
Nine Black Robes
Inside the Supreme Court's Drive to the Right and Its Historic Consequences
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Narrated by:
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Kirsten Potter
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By:
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Joan Biskupic
About this listen
New York Times Editor's Choice
"Biskupic, an accomplished and well-sourced journalist, knows the court as well as anyone now covering it... In her new book Biskupic has done something different and a good deal harder. She has written a group narrative that combines close accounts of the court's public business in the Trump years with a history of its private dramas and conflicts... The deeper message of 'Nine Black Robes' is that even with a new president in office we remain captive to the Age of Trump... A quiet urgency ripples through this informative, briskly paced and gracefully written book."—New York Times Book Review
"Biskupic opens a window onto the opaque, insular world of the justices to show an institution sinking gradually into crisis . . . Biskupic is a longtime chronicler of the court, and "Nine Black Robes" puts on display her connections within its chambers."—Washington Post
"[Biskupic] knows how to make news and illuminate the personalities atop the judicial org chart . . . The book reveals unseen sausage-making . . ."—Wall Street Journal
"Fascinating and informative . . . [Biskupic's] long experience covering the court . . . has put her in an incomparable position to comment on its make-up, historical positions and direction. It has also made her privy to many significant, little-known secrets about Supreme Court personalities and their historical behaviors."—The National Book Review
CNN Senior Supreme Court Analyst Joan Biskupic provides an urgent and inside look at the history-making era in the Supreme Court during the Trump and post-Trump years, from its seismic shift to the Right to its controversial decisions, including its reversal of Roe v. Wade, based on access to all the key players.
Nine Black Robes displays the inner maneuverings among the Supreme Court justices that led to the seismic reversal of Roe v. Wade and a half century of women’s abortion rights. Biskupic details how rights are stripped away or, alternatively as in the case of gun owners, how rights are expanded. Today’s bench—with its conservative majority—is desperately ideological. The Court has been headed rightward and ensnared by its own intrigues for years, but the Trump appointments hastened the modern transformation. With unparalleled access to key players, Biskupic shows the tactics of each justice and reveals switched votes and internal pacts that typically never make the light of day, yet will have repercussions for generations to come.
Nine Black Robes is the definitive narrative of the country’s highest court and its profound impact on all Americans.
©2023 Joan Biskupic (P)2023 HarperCollins PublishersListeners also enjoyed...
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Absorbing
- By Jean on 01-28-18
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Scorpions
- The Battles and Triumphs of FDR's Great Supreme Court Justices
- By: Noah Feldman
- Narrated by: Cotter Smith
- Length: 14 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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They began as close allies and friends of FDR, but the quest to shape a new Constitution led them to competition and sometimes outright warfare. Scorpions tells the story of four great justices: their relationship with Roosevelt, with each other, and with the turbulent world of the Great Depression, World War II, and the Cold War. It also serves as a history of the modern Constitution itself.
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A MOST HONOURABLE SWANSONG
- By Dudley H. Williams on 05-27-12
By: Noah Feldman
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The Longest Con
- How Grifters, Swindlers, and Frauds Hijacked American Conservatism
- By: Joe Conason
- Narrated by: Steve Marvel
- Length: 10 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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The Longest Con tells the fascinating story of the partisan con artists who have corrupted conservative politics in our time, creating a toxic phenomenon that culminated in the election of Donald Trump, a bumptious fraud whose checkered career and tawdry retinue, including his presidential cabinet, have featured almost every variety of scam. But long before he appeared, Trump's path to power was blazed by the motley horde of swindlers and quacks who preceded him.
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America Needs to Know the Truth and Dangers of Trump
- By Tiberius on 12-01-24
By: Joe Conason
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Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu
- And Their Race to Save the World's Most Precious Manuscripts
- By: Joshua Hammer
- Narrated by: Paul Boehmer
- Length: 9 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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In the 1980s, a young adventurer and collector for a government library, Abdel Kader Haidara, journeyed across the Sahara Desert and along the Niger River, tracking down and salvaging tens of thousands of ancient Islamic and secular manuscripts that had fallen into obscurity. The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu tells the incredible story of how Haidara, a mild-mannered archivist and historian from the legendary city of Timbuktu, later became one of the world's greatest and most brazen smugglers.
