'Activist Judges' Mainly GOP Appointees Study Shows

[Cannikin]

(Washington, D.C.) A Senate sub committee Wednesday will hear testimony about the implications of judicial decisions supporting same-sex marriage. The hearing, set up by Sen. John Cornyn's (R-Texas) the chair of the subcommittee, is officially titled "Judicial Activism vs. Democracy: What are the National Implications of the Massachusetts Goodridge Decision and the Judicial Invalidation of Traditional Marriage Laws?"

Cornyn has a lengthy history of opposing gay rights initiatives, was critical of the US Supreme Court decision that overturned the Texas sodomy law, and condemned the Massachusetts Supreme Court for ruling in favor of gay marriage.

"To discuss 'judicial activism' in this way is offensive. It is a way to attack judges who demonstrate courage and principle in matters of civil rights. The same was said of Chief Justice Earl Warren when he wrote the Supreme Court decision in Brown v. the Board of Education. What we take for granted to day as clearly the right decision was derided in its time as 'judicial activism.' "

But just who are these 'activist' judges? Lambda Legal has just complete a lengthy study of recent court rulings that favored gays.

Six of the seven justices on the Massachusetts high court that recently ruled gay couples have the right to marry were appointed by Republican governors.

Republican presidents appointed four of the six U.S. Supreme Court justices who voted to strike down Texas's law banning gay couples from having sex.


Finish the story:
http://www.365gay.com/newscon04/03/030204activistJudges.htm

[saltpoint]

1. Loved this post, Cannikin --

-- I can use information like this the next time a far-right fundamentalists verbally accosts me in a drug store about the liberal agenda, the gay agenda, the this or that agenda.

It happened the other night, so I missed that time, but next time, I will use this info.

Thanks.

[CatWoman]

2. excellent

:kick:

[LincolnMcGrath]

3. Brilliant!

[cally]

4. a kick

:kick:

[welshTerrier2]

5. the Massachusetts Supreme Court

someone recently posted this on DU:

President Bush Calls for a Constitutional Amendment to Protect Americans from Republican-Appointed Judges and a Member of His Own Administration.

President Bush has repeatedly blasted the "liberal" the MA Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) for taking an "activist" position on the gay marriage issue. The American people might appreciate knowing that the six of the seven judges in this "liberal, activist court" were put there by two Republican governors: Paul Cellucci (who nominated four of the seven justices) and William F. Weld (who nominated two of the seven judges). Cellucci, who is currently a member of the Bush administration (he is the US Ambassador to Canada, nominated to that position by President Bush), is also the one responsible for elevating the SJC’s Chief Justice to her current position. Listed below are the Court’s members and who appointed them.

Chief Justice Marshall
Appointed 1996 by Republican William F. Weld. Named chief justice by by the Republican Governor, and current Ambassador to Canada, Paul Cellucci. Cellucci was appointed to his current post by President
Bush.

Justice Cordy
Appointed 2001 by the Republican Governor, and current Ambassador to Canada, Paul Cellucci.

Justice Cowin
Appointed 1999 by the Republican Governor, and current Ambassador to Canada, Paul Cellucci.

Justice Ireland
Appointed 1997 by the Republican Governor William F. Weld

Justice Sosman
Appointed 2000 by the Republican Governor, and current Ambassador to Canada, Paul Cellucci.

Justice Spina
Appointed October 1999 by the Republican Governor, and current Ambassador to Canada, Paul Cellucci.

Justice Greany
Appointed 1989 by the Democratic Governor Michael Dukakis.

This information was taken from the following web page:
http://www.state.ma.us/courts/courtsandjudges/courts/supremejudicialcourt...

[Cannikin]

6. kick.....

[Cannikin]

7. Here's my local talk show host posting his poison....

"This proves nothing except that judges do what they want to do. Perhaps Jefferson was right when he said judges should be elected and not appointed for life in some cases. "



Any replies to that? I'll be glad to send him...or you can send them directly to:

[e-mail]

or

[e-mail]

[Cannikin]

10. I wrote him back....

Prove? No. Bush had no problem with 'activist judges' who put him in the
White House. Now that they are trying to protect the civil rights of a few
people (which is what they've always done) that becomes a bad thing...

I guess my point is the hypocrisy of this whole administration. The same
people who tore apart Clintons personal life are now saying to stay out of
the Cheney's life, when asked how he can appose same sex marriage with a
lesbian daughter who's in a relationship? because its a 'private matter'.
Aren't ALL of our relationships 'private matters'?

Cheney: One of the most unpleasant aspects of this business is the extent of
which private lives are intruded upon when these kinds of issues come up,"
he said. "I really have always considered my private - my daughters' lives
private and I think that's the way it ought to remain."

Outside of the Oval Office fiasco, which was perfectly justified, Clinton's
personal life was ripped to shreds purely for politics. And now the ones
who did it are asking for respect and privacy when it is being turned
towards them.

We should start an "Integrity" third party....both sides now behave as
children.....its all left-wing/right-wing BS these days......

Silly but, as a student pilot, I can say:

It takes BOTH wings to make the plane fly. If this country doesn't pull
itself back together instead of stretching it all to 'one wing', this plane
is going to spiral into the ground!

This country has to be taken back! By AMERICANS. Not Conservatives or
Liberals.

Cannikin

[ComerPerro]

8. Haha, Whoops!

This sort of goes along the lines of "The democrats are to blame" despite the fact that the GOP has complete control of all three branches of Government.

And the really fucking sad thing is that the GOP supporters still eat this shit up, and believe that everything wrong is due to Democrats (who, currently, have little or no influence on policy)...

[Cannikin]

9. kick

[CatWoman]

11. back to the top

:kick: