Question

Periodical appointments, however regulated, or by whomsoever made, would, in some way or other, be fatal to their necessary independence.

—Alexander Hamilton,
Federalist No. 78

Why does Hamilton think judges should be appointed permanently rather than on a periodic basis?

Permanent appointments allow for greater regulation but less independence.
Periodic appointments promote a fatal independence.
Periodic appointments are hard to regulate.
Periodic appointments would destroy a judge’s independence.

Answer 1

"Periodic appointments would destroy a judge’s independence."

Hamilton argued that life (or permanent) tenure shields judges from political pressures and influence by those who appoint them; regular reappointment would make judges dependent on—and beholden to—the appointing authorities, destroying the "necessary independence" of the judiciary.