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Rush is Really Right on this one.

by John F. Tamburo, Editor in Chief, Publisher
Originally Posted: 7/5/2005 10:20:40 AM
Last Updated: 7/5/2005 10:31:02 AM

Our dear friend, Rush Limbaugh, member of our hall of fame, has opined that the frenetic excitement over the mildly-surprising retirement of Sandra Day O’Connore from the Supreme Court stems from the fact that the Supreme Court are the true rulers of the United States of America.  I agree.  The check of the Supreme Court upon the executive and legislature is itself, in essence, unchecked.  The founders intended that the judiciary be independent, and the check upon it would be the appointment power of the executive, itself in part checked by the advice and consent of the Senate.

Now, we have one of the two "swing" votes on the court leaving the bench.    Our beloved President is feeling pressure from both sides of the political spectrum.  Conservative groups oppose the possible nomination of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.  Chuckie Schumer and Teddy Kennedy, among other liberal Democrats, have made rumblings that they will demand that any nominee divulge how he or she will vote upon hot-button issues like abortion.  Stuck in the middle are three parties:  1) Our President; 2) The nominee; and 3) The American People.

"Justice O’Connor is a swing vote.  The nomination will determine the direction of the Supreme Court, and the left wing is terrified."

Rush was and is truly and totally right about the import of the Supreme Court.  This nomination will be even more critical.  Why?  Justice O’Connor is a swing vote.  The nomination will determine the direction of the Supreme Court, and the left wing is terrified.  All of the "progress" that the court has achieved since Clinton could be "undone."  Oh, the horror!  Imagine the horrid consequences of a Supreme Court that does not impose foreign law upon the Constitution!  Imagine the ugliness of a country where the courts are not actively trying to kick God out of our lives!

The fight over this nomination will almost certainly break the back of the evil cabal of 14.  Extremist wolves in sheep’s clothing like Daniel Inouye (D-HI) and Robert Byrd (D-Ku Klux Klan) will certainly not be able to stay on the sidelines.  Chuckie Schumer laid down the gauntlet, and is in essence demanding that Justice O’Connor be replaced by a liberal, or there will be a filibuster.  The liberals almost have no choice.  Chief Justice Rehnquist, and Justices Scalia, Thomas and (most of the time) Kennedy, are conservatives.  Justices Stevens, Souter, Ginsburg and Breyer are quite liberal.  That makes this nominee the single most important member of the court.  This nominee could in essence run the United States of America!  Therefore, our President is obligated by his oath to the Constitution to nominate someone who will not undertake to run the country from the bench.

"This weekend, my brother suggested that our beloved President nominate Janice Rogers Brown, newly confirmed to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, to the O’Connor seat.  Her judicial philosophy is well-known and she is the conservative’s dream justice."

This weekend, my brother suggested that our beloved President nominate Janice Rogers Brown, newly confirmed to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, to the O’Connor seat.  Her judicial philosophy is well-known and she is the conservative’s dream justice.  She is an unabashed advocate of limited government.  Moreover, the Senate just confirmed her to the D.C. court.  The Cabal of 14 could not possibly invoke the nebulous "extreme circumstances" exception to filibuster a nominee that, only a few short weeks earlier, was acceptable.  I agree.  Justice Brown would be a splendid addition to the court.  Again, I agree with Rush, who has suggested the same thing.

Once we get past this nomination thing, it’s time for us to address the unchecked nature of the Supreme Court.  There has to be a process, and definitely a difficult process, to overturn ridiculous and/or egregious Supreme Court decisions.  If the Supreme Court can overturn laws at will, and can re-interpret the Constitution at will, it is unchecked.  That is dangerous to say the least.  We need to amend the Constitution in two ways.  First, we need to amend the Constitution to restrict the ways that it can be interpreted.  We need to preserve literal interpretation as the only way to apply Constitutional and statutory law.  Then, we need to set into law a process whereby a large supermajority of both houses of Congress, along with the consent the President, may overturn a Supreme Court decision.  I honestly think that the supermajority needs to be higher than two-thirds.  The president’s veto of one of these overturns needs to be non-overridable.  That should prevent the abuse of the power.

"Until we can prevent the abuse of power by statute, we need to prevent it by honor."

Until we can prevent the abuse of power by statute, we need to prevent it by honor.  The most honorable and appropriate nominee for the current vacancy in the Supreme Court is Janice Rogers Brown.

To our beloved President:  This is a no-brainer.  Rush is right.  Please nominate Janice Rogers Brown to replace Justice O’Connor.  We all also know that Chief Justice Rehnquist will soon retire.  At that time, please promote Justice Thomas to Chief Justice, and nominate Bill Pryor, another one of the cabal of 14’s "deal" judges, to the court.