A CLINTON WIN WOULD ENSURE THE MOST LIBERAL SUPREME COURT IN 80 YEARS
The Washington Times
"The next president's picks mean the difference between democracy and tyranny."
"The outcome of this November’s election will determine the direction of the Supreme Court for a generation. The next president will have at least one, and as many as four or five, vacancies to fill. There is no more important issue in this election than the Supreme Court.
Judges come in two basic varieties — those who follow the law as enacted by the people’s representatives, and those who effectively rewrite the law to match their own personal preferences. The first type of judge seeks to implement the law as passed by Congress or state legislatures. The second kind of judge seeks to control the law by making the words in statutes and the Constitution mean what the judge wants them to mean.
The first kind of judge allows the people and their elected representatives to run the country and define our culture, while the second kind of judge prefers to take that role for himself. In this sense, the second type of judge acts as a sort of philosopher-king, deciding what sorts of laws and activities will be allowed, regardless of whether anything in the Constitution or existing law actually addresses the question.
Donald Trump has said he would appoint the first kind of judge, one who follows the law and doesn’t seek to inject his or her personal views into policy debates. He’s pointed to the late Justice Antonin Scalia as the kind of judge he will select, one committed to faithfully implementing the laws Congress has actually passed. Mr. Trump has backed up that promise with a list of federal and state court judges who, he said, are “representative of the kind of constitutional principles I value.” That list was well received by those of us in the conservative legal movement who believe judges must enforce the law as written.
Columnist Thomas Sowell hit the nail on the head when he said, “The issue is judges that stick to the law versus judges who ignore the law. That is a huge distinction. It is the difference between living in a self-governing democracy and living under tyrants on the bench.”
Through his or her appointments, the next president will determine whether the federal judiciary respects its proper, limited role in our self-governing democracy, or whether we continue to slide ever further toward judicial tyranny. There is no more important issue in this election."
The Washington Times
"The next president's picks mean the difference between democracy and tyranny."
"The outcome of this November’s election will determine the direction of the Supreme Court for a generation. The next president will have at least one, and as many as four or five, vacancies to fill. There is no more important issue in this election than the Supreme Court.
Judges come in two basic varieties — those who follow the law as enacted by the people’s representatives, and those who effectively rewrite the law to match their own personal preferences. The first type of judge seeks to implement the law as passed by Congress or state legislatures. The second kind of judge seeks to control the law by making the words in statutes and the Constitution mean what the judge wants them to mean.
The first kind of judge allows the people and their elected representatives to run the country and define our culture, while the second kind of judge prefers to take that role for himself. In this sense, the second type of judge acts as a sort of philosopher-king, deciding what sorts of laws and activities will be allowed, regardless of whether anything in the Constitution or existing law actually addresses the question.
Donald Trump has said he would appoint the first kind of judge, one who follows the law and doesn’t seek to inject his or her personal views into policy debates. He’s pointed to the late Justice Antonin Scalia as the kind of judge he will select, one committed to faithfully implementing the laws Congress has actually passed. Mr. Trump has backed up that promise with a list of federal and state court judges who, he said, are “representative of the kind of constitutional principles I value.” That list was well received by those of us in the conservative legal movement who believe judges must enforce the law as written.
Columnist Thomas Sowell hit the nail on the head when he said, “The issue is judges that stick to the law versus judges who ignore the law. That is a huge distinction. It is the difference between living in a self-governing democracy and living under tyrants on the bench.”
Through his or her appointments, the next president will determine whether the federal judiciary respects its proper, limited role in our self-governing democracy, or whether we continue to slide ever further toward judicial tyranny. There is no more important issue in this election."
