The death of U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist -- may he rest in peace, despite my disagrement with just about everything he stood for -- late Saturday is of enormous signficance for our nation. Today, for the first time in decades (1971; before that, 1941) there is more than one vacancy on the Court at one time. Unfortunately, today, we've got George "Blame Everyone But Himself for the Katrina fiasco; Take us to War on a Bunch of Lies" Bush, Dick "Halliburton" Cheney, and Bill "Repealing the Estate Tax is Our Top Priority in the Aftermath of Katrina" Frist as the leaders who will select William Rehnquist's replacement. That does not give me a warm, fuzzy feeling, to put it mildly. The scary thing is what's at stake here -- nothing less than the future of our country for decades, or even generations, to come. A dramatic swing from a centrist court that honors the judicial principle of stare decisis ("let the decision stand" precedent) to a radical, right-wing, activist, crusading ideological court should be frightening to all Americans, of all political persuasions. For instance:
*Just about all Americans care about civil liberties, but these could be seriously jeopardized under a new, Bush/Cheney/Frist-selected Supreme Court.
*The vast majority of Americans appreciate the wisdom of keeping church separate (and protected) from the state, and vice versa. That could soon be in danger.
*The vast majority (65%-29%) of Americans oppose overturning Roe v. Wade, which guarantees a constitutional right to abortion under certain circumstances. Roe v. Wade is now in grave jeopardy.
*A vast majority of Americans (92%) believe that U.S. government efforts to protect the environment are "about right" (34%) or "too little" (58%). Only 5% of Americans believe that the government is doing "too much" to protect the environment. Yet a right-wing, activist, radical court that could take shape after O'Connor and Rehnquist are replaced is a frightening prospect for the environment. Of that 5% who believe the government is "doing too much" are people who believe in the most extreme view of property rights, wherein the government basically can't protect endangered species, save precious wetlands or redwood trees, or just about anything else against corporate power and greed.
*Most Americans (53%-35%) believe that Affirmative Action programs to help African Americans and other minorities should be continued and not abolished. Around 80% of Americans believe it is "very" or "somewhat" important for colleges to have a mix of blacks, whites, Hispanics and other minorities. However, programs to achieve these aims may soon be in grave danger under a far-right wing, Bush/Cheney/Frist court.
*Only 1% of Americans -- that's right, ONE PERCENT -- "always" trust corporate executives in this country to "do what is right." Around 75% of Americans trust them "hardly ever" or "only some of the time." And 74% of Americans see cases like Enron and WorldCom as "sign[s] of broader problems" and not just "isolated incidents." However, under the right-wing court that's now shaping up, we might see the gutting of laws that attempt to rein in the power of corporate executives like Ken Lay and Bernie Ebbers. This is not a pleasant thought.
We could go on and on, but just this short listing should be sufficient to demonstrate what's at stake as the Bush Administration of Radical Right Wing Republicans moves to put its mark on the Supreme Court for generations to come. It is EXACTLY at times like this that America needs "checks and balances" on the power of any one group. Unfortunately, it's EXACTLY at a time like today that America doesn't have those precious, indispensable checks and balances, thanks to one-party Right Wing Republican rule. This is what we need to do:
1) In the short-run, fight tooth and nail to defend what we believe in vis-a-vis the Supreme Court vacancies, and don't let the Extreme Right Wing activists run roughshod over the vast majority of us. Call your Congressmen, organize, don't take this lying down. Your future, and that of your children and grandchildren, is at stake here in a way it hasn't been for a long time.
2) At the next possible opportunity, starting in November of this year, start voting for people who will counter-balance the Far Right Wing, who represent just a small minority of Americans. Even if you're a die-hard Republican, you most likely don't go along with most of the Far Right's agenda. If you don't, you should seriously think about voting for Democrats, Independents, or Moderate Republicans anytime you have the chance. Unless, of course, you want a country where the rich grow richer, where racial inequalities grow worse, where church and state start blurring together, where the environment is trashed, and where our civil liberties are compromised.
3) This November, if you're a Democrat, you need to get out to the polls and vote for the TLC ticket (Tim Kaine, Leslie Byrne and Creigh Deeds) here in Virginia. If you're a Republican, you should vote for TLC as well, but if you can't get yourself to do that, you should vote for Russ Potts as an alternative to the Far Right Wing's choice - Jerry Kilgore. If you're an Independent, you need to vote for anyone BUT Pat Robertson's far-right theocracy candidate -- Jerry Kilgore.
4) In 2006 and 2008, it's time for wholesale changes in the way this country is run. But, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. First things first: we've got elections here in Virginia in just over two months. This is our chance to send a message to the nation that Virginians want sensible centrist leadership as they've gotten under Mark Warner and Tim Kaine the past four years, and not a lurch to the Far Right and the failed policies of Jim Gilmore and George W. Bush (as embodies now by Jerry Kilgore). This is the moment for Virginia - the Birthplace of Presidents and the Cradle of Liberty -- to show the rest of the country that we reject extremism (Jerry Kilgore) and embrace all that is best in America (Tim Kaine).
As FDR stated in his famous "Four Freedoms" speech, we support:
*"freedom of speech and expression"
*"freedom of every person to worship God in his own way"
*"freedom from want...economic understandings which will secure to every nation a healthy peacetime life for its inhabitants"
*"freedom from fear"
We also support the Bill of Rights, the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act, and the America that Robert Kennedy spoke of when he said, "Some men see things as they are and say why. I dream things that never were and say why not."
The choice is clear. The time has come. Let us stand up and be heard, or risk never being listened to again.