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It seemed like a good idea at the time
- By Jennifer A Greenhalgh on 08-10-16
By: Joshua Hammer
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The Art of Power
- My Story as America's First Woman Speaker of the House
- By: Nancy Pelosi
- Narrated by: Nancy Pelosi
- Length: 10 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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When, at age forty-six, Nancy Pelosi, mother of five, asked her youngest daughter if she should run for Congress, Alexandra Pelosi answered: “Mother, get a life!” And so Nancy did, and what a life it has been. In The Art of Power, Pelosi describes for the first time what it takes to make history—not only as the first woman to ascend to the most powerful legislative role in our nation, but to pass laws that would save lives and livelihoods, from the emergency rescue of the economy in 2008 to transforming health care.
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She is a natural at getting her caucus to agree on difficult. Votes
- By Amazon Customer on 08-11-24
By: Nancy Pelosi
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Where Tyranny Begins
- The Justice Department, the FBI, and the War on Democracy
- By: David Rohde
- Narrated by: Eric Jason Martin
- Length: 9 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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In Where Tyranny Begins, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Rohde investigates the strategies Trump systematically used to turn the country's two most powerful law-enforcement agencies into his personal political weapons. Rohde also reveals how, during the Biden years, Justice Department non-partisan 1970s norms that Attorney General Merrick Garland reinforced inadvertently helped Trump, and could fail to deliver a trial and legal accountability by Election Day 2024.
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Review of why we fired trump
- By ludlow on 09-24-24
By: David Rohde
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The Cold War
- A New History
- By: John Lewis Gaddis
- Narrated by: Jay Gregory, Alan Sklar
- Length: 9 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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Drawing on new and often startling information from newly opened Soviet, Eastern European, and Chinese archives, this thrilling account explores the strategic dynamics that drove the Cold War, provides illuminating portraits of its major personalities, and offers much fresh insight into its most crucial events. Riveting, revelatory, and wise, it tells a story whose lessons it is vitally necessary to understand as America once more faces an implacable ideological enemy.
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WOW
- By Cordell eddings on 10-13-07
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Truths
- The Future of America First
- By: Vivek Ramaswamy
- Narrated by: Timothy Andrés Pabon, Vivek Ramaswamy
- Length: 7 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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Today’s conservatives know what they’re against. They’re anti-woke, anti-globalist, anti-big government. But what exactly do they stand for? The fact that this is a hard question to answer is a damning indictment of the modern Republican Party which has abjectly failed to articulate an affirmative alternative to the left’s vision. Ramaswamy calls on the conservative movement to articulate exactly what it stands for, or else warns of another illusory “red wave” in 2024.
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A Modern Day “Common Sense”
- By Daniel Taylor on 09-24-24
By: Vivek Ramaswamy
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War
- By: Bob Woodward
- Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
- Length: 12 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Bob Woodward tells the revelatory, behind-the-scenes story of three wars—Ukraine, the Middle East and the struggle for the American Presidency. War provides an unvarnished examination of the vice president as she tries to embrace the Biden legacy and policies while beginning to chart a path of her own as a presidential candidate.
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Draws Connections
- By Kyle on 10-18-24
By: Bob Woodward
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Erasing History
- By: Jason Stanley
- Narrated by: Dion Graham
- Length: 4 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Combining historical research with an in-depth analysis of our modern political landscape, Erasing History issues a dire warning for America and the world: the worst fascist movements of humanity’s past began in schools; the same place so many of today’s right-wing political parties have trained their most vicious attacks. Yale professor Jason Stanley exposes the true danger of the right’s tactics and traces their inspirations and funding back to some of the most dangerous ideas of human history.
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The bias attitude of the author
- By Elizabeth ohanna on 09-30-24
By: Jason Stanley
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Titan
- The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr.
- By: Ron Chernow
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 35 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Titan is the first full-length biography based on unrestricted access to Rockefeller’s exceptionally rich trove of papers. A landmark publication full of startling revelations, the book indelibly alters our image of this most enigmatic capitalist. Born the son of a flamboyant, bigamous snake-oil salesman and a pious, straitlaced mother, Rockefeller rose from rustic origins to become the world’s richest man by creating America’s most powerful and feared monopoly, Standard Oil. Branded "the Octopus" by legions of muckrakers, the trust refined and marketed nearly 90 percent of the oil produced in America.
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He makes Bill Gates look like a Pauper!
