The following excerpt was written by Daniel Horowitz and originally appeared on the Conservative Review.
With the runaway train of judicial supremacy consuming our political system, do elections really matter any more?
Anyone who has his head above the sand should recognize by now that the unelected judiciary – what was supposed to be the weakest branch of government – has been accorded the status of sole and final arbiter of every social and political question in recent years. But there is a subset of this judicial tyranny that is particularly disturbing. In addition to overstepping their jurisdiction, ignoring the Constitution, and abusing the rules of standing, courts are now using Obama’s discretionary executive policies (many of which were lawless) as a new legal baseline, thereby prohibiting Trump from merely reverting back to the way things were before Obama unilaterally changed the law.
Here are 13 prominent examples:
1) Executive amnesty: This must be at the top of anyone’s list. Obama’s unilateral violation of American sovereignty and immigration law was likely the most lawless act of an executive in recent memory. But when Trump simply countermanded that usurpation, a number of district judges – from William Alsup and Nicholas Garaufis to John Bates – said he must continue issuing work permits and visas to people who, under the law, must be deported. Shockingly, the Supreme Court refused to grant the government an expedited appeal despite the unprecedented circumstances, forcing the administration to first go through the crazy Ninth Circuit.
2) Presidents set refugee levels … except for Trump: The law (8 U.S.C. §1157(a)(2)) grants the president full authority to set the circumstances and numbers of refugees, yet several district judges, including Theodore Chuang of Maryland, ruled that Trump must continue the refugee policies of Obama. Evidently, only Democrat presidents can set the refugee cap. Unfortunately, the administration gave in to these courts and modified the refugee provisions of the “travel ban,” so this issue never had its day at the Supreme Court.
3) Temporary immigration status is really permanent: Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is designed to afford temporary residence to those here legally while a natural disaster happens to take place in their countries. Contrary to statute, Bush and Obama extended it to illegal aliens and made it permanent for many countries. Trump merely followed the statute and made this status temporary, yet Judge Denise Casper said that because Trump is a racist, the word “temporary” in the statute really means “permanent.”
Click here to read the final 10 examples.
Trump may be trying to limit executive power, but he'll only be president for another 6 years -- at most. Federal judges will remain in place for decades, which is why we still need an Article V Convention of States.
A Convention of States can propose constitutional amendments that limit federal power at the structural level, restricting the jurisdiction of all three branches of the federal government. One President can only do so much. It's time for the people and the states to step in.
