readers want to read more rather than to engage the reader so that they feel the urge to read on more. This style could have made the book more interesting and likable by many readers.
Apart from these, the overall work of the author was clear and concise because he managed to bring out his theme well. This to a larger extend assisted him in bringing the main arguments out clear hence fostering understanding. The author actually did a recommendable job; he actually covered all that he promised to cover by clearly defining the characters and explaining his thoughts in a logical and coherent way. This made his work of satirical and entertaining come out clearly. The objectives are thoroughly polished, clear, and covered well and precisely. For instance, the objectives of how manipulative the political leaders were well brought out through illustrations and examples. Therefore, this book is recommendable to various audiences.
Summation
This book by Buckley is well written and structured. Therefore, it is recommendable to the third person who may be willing to read although the book did not have aspects like session, it has provided a better understanding of the current political leaders and the issue of governance. I would recommend the book to both political leaders and the entire public. This is because the book is interesting, and has well-written lessons worth learning to enhance good leadership practices. In addition, I would also recommend the book to the students who are the most important people to the future governance and leadership. This is because the book will enable them in cultivating a positive attitude towards leadership. It will also enhance their skills in grammar as the author has used clear and appropriate styles, easy to comprehend. Therefore, this book is of great help to these categories of audience and thus qualify for an informative piece of works.
Works Cited
Buckley, Christopher. Supreme Courtship. United States: Word Press, 2008. Print.