Post

both preposterously parochial and birdbrained, this man must have attended an elite law school

Adam Gurri@adamgurri.liberalcurrents.com

I just listened to a panel with David French and someone from the Brennan Center vociferously argue against expanding the Court. French said it would lead to “the dissolution of the republic.” About a third of the audience applauded. We need to get a policy culture that’s willing to do what it takes

Canada does, except for the notwithstanding clause, which was only included in the Charter because the provinces wouldn't ratify the Charter without it, and its sole purpose is to strip people of their rights.

I think the reason people like French flip out about judicial reform is that the argument for a SCOTUS dictatorship--which underpins the whole elite law juristocracy--does not bear a second's scrutiny. "our Ivy League Guardian Council must rule by decree, or the republic is finished" is dumb

It’s a GOP/centrist mindset that so many just can’t drop. The awesome powers of a tiny body, armed with judicial review, and insulated from democratic accountability could only be entrusted to conservatives, not liberals or progressives. Heavens forbid, it’d be like the Warren Court all over again!

From a perspective of "legal judicial maneuvers that still violate unstated norms" I just do not accept the premise that Congress using its explicitly-constitutional power to expand the Court is more radical than Congress holding a Court seat open for a year for explicitly partisan purposes.

In many ways, Congress voting to expand the court would be orders of magnitude, more legal constitutional and within the norms than.... One senator choosing to shrink the court. Legislative approve trumps "the McConnell standard" that always changes based on one man

I think the core of it is that Democratic politicians don't want to take actions to combat Republican constitutional breaches, they want to bring them around start playing by the rules again. Because if they wielded that power, people would expect them to wield it against corporations as well.

it's arguably unconstitutional! the Senate is supposed to advise and consent, not refuse to even consider the president's choice in an obvious gambit to prevent him from appointing anyone whatseover

the main thing that both D and R elites can agree upon is that voters are not to be trusted and that the "republic" depends upon counter-majoritarian elite institutions. they differ on which elites should control the institutions, but they're happy for "which elites?" to be the basis of politics

David French values judicial review as a extra restriction on Democratic Party policy becoming law more than he worries about judicial review entrenching a one-party Republican Party-run state whose policy outcomes he would mostly agree with even if he doesn't like how they talk about it.

I think it's simpler than that -- French likes most of the current Supreme Court and doesn't want a liberal one, even if he despises Trump Many anti-Trump figures are only allies until he is removed, and no longer.

This is a great perspective. Also, with the current form of judicial review there are really bad incentives for Ra to argue for, or pass, extremely terrible laws, knowing the court will overturn them. They get to pass things without consequence, then moan when overturned. Double dipping!