Poll: Americans Don't Give a Darn About Diversity on the Supreme Court

The LA Times is reporting on a new Gallup poll that found most Americans don't place a premium on diversity when considering President Obama's first appointment to the Supreme Court.

According to the LA Times, the poll found that "64% [of respondents] say it 'doesn't matter' to them if the president appoints a woman and that 68% and 74% do not care whether a Hispanic or black person, respectively, is named."

Of course, the article also quotes Frank Newport, editor in chief of the Gallup Poll, as saying that "[i]t is unclear how much the average American knows about the current demographic composition of the Supreme Court." 
In other words, the poll respondents might not consider diversity to be very important because they are not aware that the make-up of the Supreme Court doesn't accurately represent the population of the country as a whole.

There have been only two African-American Supreme Court justices, and only two women have served on the Court.  Currently, Justice Clarence Thomas is the only active African-American justice, and Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is the Court's only woman. 

President Obama has come under pressure from politicians and special interest groups to appoint a female and/or a Hispanic jurist to Court, and is reportedly considering at least two candidates who are both.

If the poll is an accurate representation of the thoughts of the nation as a whole, however, it looks like the American people will be less demanding of President Obama when it comes to race, gender and ethnicity. 

They may be more difficult to please when it comes to the issues, though.