The Overpowered Judiciary

By J. J. Jackson

April 4, 2005

Everyone knows I strongly dislike disingenuous politicians regardless of party or political persuasion.   I don’t know, maybe it is the way that when a politician is disingenuous they talk down to the people as  idiots  to promote their political agenda.   Or maybe it is   … ah, who am I kidding?   It’s the way they treat us like we’re idiots to push their agenda!

Congressional Republicans are thumping their chests about an overpowered judiciary after not getting their way in the Terri Schiavo case.   Basically they passed a law to try and affect the outcome of the case and got snubbed.   And now they are pissed off and threatening to take action against the Judicial Branch of government.   I guess the proper question to ask is this: what took them so FREAKING long?

Tom Delay and other Republicans are out there painting a portrait of a helpless Legislative and Executive Branch being held under the thumb of the overpowering Judiciary.   Be afraid.   Be very afraid.   Because they are lying to you, me and every other American.   What’s that you say?   Congress has been lying to us?   Congressional Republicans complaining about how they are being trumped by the Judiciary are not telling us the entire truth?   Yep.   And you are about to learn the ugly truth and that ugly truth will piss you off royally!

----PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT!   Republican is NOT a synonym with conservative!   The Republican Party is the party of moderates, otherwise known as socialist-lites.   Sure, they have some real conservatives in their ranks but not enough to run the party truly in such a manner.----

Now, back to our regularly scheduled evil conservative commentary...

I’d laugh at Tom Delay and other Congressional Republicans if their lying weren’t so serious a matter.   A Legislative and Executive branch being trumped by the judicial?   Ok on second thought   I will laugh.  HA!   That has got to be the most asinine statement made by a Congressman since … since … well since the last time Teddy Kennedy or Robert Byrd spoke!

The only reason I can even think of that they are pretending to not know how frivolous these allegations are is that they are attempting to distract critical eyes away from lack of performance concerning their own Constitutional duties.   You know, things like their own usurpation of Constitutional power through unconstitutionally expanding the size of government and infringing upon the rights of Americans.   Do programs like Medicare, Medicaid, Campaign Finance Reform and Social Security ring a bell?   Anyone want to try and find those duties in Article I, Section 8?

The only reason a  Republican  controlled  Congress  is  out  there  thumping their chest like King Kong is that they don’t want their own prior and continuing bad acts scrutinized.   It is easier to stand before a podium and cry out about how they are going to stand up to the Judiciary!   RAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRR!   Hey, who let Howard Dean in?

Any member of Congress daring to sit there and preach about how they are being oppressed by the Judiciary needs to read the Constitution.   Seriously!   If they did, they would see that Congress is specifically given the ultimate authority over the federal Judiciary through the impeachment of judges that fail to maintain “good behavior“.   The President has the right to nominate the judges.   The Senate has the role of advise and consent.   Then Congress has the authority to remove any judge that fails to act in good behavior.

Let me cite for you the following:

Article I, Section 2,

“The House of Representatives shall choose their Speaker and other Officers and shall have the sole Power of Impeachment.”

Article I, Section 3.

“The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments.”

Article II, Section 4.

“The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.”

and

Article III. Section. 1.

“The Judges, both of the supreme and inferior Courts, shall hold their Offices during good Behavior, and shall, at stated Times, receive for their Services a Compensation, which shall not be diminished during their Continuance in Office.”

Did you see that?   The truth is that Congress has always had the ability to remove judges that truly act in a renegade matter.   There is no higher crime or act in  bad behavior than ignoring the Constitution and usurping the authority granted therein.   But the truth is that Congressional Republicans along with Congressional Democrats have spent so much time expanding government beyond the authority granted in Article I, Section 8 that they have ignored renegade federal judges for years and willfully looked the other way in their own pursuit of   political power.   That is the dirty little secret they don’t want you to know.

Pissed off yet?

Their own pursuit of power and the avoidance of their own duties is a bigger scandal and it is also an impeachable offence.   When sworn in, they each take an oath to uphold the Constitution.   That includes removing judges that act in anything other than "good behavior".  And they have not.   They have however usurped their Constitutional power  and ignored their Constitutional duties.

Be they Republican, Democrat or a Socialist Bernie Saunders if they are impeached for this they cannot gain more power.   End of story.

The words of Congressional Republicans are hollow and their bark is far worse than their bite on this issue.   And that is a shame.   Because Congress needs to be held accountable for allowing the judiciary to get out of control when it is their role to keep it in check.   Remember, they have the power to reign in the judiciary they have ALWAYS had the power to stop it.

But they wont.   Because if they start to impeach federal judges for usurping the Constitution, then it will only be a matter of time before they are called onto the carpet for their own crimes against this nation's Constitution.   One can only hope that there is some brave Congressman out there that will do the right thing and start the ball rolling even if it means they have to answer hard questions about their own destruction of the Constitution and their own avoidance of their duly appointed role.

More likely however we will see some new and frivolous law that grants Congress even more power over the Judiciary even though they have the ultimate power over it already.   But hey, if Congress isn’t passing new laws then they have to start looking at their own unconstitutional acts and doing their Constitutional duty.  So the question really is there one brave man or woman among them?   I dare say that there is not a one not a single darn one.

Related Articles:

Of Ends And Unconstitutional Means 03/20/05
Activist  Judges:  Just  Ignore  Them  And  They  Will  Go  Away 03/24/05
Catch Those Goal Posts! 01/31/05

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