The following was originally published in The Week. Sen. Ben Sasse is a long-time supporter of the Convention of States Project.
Warring senators and jeering protesters took over the first hours of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh's confirmation hearing Tuesday. But they shouldn't think chanting outside the Supreme Court or in this hearing will actually change anything, Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) explained in his opening statement turned "Schoolhouse Rock! civics lesson."
In his remarks, Sasse called on legislators to actually make laws instead of leaving lawmaking to the "alphabet soup" of bureaucratic institutions and Supreme Court "superlegislators." Kavanaugh has faced protests over his perceived stances on reproductive rights and environmental protection since he was nominated, but this "hysteria" has nothing to with Kavanaugh and everything to do with politicizing the judiciary, Sasse said:
Sen. Ben Sasse says the "deranged comments" criticizing Kavanaugh have nothing to do with him:
— World News Tonight (@ABCWorldNews) September 4, 2018
"The hysteria around Supreme Court confirmation hearings is coming from the fact that we have a fundamental misunderstanding of the role" of SCOTUS in America https://t.co/1DpEEvUWSS pic.twitter.com/u2w9XAsXCv
Judicial nominees aren't politicians who "wear red or blue jerseys," Sasse argued. And if they did, he said he'd welcome legislation to ban lifetime appointments. The senator instead said that Congress has opted to "self-neuter" by shoving politics off to the judiciary, executive branch, and regulatory commissions. To fix the problem, Sasse said lawmakers should actually start making laws instead of pushing their jobs — and the blame — on everyone else.
Sen. Ben Sasse: "Judge Kavanaugh doesn't hate women and children. Judge Kavanaugh doesn't lust after dirty water and stinky air. No, looking at his record, it seems to me that what he actually dislikes are legislators that are too lazy and risk-averse to do our actual jobs" pic.twitter.com/RDV2DNZzeb
— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) September 4, 2018
Sasse is right on, but his vision -- and the Founders' -- won't come to pass without an Article V Convention of States. A Convention of States can propose constitutional amendments that put SCOTUS back in its constitutional box. These amendments can limit the power of the judiciary and impose real, state-led checks and balances on its authority.
