shannon bream live in washington with a look at that piece of t the stakes going into the election. >> reporter: with issues from gay marriage to affirmative action on the court's radar these days, every appointment or nomination has the power to shape the supreme court and the country for decades to come. there are now four justices in their 70s, route bader ginsberg and steven breyer were appointed by president clinton. scalia and kennedy are both 76 appointed by reagan. when asked presidential politics do not impact their decisions about when they will retire but it's highly likely the next president is going to have the opportunity to make multiple nominations. weeks ago governor romney said this about the supreme court, quote i hope to appoint justices for the supreme court that will follow the law and the constitution and it would be my preference that they reverse row