The Senate and the Judiciary
A Democratic majority threatens judicial independence.
By The Editorial Board
March 8, 2020 7:11 pm ET23
A broad liberal threat against the rule of law. Image: Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images
Chuck Schumer says he regrets the words he used to threaten Supreme Court Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh last week, but perhaps we should thank him for the moment of candor. The Senate Minority Leader has reminded the country of the threat that a Democratic Senate poses to judicial independence.
Mr. Schumer’s threats were cruder than most, but they are part of a larger Democratic-progressive project to politicize the judiciary and delegitimize the current Supreme Court. The effort has included opposing nearly all of Donald Trump’s judicial nominees, threatening Justices with punishment if they issue certain rulings, stigmatizing judges who belong to the Federalist Society, and even threatening to change the structure of the High Court.
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This goes well beyond the familiar criticism of Supreme Court rulings they don’t like. And well beyond the popping off that President Trump has done about specific judges in specific cases. Mr. Trump is wrong to do so, but like so much of what he says it has had no legal effect. The judges ignore him, as they should, and so do Senate Republicans…
…The Democratic goal here isn’t merely to rebalance the courts with more liberal nominees the democratic way.
The goal is to intimidate the judiciary into ruling the way Democrats want—or else.
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