Chief Justice John Roberts says America's independent judiciary is being threatened
The Supreme Court has become a flashpoint in recent years, with conservative justices being targeted for harassment and even assassination.
The situation has become so tense that Chief Justice John Roberts warned all Americans that the rule of law is at risk.
Roberts slams "open disregard for federal court rulings"
According to Fox News, Roberts included that warning as part of his 15-page annual report, which was made public earlier this week.
"It is not in the nature of judicial work to make everyone happy. Most cases have a winner and a loser," the chief justice wrote.
"Every Administration suffers defeats in the court system — sometimes in cases with major ramifications for executive or legislative power or other consequential topics," Roberts pointed out.
"Nevertheless, for the past several decades, the decisions of the courts, popular or not, have been followed, and the Nation has avoided the standoffs that plagued the 1950s and 1960s," he stressed
RBG said an independent judiciary is "essential to the rule of law"
"These dangerous suggestions, however sporadic, must be soundly rejected. Judicial independence is worth preserving," the jurist declared.
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"As my late colleague Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote, an independent judiciary is 'essential to the rule of law in any land,' yet it 'is vulnerable to assault; it can be shattered if the society law exists to serve does not take care to assure its preservation,'" Roberts recalled.
"I urge all Americans to appreciate this inheritance from our founding generation and cherish its endurance," the chief justice said before adding, "Our political system and economic strength depend on the rule of law."
Multiple Supreme Court decisions have been met with anger
While Roberts did not name which Supreme Court decisions have been met with calls for defiance, Fox News noted that many Democrats were outraged after the justices ruled that presidents enjoy a presumption of immunity for criminal acts.
Meanwhile, Democrats also urged President Joe Biden to disregard a Trump-appointed district court judge who revoked the Food and Drug Administration's approval for the abortion drug mifepristone. The Supreme Court later stayed the decision.
Yet another source of controversy came when America's highest judicial body shot down Biden's massive scheme to saddle taxpayers with student loan debts.
