[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 2]
[House]
[Page 1485]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      CAMERAS IN THE SUPREME COURT

  (Mr. POE of Texas asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, the Supreme Court will soon take up 
the President's nationalized health care law. This case will go down in 
history as it affects every American. But unless every citizen has a 
seat inside the Supreme Court, they will not be able to watch the legal 
arguments or hear the questions by the Justices. The people will not be 
able to see justice in action. The American public should be able to 
view the proceedings on TV much like they do with C-SPAN when Congress 
is in session.
  I know cameras can be placed in a courtroom without disruption 
because I was one of the first judges in Texas to allow an unobtrusive 
camera in the courtroom. I did so without any problem and proved the 
cynics wrong.
  A lack of seating capacity is no reason to deny the American public 
access to the Supreme Court. The American people deserve an all-access 
pass to watch the High Court in action. The Supreme Court is the most 
important court in the world. Let the world know what takes place 
behind those closed doors. Let cameras and the people in.
  And that's just the way it is.

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