September 23, 2004
Congress will vote today to either affirm or rebuke the notion that federal
judges are the supreme interpreters of the Constitution. That notion, according
to Thomas Jefferson, is a "very dangerous doctrine indeed, and one which would
place us under the despotism of an oligarchy."
Today, the U.S. House will either side with Jefferson, or with activists federal
judges, when H.R. 2028 -- to limit federal court jurisdiction in issues relating
to the Pledge of Allegiance -- comes up for a vote.
The primary issue is whether or not Congress has the authority to limit
jurisdiction of federal courts. Congressman Steve Chabot, chairman of the House
Subcommittee on the Constitution, stated on September 15, 2004, "When the issue
of limiting federal court jurisdiction was raised during the discussions of the
Marriage Protection Act, our subcommittee held a hearing examining Congress's
authority. Although there was a mixed opinion on whether Congress should
exercise its authority, there was a consensus that Congress did, in fact, have
the authority under Article III of the Constitution to determine what issues
were heard by the Supreme Court under its appellate jurisdiction and by the
lower federal courts."
On July 20, 2004, we supported Congress's authority to limit federal court
jurisdiction over questions arising under the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act so
that the 50 states can determine for themselves whether or not to recognize
same-sex marriage licenses issued by other states. Likewise, we support
allowing the 50 states to determine for themselves how to decide cases and
controversies involving the Pledge of Allegiance.
Urge your U.S. representative to vote for H.R. 2028. It's past time to check
the authority of federal judges and to support the authority of the 50 states to
decide for themselves. As Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia stated just
three days ago, "Judges have no more capacity than the rest of us to determine
what is moral."
To send your message, go to
http://capwiz.com/liberty/issues/alert/?alertid=6415756&type=CO
Kent Snyder
The Liberty Committee
http://www.thelibertycommittee.org
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