Posted by
Always To The Right on Thursday, October 23, 2008 4:29:17 PM
We haven’t heard as much about judicial appointments in this
election as we did in 2004. Perhaps the financial crisis has removed
that from the front of most voters’ minds, but the Judicial Confirmation Network wants to remind people that the next President will choose more than just an approach to fixing the financial meltdown:
America: land of opportunity — and prosperity. But what
made America great is what we stand for: liberty — equality —
inalienable rights.
Fixing the economy is crucial. But America’s principles and
Constitution are threatened by one more liberal activist vote on the
Supreme Court.
Please join Judicial Confirmation Network. Help spread the word: “It takes just one vote.”
The question hasn’t arisen to a top-shelf issue for a couple of
reasons. Most people believe the most likely retirements in the next
four years will be from two or three of the Supreme Court’s liberal
wing, with John Paul Stevens and Ruth Bader Ginsburg first and perhaps
also Stephen Breyer or David Souter. That makes the issue of SCOTUS
appointments a little less acute than in 2004, when we anticipated the
departures of conservative William Rehnquist and swing vote Sandra Day
O’Connor. If we miss this opportunity, some may figure, it won’t hurt
us as it will just maintain the court balance as is.
However, that misses two important points. First, SCOTUS
appointments affect court decisions for decades. Missing an opportunity
now may mean losing ground to judicial activism for the next 30 years.
The issue of judicial activism doesn’t just apply to SCOTUS, either,
but also to the district and appellate judges that the next President
will select. If Barack Obama stacks these levels with activist jurists,
especially younger appointees, a friendly Supreme Court may never
happen with or without a Republican in the White House.