Supreme Court Appointments

[Herb Schaffler]

October 6th, 2008 by Russ Verney
Today is the first Monday in October and the start of another Supreme Court term in Washington. To see several of the elderly justices arrive ever so slowly, you might think it a meeting of retirement home residents gathering for brunch.
This brings up an important issue. Over the next four years there could be three or more vacancies on the court through retirement or death.
Given the power that the court has exercised in recent years and their eagerness to make law, not just interpret it, who nominates the next batch of judges is critical.
Barack Obama has made it clear that his Supreme Court nominees would be of the variety to make laws without regard for the Constitution. He has publicly stated his disdain for justices Clarence Thomas, Antonin Scalia, Samuel Alito and Chief Justice John Roberts.
As for John McCain, were he to be President, his nominees would face a very large Democrat majority and he has long expressed his desires for compromise and “cooperation.” As a member of the Senate, he was a member of the notorious “Gang of 14″ that killed the appointments of several Bush nominees for no other reason than that they were contentious and made the Democrats unhappy. And given that John McCain includes among his best friends in the Senate liberals like Joe Biden and Joe Lieberman, do we think he would nominate Justices to uphold the Constitution?
It is very unlikely. With his signature campaign finance reform law upheld by the moderate to liberal members of the court, John McCain has demonstrated no more interest in “conserving” the Constitution and its principles of limited government and individual liberty, than has Barack Obama.
That’s one of the main reasons Bob Barr is running for President. As a former U.S. Attorney and Congressman, he saw first hand the importance of have judicial nominees at every level who are there to uphold the rule of law and not make it up as they go along.
We should all demand that our next president nominate qualified men and women who are committed to honoring their oath to defend the Constitution, not re-write it. We don’t believe in a living Constitution. We believe that where interpretation is needed, original intent is what should be considered. The Constitution of 1789 is as good today as it was then.
Unfortunately, like so many other issues, little attention is given to this issue. That’s because both McCain and Obama are the same on this issue. If you cherish the Constitution, you support Bob Barr.