Ron and Ed welcom Sarah Isgur to discuss her book "Last Branch Standing," which explores the Supreme Court's role in American government, its counter-majoritarian function and its independence from partisan politics. Contray to popular belief, very few cases are decided along ideological lines and Sarah will emphasize the need to protect the court's independence and criticized Congress for failing to act on key issues. We will ask her about billing by the hour and red her thoughts on political strategy and the importance of aspirational goals in politics.
Sarah Isgur is lawyer, political analyst, and professional constitutional sparring partner, who has the ability to make Supreme Court procedure sound like a cross between stand-up comedy and a bar fight involving the Federalist Society. She’s a senior editor at The Dispatch and SCOTUSblog, co-host of one of Ed's favorite podcasts, Advisory Opinions with David French, and a survivor of many polical campaigns and the Department of Justice.
Her new and first book, Last Branch Standing: A potentially surprising, occasionally witty journey inside today’s Supreme Court is New York Times bestseller and currently #1 on Amazon in the Courts & Law category.
SHOW NOTES
Segment one
Today’s guest is Sarah Isgur! She is a senior editor at The Dispatch and has a great new book out https://thedispatch.com/author/sarah-isgur/
“Last Branch Standing” by Sarah Isgur is a book that demystifies the Supreme Court https://www.amazon.com/Last-Branch-Standing-Potentially-Occasionally/dp/0593800923
The "snails of justice" is a famous legal anecdote used by retired Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer to explain the interpretative work appellate judges do https://www.brown.edu/news/2025-04-15/breyer
The Stat Pack from SCOTUSblog https://www.scotusblog.com/stat-pack/
The "3 3 3 Supreme Court" refers to the core thesis of Sarah’s, Last Branch Standing. She argues that the Supreme Court operates as three distinct factions of three justices rather than the traditional 6-3 conservative vs. liberal split. https://www.amazon.com/Last-Branch-Standing-Potentially-Occasionally/dp/0593800923
Segment two
"I have come to the conclusion that one useless man is called a disgrace; that two are called a law firm, and that three or more become a Congress!" from the 1969 Broadway musical 1776 (not actually said by John Adams)
“Almost all of the cases that we fight about, that we’re mad at the Supreme Court about, we should be mad at Congress.” —Sarah Isgur on Supreme Court rulings and the abdication of responsibility by Congress
“Wickard v. Filburn: The Supreme Court Case That Gave the Federal Government Nearly Unlimited Power” via FEE https://fee.org/articles/wickard-v-filburn-the-supreme-court-case-that-gave-the-federal-government-nearly-unlimited-power/
Immigration and Naturalization Service v. Chadha, 462 U.S. 919, was a United States Supreme Court case holding that the one-house legislative veto violated the constitutional separation of powers. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_and_Naturalization_Service_v._Chadha
Segment three
Fun bingo fact about The Soul of Enterprise: “I ran against Ken Paxton for Texas State Senate in 2012 as a Libertarian, and Angela Paxton in 2022.” —Ed Kless
The Professional’s Guide to Value Pricing by Ron Baker https://www.amazon.com/Professionals-Guide-Value-Pricing-Ronald/dp/0156072246
On the billable hour: “It’s why I decided I couldn’t work at a law firm.” —Sarah Isgur
“If you really think about it, the billable hour is based on the labor theory of value….which is actually Marxism.” —Ed Kless
Segment four
Number one on Amazon in the courts and law category! Last Branch Standing by Sarah Isgur https://www.amazon.com/Last-Branch-Standing-Potentially-Occasionally/dp/0593800923
Old Glory Insurance….for when the robots come for you (and they will) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4Gh_IcK8UM
A big THANK YOU to Sarah Isgur for joining us on the show this week. Her book, Last Branch Standing, is available everywhere. Check it out: https://www.amazon.com/Last-Branch-Standing-Potentially-Occasionally/dp/0593800923
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