Perhaps there is a hyper-partisan congress because it’s a reaction to what some have viewed as a hyper-partisan Supreme Court. On a positive reading, the Court

Perhaps there is a hyper-partisan congress because it’s a reaction to what some have viewed as a hyper-partisan Supreme Court. On a positive reading, the Court is now saying states have the right to choose these issues for themselves. There are means in the constitution for overruling a minority of states, that is by passing a constitutional amendment. By allowing and even encouraging the Court to make these decisions, Congress has built up a democratic deficit which has exploded in its face. On a negative reading, sadly, the Court is just as partisan now but in the other direction. Thus the deficit won’t go away.