Three federal appeals court judges defended the judiciary’s independence, while partly blaming the media for any perception that the branch has become partisan.

Judges Stephanos Bibas, Cheryl Ann Krause and Marjorie Rendell—all of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit—stressed during a National Constitution Center event Friday that political beliefs don’t steer decision-making on the bench. The comments came after the panel’s host, NCC president and CEO Jeffrey Rosen, brought up remarks Justices Amy Coney Barrett and Stephen Breyer made earlier this week asserting the U.S. Supreme Court is split along philosophical, not political lines.