Rule Of Law Emotion, Fad, Mob Whimsy
By Mitch Berg
Jay Reding on Obama’s policy on judicial nominations:
Stephen Bainbridge notes that Sen. Obama doesn’t exactly get it when it comes to the rule of law. The basic principle at stake here is this: judges are supposed to say what the law is, not what they think it ought to be…Here’s what [Obama] said about the type of judge he would nominate:
We need somebody who’s got the heart, the empathy, to recognize what it’s like to be a young teenage mom. The empathy to understand what it’s like to be poor, or African-American, or gay, or disabled, or old. And that’s the criteria by which I’m going to be selecting my judges.
Paying attention yet?
That’s precisely the wrong way to pick a judge. There is a reason why the statutes of Lady Justice has her wearing a blindfold—the law should not discriminate based on how sympathetic a defendant or a plaintiff is. It is not the position of a judge to decide that someone should be treated differently under the law merely because of the color of their skin or their social disposition. We are nation of laws, not of men. The law applies equally to all, and should not be subjugated to social whim, no matter how well-intentioned.
It’s the legislators who are supposed to base their decisions on “sensitivity” – given that they are elected, that’s part of not only their job description, but – in theory – a prerequisite for the job.
Obama: More and more, he sounds like Jimmy Carter.
March 4th, 2008 at 9:42 am
So Obama wants a judge who will rule based on what he saw on Oprah the day before? Great.
March 4th, 2008 at 9:42 am
He can talk about empathy all he wants, but, in reality, you can’t understand what it’s like to be poor, etc. unless you are that now or have experienced it in the past. And his side calls themselves the “Reality Based community”?
March 4th, 2008 at 11:58 am
If he was a real working man, he would say “I want a judge who knows what it feels like to run a small business and have overzealous ADA enforcers threaten to close you down. To be a member of small community and be harrassed by the ALCU. To be a Boy Scout and be attacked by the looney left. To run a non-profit and struggle to afford liability insurance because the trial lawyers make millions off of lawsuits.”
March 4th, 2008 at 12:32 pm
You’re right, Mitch – he does sound more and more like Carter. Here’s hoping that he is able to appoint the same number of justices to the Supreme Court that Carter did.
March 4th, 2008 at 12:38 pm
Obama-appointed Judge: You took a loaf of bread that didn’t belong to you.
Defendant: Yes, it’s true. I took it to feed my starving child.
Obama-appointed Judge: If you were a white man, I’d set Inspector Javert on your trail to hound you forever. But since you are a Black man, I’m setting you free plus I’m ordering the store owner to compensate you for the inconvenience of having to carry his bread back to your house without his help.
Defendant: At last, I have hope for change in America.
.