Lawmakers Seek Live Audio For SCOTUS Rulings On Marriage & Obamacare

A bipartisan coalition of Senate and House lawmakers have sent a letter to Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts seeking a live audio feed of the rulings on same-sex marriage and Obamacare. Via Roll Call:

The signatories of a new bicameral letter to Roberts include Senate Judiciary Chairman Charles E. Grassley. The Iowa Republican has long joined the Senate’s leader on the letter, Minority Whip Richard J. Durbin, D-Ill., in pushing for televised coverage of Supreme Court proceedings. “Given the historic nature of the Supreme Court’s upcoming rulings on same-sex marriage and the Affordable Care Act, among other cases, we write to urge the Court to provide the American people with access to live audio of its court proceedings for the first time,” the letter said. “Today, every American has access to many of the proceedings of the legislative and the executive branches of our government through C-SPAN and live streaming online. However, even in 2015, one branch of our government remains almost completely closed from the public eye: the U.S. Supreme Court. People may disagree on the outcome of any given case, but we can all agree that the American public is better served when all three branches of our government are transparent and accessible.”

The letter's signatories say they are not giving up their request for televised rulings but will settle for audio for now.