public:cb_mirror:how_about_no_kings_in_the_judiciary_txt_blogposts_31807
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How About No Kings in the Judiciary?
We’ve just experienced a weekend of protest. Apparently, the protesters don’t want America to be ruled by kings. Most of us certainly agree with that sentiment, but curiously, the protesters seemed unconcerned about unelected government officials who are acting more like kings every day
| We’ve just experienced a weekend of protest. Apparently, the protesters don’t want America to be ruled by kings. Most of us certainly agree with that sentiment, but curiously, the protesters seemed unconcerned about unelected government officials who are acting more like kings every day – officials with lifetime positions, who have decided that their authority supersedes that of our elected representatives. Rogue district and appellate judges have joined the resistance against the will of the self-governed. They’re tilting Lady Justice’s scales based on their personal preferences by * Interpreting laws in ways never intended, * Ruling on cases in which they have no jurisdiction, and * Infringing on the constitutional authorities of the legislative and executive branches. When public confidence in “equal justice under law” is gone, our pact of civilized behavior, the Constitution, will go with it. Nobody knows what will follow, but it will not be a free and prosperous America. The checks and balances our founders intended to keep the judiciary in check have failed. The President has no ability to educate or discipline the judiciary. His power is limited to appointment, not corrective action. The Supreme Court can correct errant decisions of the lower courts, but it is not empowered to take systemic corrective actions. The Supreme Court could make impeachment referrals to Congress, but it seems more concerned with comity than integrity. Congress is constitutionally empowered to take corrective action, but is far too polarized for impeachment to be a deterrent, and too passive to consider subpoenaing and questioning misbehaving judges. Hence, judges assume they have no “skin in the game” and are emboldened to defy the Constitution, duly passed legislation, and the will of the people. We need to change their risk/reward calculus by creating an operational system in which departing from their official role comes with real risks. Since the executive, legislative, and judicial branches are unable or unwilling to reign in rogue judges, it’s up to us to act if we wish to retain self-governance and the freedom guaranteed by our Constitution. Fortunately, we have the means to do that by working through our states. State legislatures can use their Article V authority to call a convention of states (not to be confused with a constitutional convention) to launch the amendment process. Constitutional amendments can be used to put consequences back in the judicial vocabulary, in a way not subject to even Supreme Court review. Amendments are inherently constitutional. Via a constitutional amendment we could impose term limits on judges. Nothing says, “you’re not a king” like having an expiration date on one’s service. Unfortunately, Presidents don’t have a great track record of appointing constitutionally obedient judges, and a great deal of damage can be done during a 4 or 8 year term of service by a miscreant in a black robe. A convention of states could also send an amendment to the states for ratification, which would empower the states to recall non-elected and non-constitutional government officers. Such an amendment could authorize a simple majority of state legislatures to remove district and appellate judges, department heads, or regulatory bureaucrats who step outside the bounds of their authority. Elected politicians and Supreme Court Justices would be exempt from state recall (as constitutional officers), but still subject to congressional removal by impeachment. How differently might lower court judges behave if 26 states could fire them for * Considering a would-be assassin’s gender preference in sentencing, * Blocking the deportation of illegal aliens, * Prohibiting the downsizing of the federal workforce, or * Commanding the federal government to spend money it doesn’t have? Why, we might actually become a nation of law and order again. Imagine that! |
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| Created: | 2025-10-27 20:26 GMT |
| Updated: | 2025-10-27 20:30 GMT |
| Published: | 2025-10-27 20:30 GMT |
| Converted: | 2025-11-11 12:07 GMT |
| Change Author: | John Green |
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