Final answer:
Supreme Court justices are not elected for 4-year terms but serve lifetime terms, after being nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate. State judges, such as those in Michigan, may be elected to fixed terms, which is different from the federal system. The lifetime tenure enables justices to make decisions insulated from immediate political pressures.
Step-by-step explanation:
It is false that Supreme Court justices are elected for 4-year terms. Instead, the justices of the Supreme Court serve lifetime terms. They are appointed through a process where they are first nominated by the president and then must be confirmed by the Senate. This system is designed to ensure that justices are not influenced by the need to campaign for re-election, thus protecting them from immediate political pressures and allowing them to make decisions that can maintain long-term support for the institution.
In comparison, states like Michigan have a different system where state judges, including those on the state's Supreme Court, are elected and serve fixed terms. For example, justices on the Michigan Supreme Court serve eight-year terms. However, this is not the case at the federal level, where Supreme Court justices keep their positions for life, unless they choose to retire, resign, or are removed following an impeachment process.
This lifetime tenure of Supreme Court justices has been a topic of discussion, especially when considering the balance of power within the government and the independence of the judiciary. The long-term strategic planning and decision-making that lifetime tenure affords can sometimes result in rulings that shape public opinion, rather than simply following it.