It was predictable that in the wake of the United States Supreme Court’s decision not to hear appeals on rulings made by lower courts overturning same-sex marriage bans in five states, there would be a healthy amount of caterwauling from conservatives concerned about “activist judges” redefining marriage.
Not one to disappoint, Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas thinks he’s more of an expert on interpreting the United States Constitution than the justices who sit on the United States Supreme Court. Said Cruz:
“The Court is making the preposterous assumption that the People of the United States somehow silently redefined marriage in 1868 when they ratified the 14th Amendment.
“Nothing in the text, logic, structure, or original understanding of the 14th Amendment or any other constitutional provision authorizes judges to redefine marriage for the Nation,” Cruz stated. “It is for the elected representatives of the People to make the laws of marriage, acting on the basis of their own constitutional authority, and protecting it, if necessary, from usurpation by the courts.”
Not done whining about the Supreme Court’s decision, Sen. Cruz also decried what he believes is “judicial activism” on the part of the Supreme Court.
“This is judicial activism at its worst,” he added, accusing the justices of “imposing their policy preferences to subvert the considered judgments of democratically elected legislatures.”
Of course, the irony in Sen. Cruz’s statement is that the United States Supreme Court has a conservative majority, with five justices having been appointed by Republican Presidents.
To be honest, I’m sick and tired of hearing conservatives whine about “judicial activism” and “activist judges” only when conservatives disagree with the decisions being made by those judges, because it seems to me that those same conservatives (hypocrites that they are) don’t complain when the decisions go their way.
Another irony: the Supreme Court declined to take the case. In other words, they did nothing, which is the opposite of “activist” in most people’s understanding of the word. Senator Cruz must have his own dictionary to go along with his own personal version of the U.S. Constitution. Maybe he just needs to find an island somewhere and create Cruzopia, the land where whatever Ted Cruz says is right and his power is absolute. I think that would spare the rest of us some trouble.