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Contributors
Fr.
Frank Pavone - Contributor
Fr. Frank
Pavone is National Director, Priests for Life [go to Pavone index]
 We
Govern Ourselves
Stop the obstruction...
[Fr.
Frank Pavone] 5/10/05
Justice Clarence
Thomas, who now serves on our nation's Supreme Court, was confirmed
for that position by a vote of 52 out of 100 Senators. He was
treated poorly in the confirmation process by those who were
out to destroy him.
Yet
despite all the efforts to keep him off the high court, his
opponents
in the US Senate did not deny him an up or down vote. They
understood that it was the duty of the Senate to vote on the
President's nominees, and that if Senators opposed the nominee,
they should simply vote "no."
But now,
Senators who oppose President Bush's nominees don't even want
to allow them a vote. They are delaying certain votes indefinitely,
where they know the nominee would win if the vote were taken.
Some commentators have recently compared this attitude to the
neighborhood bully who takes the ball and runs home because
he can't stand to lose.
Those
who are obstructing these votes belong to a party that lost
big
in the last election. People across America voted according
to their values values which they want to see respected not
just by the Executive and Legislative branches of governments,
but by the Judicial branch as well. These voters understand
that they can make their values prevail in the voting booth
and often through the legislative process. They understand,
too, that these values are often overturned in the Courts.
It’s time
to translate electoral victories into judicial victories. It’s
time to change the courts. It’s time, indeed it is long overdue,
to end the reign of judicial activism that has brought us abortion
on demand, challenges to the Pledge of Allegiance, a redefinition
of marriage, and numerous other policies that are contrary
to the will of most Americans.
We have a
choice. We can either govern ourselves, or let an oligarchy
of unelected judges govern us. We can either use the political
capital won in the election to shape the courts, or we can
continue to watch judges undo the policies made by those we
elected.
Make
no mistake judges
have their proper and essential role, and should be respected
for it. But their proper role does not include making law. The
judiciary has absolutely no policy-making power. Law is made
through the legislators elected by the people.
We
are at a critical moment right now. The Senate, stalled in
its duty
to vote on the President’s nominees, can restore order and
insist that these votes take place. They need to hear from
you. They need to know that this is what you want them to do.
They need to understand that you are watching, and that you
know the significance of this moment. Votes must take place
now.
The effort
to stall the votes is a preparation for the upcoming battle
over a Supreme Court vacancy. Success in stalling a vote because
the nominee is too conservative, religious, or pro-life is
a test run for keeping others like Clarence Thomas off the
Court.
tOR
copyright
2005 Priests for Life
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