Backgrounds Quote by Jeffrey Rosen
![“They said, OK, nine [Louis] Brandeis's is too much, but one is OK. So, with friends like that, and so forth. But, yes, the idea that because he was Jewish he would rule a particular way was an ugly undercurrent of the hearings, which resonates with current claims that a judge can't be impartial…” quote by Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/950/jeffrey-rosen-13180_backgrounds_they-said-ok-nine-louis-brandeis-s-is-to_526142.jpg)
“They said, OK, nine [Louis] Brandeis's is too much, but one is OK. So, with friends like that, and so forth. But, yes, the idea that because he was Jewish he would rule a particular way was an ugly undercurrent of the hearings, which resonates with current claims that a judge can't be impartial because of his or her background or ethnicity or race. It's, I guess, a small comfort that in the end the Brandeis vote wasn't close.”
About This Quote
Source Speech: Congressional Hearing on Supreme Court Nomination, 1939
The quote highlights how bias against a judge's ethnicity can undermine perceived impartiality, yet the outcome showed the vote was not close, suggesting merit prevailed.
In simple terms: Bias can question a judge's fairness, but results may still be fair.
Key Takeaway
Recognize bias but trust evidence.
Themes
justice
bias
ethnicity
impartiality
Mood
cautious
reflective
Type
analytical
critical
When to use this quote
- court nominations
- public opinion
- media coverage
Key Concepts
legal ethics
confirmation bias
judicial independence
Questions to Reflect On
- How does personal background affect perceived fairness?
- What safeguards ensure impartial judgments?
A Different Perspective
Bias can still influence public perception despite factual outcomes.
![“It's unfortunate that [Louis] Brandeis was not able to translate or abstract his devotion to cultural pluralism and racial equality as he put it for Jews to enslave people and their descendants and to African Americans.” quote by Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f6c/jeffrey-rosen-13180_able_it-s-unfortunate-that-louis-brandeis-was_603580.jpg)
![“The tyranny of Harvard and Yale is another thing that transcends this problem of the set point. But what's so striking about [Louis] Brandeis is he had this vision of cultural pluralism that completely gave the lie to the idea that there was any inconsistency between being Jewish or being a woman…” quote by Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/862/jeffrey-rosen-13180_african-american_the-tyranny-of-harvard-and-yale-is-anoth_2229543.jpg)
![“Justice Jefferson has a blind spot on race. You know, more than a blind spot. A terrible blemish on his legacy, slavery, for which he's properly excoriated. So, I think [Louis] Brandeis has done this as well.” quote by Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/438/jeffrey-rosen-13180_blind_justice-jefferson-has-a-blind-spot-on-ra_2417525.jpg)
![“I think [Louis] Brandeis challenges all of the current justices. As he said, "If we would guide by the light of reason, we must let our minds be bold." You have to take the values that the framers were concerned about and translate them into this new age.” quote by Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/273/jeffrey-rosen-13180_age_i-think-louis-brandeis-challenges-all-of_1537636.jpg)
![“Unlike [Woodrow] Wilson, Louis Brandeis did not support the segregation of the federal government. He was personally courteous to African Americans. He advised them and advised the head of Howard University to create a good law school. And that inspired Charles Hamilton Houston and Thurgood…” quote by Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/14a/jeffrey-rosen-13180_african-american_unlike-woodrow-wilson-louis-brandeis-did_1775796.jpg)
![“[Louis] Brandeis is often painted as an acolyte of judicial restraint, or the view that judges should uphold laws whether or not they like them.” quote by Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/df8/jeffrey-rosen-13180_judging_louis-brandeis-is-often-painted-as-an-ac_2304880.jpg)
![“I'd say that [Louis] Brandeis practiced a kind of a "living originalism," to use the title of Jack Balkin's great book. He said you start with the paradigm case, which in the case of the Fourth Amendment was these general warrants or writs of assistance, but you define it at a level of abstraction…” quote by Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/aeb/jeffrey-rosen-13180_abstraction_i-d-say-that-louis-brandeis-practiced-a_73138.jpg)
![“Louis Brandeis really inspired me to write this book [Louis D. Brandeis: American Prophet]. It was a crazy deadline. The editor said I'd miss the hundredth anniversary unless I pumped the thing out in six months, because I'd been delaying and dilly dallying for so long. So he both inspired me to…” quote by Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/0f3/jeffrey-rosen-13180_anniversary_louis-brandeis-really-inspired-me-to-wri_110490.jpg)
![“He's [Louis Brandais] so suspicious of bigness in government as well as business that he mistrusts even really top-down reforms at the state level. The most inspiring part of his legacy to me is his belief in the imperative and duty of self-education on behalf of citizens.” quote by Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/da1/jeffrey-rosen-13180_behalf_he-s-louis-brandais-so-suspicious-of-big_113363.jpg)
![“Basically [Louise] Brandeis was a Jeffersonian. And you say the timing is great, and it is in a lot of senses, except not for [Tomas] Jefferson, because this is a Hamiltonian moment, and he's the rock star of the minute with a great musical.” quote by Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/494/jeffrey-rosen-13180_great-music_basically-louise-brandeis-was-a-jefferso_603281.jpg)
![“[Louis Brandeis] at the age of 57 decided to become the head of the American Zionist movement was more influential than anyone else in the 20th century in persuading Woodrow Wilson to recognize a Jewish homeland in Palestine.” quote by Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/0fd/jeffrey-rosen-13180_20th-century_louis-brandeis-at-the-age-of-57-decided_726968.jpg)
![“For [Louis] Brandeis, you know, ethnicity and background are much less important than facts and reason. And he believes that far from wanting to efface our diversity of perspectives, we have to embrace it because that makes us more American, not less. In that sense, he's incredibly modern in an…” quote by Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/8db/jeffrey-rosen-13180_age_for-louis-brandeis-you-know-ethnicity-an_755034.jpg)
![“[Louis] Brandeis had a very distinctive vision of political economy that he persuaded Woodrow Wilson to adopt in the 1912 election and that he largely enacted from the bench.” quote by Jeffrey Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/71e/jeffrey-rosen-13180_benches_louis-brandeis-had-a-very-distinctive-vi_909372.jpg)
