Chief Justice John Roberts went on the defensive Wednesday, telling a crowd of lawyers and judges that the American public is wrong to think of the Supreme Court as a group of “political actors.” Speaking in Hershey, Pennsylvania, Roberts complained that people don’t understand how the court works, arguing that they are just trying to follow the law, even when their decisions are unpopular.
But for a lot of Americans, those words ring hollow. While Roberts is asking for the benefit of the doubt, his court is facing a massive crisis of legitimacy. Public approval has plummeted to historic lows, around 43% as of April 2026, as people watch a conservative majority consistently push the law to the right.
The Voting Rights “Gutting”
The most recent spark for this fire came just last week, on April 29, 2026, when the court issued a devastating ruling in Louisiana v. Callais. The court struck down a Louisiana congressional map that included two majority-Black districts, calling it an “unconstitutional racial gerrymander.” Many say this decision effectively guts Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, making it nearly impossible for minority voters to challenge maps that dilute their power. This map was actually drawn up in response to earlier court orders to comply with the law. Now, the Supreme Court has ruled that fixing a racially biased map is itself unconstitutional.
Billionaire Gifts and Ethics Scandals
It’s not just the rulings that have people suspicious; it’s the lifestyle of the justices themselves. Reports have surfaced showing that members of the court have accepted millions of dollars in undisclosed gifts from billionaire Republican donors and members of the Federalist Society.
Clarence Thomas: Reports show he has accepted over twice as many gifts as his colleagues, including luxury vacations and private jet travel funded by right-wing billionaires.
From January 2004 to late 2023, the nine justices accepted over 340 gifts valued at nearly $3 million. Most of these were never reported on financial disclosure forms, leading many to believe that the court’s “impartiality” is up for sale.
A Court Out of Touch?
Roberts argued that the court has to make “unpopular” decisions based on the Constitution, but the public is starting to see a pattern. Whether it’s overturning abortion rights, expanding gun access, or gutting voting protections, the “unpopular” decisions almost always align with the goals of the Republican Party.
As Chief Justice, Roberts has tried to protect the court’s reputation, but even he seems to realise the uphill battle he’s facing. He noted that the shift toward personal attacks on judges is “inappropriate,” yet he remains silent on the ethics reforms that over 78% of Americans say they want to see.
You Can’t Gaslight the Public Forever
Chief Justice Roberts is asking for a level of trust that his court simply hasn’t earned. You can’t accept million-dollar vacations from billionaires, gut a 60-year-old civil rights law, and then act surprised when people call you “political.”
Roberts says the public doesn’t “grasp” how the court works. I think the public grasps it perfectly. They see a court that is 6-3 conservative, where the most radical changes to our laws are happening through “emergency” shadows and shortcuts.
When the court tells Louisiana that they can’t draw a map to help Black voters because that’s “racial sorting,” but then turns around and says states can use “partisan advantage” to silence those same voters, the logic disappears. It’s not about the law, it’s about who wins and who loses.
If Roberts wants the public to stop seeing the justices as political actors, they need to stop acting like politicians in robes. You can’t lecture the country on “misconceptions” while your own house is full of undisclosed checks and biased maps.
