There’s nothing this Halloween that will scare me because I’ve already experienced the most horrifying thing a person can do at this moment in history: I opened my 401k statement. It’s easy to see from the plummeting balance of my account, why people are convinced once again that, “it’s the economy, stupid,” during this election cycle. As I grieved the shrinking numbers on my statement, I, too, considered which candidate would prove best for my personal financial bottom line. The state of our economy is certainly important, but one key issue continues to be overlooked in this campaign. It’s not “the economy, stupid,” it’s “the Supreme Court of the United States, stupid.”
As Ellen Goodman recently pointed out in the Washington Post, whoever is elected as president will have the opportunity to select at least two, if not three, justices, which could change the tone of the nation on issues from the economy to civil rights well beyond the next White House occupant’s term(s).
Candidates for retirement are (John Paul) Stevens, the 75-year-old Ruth Ginsburg and the homesick David Souter. That’s three of the four moderate and liberal justices on a bench that has made an art of 5-4 decisions.
You do the math. If Obama is elected, the court will stay pretty much the way it is. If McCain is elected, Katie bar the door.
As important as our personal bank accounts may be, we have to consider how important such rights as freedom of reproductive choice and consumer protections against corporate abuses really are for us in the long run. John McCain has said he will select justices in the vein of Roberts and Alito—two of the most conservative justices on the bench.
Some of the cases being heard in this term have religious undertones as well as overtones. One case, dealing with the erection of religious monuments in the pubic square, is opposed by the conservative American Center for Law and Justice which argues that it would force “cities to either to dismantle a host of monuments, memorials, and other displays, including long-standing patriotic and historical displays, or else let all comers install privately owned monuments or displays, regardless of content.”
As for undertones, one case involves whales versus the U.S. Navy. Environmental groups say underwater sonar being used by the military threatens the lives of whales in the Pacific Ocean off California. If we truly believe in caring for all living creatures, this case should be a no-brainer, but questions from the court show the whales may be in trouble.
Religious people need to take these issues of fairness, the environment and other civil matters seriously when they cast their ballot in November.
Goodman gives us a good yardstick by which to measure which candidate will select the most even-handed justices.
Finally, if you want to know which candidate just plain values the Supreme Court, try checking out their first appointments, the vice presidents. Joe Biden has spent a career on the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Sarah Palin went blank when asked to talk about a single court case beside Roe v. Wade.
Yes, as far as the economy is concerned, the mattress is looking like the safest place in the planet for our money. But, as far as our long term future as a nation is concerned, it’s best to keep our eyes focused on the one branch of government that can affect our civil and religious lives long after our economic crisis has passed.
