es not have unlimited power. The government developed by the framers is not a strict democracy but a republican form which seeks to protect the minority from a tyranny of the majority. The Bill of Rights is in fact a statement of principles that are not to be curtailed even if the majority wants to do so. The Constitution not only provides the form of government but also codifies certain principles and makes provision for enforcement and adjudication of differences over those principles. These principles as a consequence remain in force today in spite of shifts in the public consensus over time. It is always possible to amend the Constitution and to change those principles, but the process for doing so is deliberately difficult in order to avoid making the country, and any minority within the country, hostage to the vagaries of public opinion. The Supreme Court is a vital institution precisely because it serves as the final arbiter for balancing competing interests and for protecting the minority--even a minority of one--from the tyranny
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