Judicial Review is ‘Beyond Dispute’, But…

Attorney General Eric Holder, in replying to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals request for explanation on President Obama’s comments regarding his view of Judicial Review, stated in a three page response that it was ‘beyond dispute’ that judges had the authority to overturn federal laws.

Reading further into the letter, specifically the last paragraph, one finds this juicy tidbit, “The Supreme Court has often acknowledged the appropriateness of reliance on the political branches' policy choices and judgments.”  While seemingly innocent, this points to one of the biggest issues facing this country, today.

The Executive Branch has become, in it’s eyes and the public’s, above the rest of our co-equal branches of the Federal Government.

Problem is, it wasn’t designed that way, and the Founders knew it wouldn’t work that way.  Their remedy was to insure that this coequal structure was written into law so as to avoid any possibility of inequality.  The Constitution lays this structure out in no uncertain terms, and is backed by the writings in the Federalist Papers.

What is troubling about this last statement by Attorney General Holder is that he, quite blatantly, wants the Supreme Court, and other courts in the land, to ignore their constitutional responsibilities of insuring that laws do fall within constitutional boundaries.  Thus, the Executive branch can veer around the checks and balances place on it by the Constitution.  In fact, he wants them to do just as they have for the past one-hundred years, insuring that a progressive agenda is not met by interference from the courts of the land.

We find ourselves where we are today, not only due to our own indifference, but also due to the apathy of a coequal branch that has given license to these Progressives.

Associate Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, in his remarks from the bench in last weeks hearings, signaled that this apathy is coming to an end.  It is quite evident that Attorney General Holder did not get that message.  It’s time for the Supreme Court to emphatically impress this message upon this administration, and future administrations.