We are a country built upon the rule of law. It may not be perfect. With every case there is a winner and a loser, and sometimes the losers have the better argument. But it works in the main. And it works in large amount because we have an independent judiciary. Judges—yes they are human—bringing their personal opinions and biases to deliberations. Remember, that’s why they were chosen or elected. But they mostly get it right. (That’s hard for me to swallow because my practice and larger sense of jurisprudence resides on the other side of “mostly,” but I must concede the point.) Say Judges are “wrong” (a subjective term of course) 30% of the time. The system works fine. No worries.
So why does Mr. Gingrich wants to topple the whole thing. Why? Well for political expediency mostly. He needs to excite a few thousand Christian Evangelical voters in Iowa and elsewhere to get on buses and go to caucuses and support his candidacy for President of a 200-plus year-old democracy. Indeed, a thriving democracy with an independent judiciary.
His message: we need to destroy that independence. Haul them up for hearings before Congress, fire them, (how bout “tar and feather them,” sure that works and if need be throw them in their own secular jails). This makes Roosevelt’s court-packing plan seem almost pedestrian in contrast. And if Congress won’t play ball, well… throw them in jail too.
Can a serious candidate for President be willing to suggest the end of democracy as we know it in order to pander for a few thousand votes? Yikes.
I say the best solution is ship Mr. Gingrich over to North Korea. They need a new dictator and he’s got the perfect message.
Read more from attorney Steven Berk at his blog, The Corporate Observer, which focuses on current legal and consumer protection issues.
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