Simple Man Politics

Hmmmm lets see what makes a good United States Supreme Court Justice? I’m sure there are lots of qualities that we can think of that would go into making an excellent Supreme Court Justice pick. We see a lot of these extraordinary qualities in many federal and state judges all around the country although Supreme Court Justices are generally chosen from the ranks of federal judges or those who have practiced before the Supreme Court.

I think the foremost quality I would look for in a Supreme Court Justice is someone with a razor sharp knowledge of the US Constitution; yep that’s a good start. Another excellent quality would be someone who is a constitutionalist who would strictly interpret the constitution and the laws that are governed by this invaluable document. I also think another excellent quality in a justice would be the ability to be an impartial observer as well as a fair justice who uses the US Constitution as his or hers only guideline for passing judgment.

Unfortunately these qualities are not always evident in justices to those who have an opinion that runs counter to that of a particular jurist. A large part of this problem exists on a purely ideological level considering some of the topics that the SCOTUS has to rule on with ever increasing frequency. Topics like Roe v Wade and the 2nd Amendment just to name a couple of those hot button issues off the top of my head.

Then of course there is the problem that is associated with political party partisanship. This problem inevitably occurs every time there is a Supreme Court Nomination to be made. If the President making the nomination is a Republican he attempts to seat a conservative justice and if he is a Democrat he attempts to seat a liberal justice. The reason for this of course is that he wants the justice he picks to have opinions similar to his own.

Of course with a Supreme Court Justice seat being a lifetime appointment these justices will influence the SCOTUS and its opinions for decades potentially. That is at the heart of what makes these nominations so vehemently contested especially by those whose party does not represent the sitting President. Of course the President and his party try to push their nominees through every bit as hard as those fighting against the nominee.

Some of the biggest battles in seating these nominees are trying to find one who does not believe that the SCOTUS should legislate from the bench because they are the Judicial Branch and not the Legislative Branch of our government. Another big battle and the one that is currently brewing in the nomination process is the battle against racism on the bench.

At this time in our history our current President has had a chance to nominate a replacement for sitting Justice David Souter with another whose judicial views are similar to or maybe even more liberal than Souter’s and this nominees name is Sonia Sotomayor a Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit and the first Hispanic female to ever be nominated although not the first Hispanic nominated.

The current battle against her nomination stems from her statement supporting policy making from the SCOTUS by saying that policy is made all of the time on the appeals level. Another battle being waged against her nomination is because of an apparent racist statement that she made in which she said that a Latina female justice would make better judicial decisions than a white male justice because they would be unable to relate to the regular people who are the ones that the SCOTUS is supposed to protect. As always the battle against judicial activism will be fought on this nomination.

Now I will be honest with you and tell you that I would not support her for the simple reason that I fervently disagree with her notion that government policy is made on any federal judicial bench whether it be in federal circuit court, federal appeals court, or the SCOTUS. No justices are sworn in as legislators they are sworn in as judges or justices. As for the Latina female versus white male statement it may be racism in reverse and is certainly ignorant at the least.

As always I will tell you that it is up to you to do your own research and decide what you believe about this nominee. And as always all I can do is tell you the facts as I know them and my very educated opinion on the topics I write about. I hope all of you do take the time to read the things I write and decide if you like the direction our country is moving in and if it is where you want to go.

I hope you all have a fantastic day and I will see you all again tomorrow CIAO4NOW!!!!!

Howdy folks, can you believe its Friday already? Well it is, which means its time for the Friday post of Simple Man Politics, and the last one of the week thank god. I think we are all looking forward to the weekend, and a little bit of down time. Of course no down time for me, busy, busy, busy as always, and the subject of this post has kept me very busy and aware that it is a most sensitive issue, particularly during an election year. I have had a couple of requests to discuss Roe v Wade, and since it is relative to politics, I have decided that regardless of how other people may feel, and my own views on the matter, I should get it over with and out of the way…so here we go.

Roe v Wade was a law decided upon by the United States Supreme Court on January 22, 1973. Mr. Justice Blackmun wrote the opinion, with Mr. Justice Rehnquist dissenting, and Mr. Justice Stewart concurring. The law came about as a result of (Roe) bringing a class action challenging the constitutionality of Texas criminal abortion laws. A childless married couple (the Does) attacked the law separately, “basing alleged injury on the future possibilities of contraceptive failure, pregnancy, unpreparedness for parenthood, and impairment of the wife’s health”. By the way, the wife was not pregnant at the time they challenged the law. A three judge district court ruled that Roe, and a physician named Halford has a case, and the right to sue. The court declared that the abortion statutes were vague, and infringing on the rights of the plaintiffs. They also decided that the Does complaint was not justiciable. As a consequence of all of this Roe v Wade was born.

Republican Presidential hopeful John McCain believes that Roe v Wade is a flawed decision that must be overturned, and as President he would nominate judges who would not attempt to legislate from the bench, understanding that is not their business. He believes that by reversing Roe v Wade that constitutional balance would be restored and each individual state would have to answer the question of whether or not abortion is legal within their jurisdiction. However, McCain also believes that reversing Roe v Wade doesn’t by itself end abortion, which he says is a human tragedy. There has to be more encouragement, and support for expectant mothers to bring their babies into the world. Also reinforcement of infrastructure there by strengthening faith based community, and neighborhood organizations that provide services to expectant mothers is imperative. McCain also believes that adoption is a viable alternative to abortion and should be heavily promoted.

On the other side you have Democratic Presidential hopeful Barack Obama. He says he respects other people’s opinions who disagree with him, and understands that abortion is a very explosive and divisive issue. He believes in upholding Roe v Wade, and a woman’s right to choose. During his time in the Illinois legislature he worked hard to make sure those rights were well protected. He is a co-sponsor of a bill to expand access to contraception, health information, and preventive services, in hopes of reducing unintended pregnancies, it is known as the Prevention First Act.

I also understand that this is a touchy issue for a lot of people, and that in a conversation or debate over its contents it can become very explosive very fast. However, this is where I put in my own opinion of Roe v Wade, and I am sure some of you may not agree with me. I believe that life begins at conception. I am not a big fan of abortion, and do not think it is a viable form of birth control which some people do use it for. I am strongly against the procedure known as partial birth abortion, and I believe it is an act of murder, and doctors performing this procedure should be tried, convicted, and sentenced the same as an individual who has committed murder in the first degree, preferably with a sentence of death. I also believe there should be some incentive for expectant mothers to carry their babies to term, and if not to raise them themselves, then to put them up for adoption, because there are a lot of women out there who can’t have children, but would be fantastic mothers. For the record, I do believe that a choice for abortion should be available in the case of rape, incest, or health of the birth mother.

There you have it, Roe v Wade, the candidate’s positions, and my own opinion as simple as I can explain them. I hope this is informative for you guys, and is not offensive to you in any way either. Like I always say, I can only find the facts and report them to you, but you have to decide where you stand for yourself. My opinion however is my own, and now you know where I stand. Have a wonderful weekend, and I will see you all on Monday, CIAO4NOW!!!!!