Republicans make the courts a feature of their convention; Democrats do not, and liberals are worried

A Navajo Nation leader thanked the president for tapping Supreme Court picks who upheld the rights of Native Americans.And Trump used his convention address to brag about the number of federal judges — a figure he inflated — that he expects to have confirmed by the end of his term.References to the judiciary, long a key motivator for conservative voters, were woven throughout the GOP convention and served as a reminder that even if Trump loses reelection in November, his stamp on the courts will last for decades to come.But Democrats all but ignored the Supreme Court in their four-day convention earlier this month, even after the party spent Trump’s first term reckoning with the consequences of Republicans confirming two justices, including a reliably conservative justice who replaced the court’s swing vote.The contrast worries liberal activists who see it as further evidence that the Democratic Party isn’t paying enough attention to an area where conservatives have made big inroads in recent years: control of the courts.“The fact that Democrats spent so little to no time discussing the federal bench failed to take into account that their critically important goals for the future will be challenged in the courts,” said Nan Aron, the president of the liberal judicial advocacy group Alliance for Justice.She added: “It’s a major misstep, given the fact that these 200 judges will make it very difficult, if not impossible in many cases, for the Democrats to accomplish their worthy goals going forward.”Supreme Court sees approval rating increase after consequential termFor activists on both sides, the stakes for the future of the Supreme Court are incredibly high, with two justices in their 80s — including Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who announced last month that her cancer had returned.The lack of attention on the courts at the Democratic convention came even as a notable shift has occurred in recent years when it comes to how much the party’s voters prioritize the judiciary.A Pew Research Center poll released this month found that 66 percent of registered voters who support Democratic nominee Joe Biden said the matter of Supreme Court appointments was “very important” in considering their vote for president, compared to 61 percent of Trump backers. Harris, now the party’s vice-presidential nominee.“President Trump also strengthened the Supreme Court by nominating strong conservative judges like Neil Gorsuch who supports Native American rights,” said Myron Lizer, vice president of the Navajo Nation.With wave of major rulings, Roberts and Supreme Court emerge as powerful counterweight to Trump and CongressIn their respective convention addresses, Vice President Pence said the administration has appointed “more than 200 conservative judges to our federal courts,” while Trump one night later said that by the end of his term, “we will have approved more than 300 federal judges, including two great new Supreme Court justices.”So far during the Trump presidency, the Republican-controlled Senate has confirmed 203 judges.