- By Rick on 11-04-13
By: Ron Chernow
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Kingmaker
- Pamela Harriman's Astonishing Life of Power, Seduction, and Intrigue
- By: Sonia Purnell
- Narrated by: Louise Brealey
- Length: 16 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
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When Pamela Churchill Harriman died in 1997, the obituaries that followed were predictably scathing–and many were downright sexist. Written off as a mere courtesan and social climber, her true legacy was overshadowed by a glamorous social life and her infamous erotic adventures. Much of what she did behind the scenes–on both sides of the Atlantic–remained invisible and secret. That is, until now: with a wealth of fresh research, interviews and newly discovered sources, Sonia Purnell unveils for the first time the full, spectacular story of how she left an indelible mark on the world today.
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Pamela reigns! But.....
- By Lucy Johnson on 11-30-24
By: Sonia Purnell
What listeners say about Nine Black Robes
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- Amazon Customer
- 05-30-23
Wow
This was very interesting! It gave great insight into what the justices do! I learned a lot!
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- David
- 12-27-23
Interesting but slanted
Was a nice overview of the court in recent years. However, the author had a specific view (very negative slant) of recent actions. I would have preferred a more balanced approach to better explain arguments on both sides so we understood better why they differed so greatly.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Richard Spitaleri Jr.
- 04-16-23
Another 3 star effort from Biskupic
As a lawyer who watches the Court closely more out of personal interest than work, I read most of Biskupic’s work. This one keeps up a consistent streak of meh. There is almost nothing in here that you don’t already know if you watch the court at all. She provides excessive background and does not make good choices about anecdotes worth delving deeply into. She often veers off into stories from the Justices backgrounds that just aren’t interesting. While the media holds her out as more of an objective “just the facts” reporter, she is not. Her bias to the left is a notch or two above subtle. Having said all this, it’s definitely a worthwhile read for a non lawyer unfamiliar with the Court. She gets the facts mostly right and her writing style is clear and accessible. You can definitely learn a lot from this book too if you know nothing about the modern Court. If someone asked me for one book to get a good feel for the Roberts Court, this would be it.
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4 people found this helpful
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- Kevin Farrell
- 04-30-23
Excellent
As a non-attorney observer of the Supreme Court, I found this book interesting and informative. The writer seems to have good sources within the Court, enabling her to provide context and background for decisions. The narration was also excellent.
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- Stephen Culley
- 07-02-23
Excellent resource
This was great and so honest. The author is able to show day by day how democracy has collapsed under Republican rule!
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- Meghan
- 08-05-23
a good, jumping off point for those interested in the inner machinations of the Supreme Court
As a non-lawyer court watcher, who regularly listens to legal podcasts and reads other work related to the current supreme court, I believe that this book is a good primer for someone looking to delve into the basics of why the Supreme Court is behaving as it is and the increasingly conservative direction it has taken. There are certainly stories which I would have liked to see greater detail in, but understand the need to edit such information. The cadence and writing of the book itself, as well as the choice of narrator, made the information contained within, if not easier to accept, at least easier to digest. I would certainly recommend this to a novice court watcher.
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- DMR
- 05-19-23
Excellent Source on the Supreme Court of Today
Great narrative about how Donald Trump and the Right have hijacked the Supreme Court, and how their decisions of today will also have a devastating impact on future generations.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Anonymous User
- 04-14-23
Great book. Extremely relevant. Wonderful narrator
I really liked this book! I was introduced to the author when she was a guest on the strict scrutiny podcast she piqued my interest enough to get her book. I normally prefer books where the author narrates themselves but this narrator was fantastic.
The book itself is well thought out, historically informative, and a great read!
Definitely would recommend this book
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1 person found this helpful
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- Andrew Kennedy
- 08-10-23
How the Court moved hard to the right
This book is astonishing in its detail from caselaw, personal interviews, speeches. It offers a detailed portrait of the justices. Most interesting was how the justices negotiated rulings. The author also offers some excellent critiques of slight of hand in opinions. Of great interest to lawyers and general interest readers alike.
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- Chad E. McIntyre
- 01-05-25
Hard to put down
This is an excellent book in factual accounts of historical events, relevance to contemporary American life, and performance of narration. A unique non fiction book you will have a hard time putting down, choosing to sit in the car for just a little longer.
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