Obama: Dangerous View of the Supreme Court?

President Obama, a man trained in the field of law, had this to say yesterday regarding the person he intends to nominate to the Supreme Court:

"I will seek someone who understands that justice isn't about some abstract legal theory or footnote in a casebook; it is also about how our laws affect the daily realities of people's lives, whether they can make a living and care for their families, whether they feel safe in their homes and welcome in their own nation," Obama said. "I view that quality of empathy, of understanding and identifying with people's hopes and struggles, as an essential ingredient for arriving at just decisions and outcomes."

This is a colossally dangerous viewpoint. You don't even have to read between the lines to realize he is emphasizing the view that we conservatives deem dangerous—that judges can and should put their views and prerogatives above the law, and should in fact bypass or rewrite the law as needed to see their views and prerogatives accomplished.

Let us review some basic concepts of American law (at least, they were basic at one time) and see how this measures up:

• The Constitution is the highest law of the land. Obama: Empathy may supersede this.
• The Congress makes the laws. Obama: Justice may require that judges ignore them.
• Justice is blind, and favors none. Obama [quote from a 3/2/08 speech]: "I want my justice to understand that part of the role of the court is to look out for the people who don't have political power. The people who are on the outside. The people who aren't represented. The people who don't have a lot of money; who don't have connections. That's the role of the court."

That last quote, most likely, is a bunch of campaign swill anyhow. I strongly suspect Obama already knows whom he intends to nominate [pending a thorough vetting of tax returns] and that, like Franklin Roosevelt, he has every intention of nominating Supreme Court justices who see things his way and whom he expects will bend, stretch, or tear the Constitution and laws of this land to his liking.

This is a highly dangerous view of law and justice. This is one of the biggest reasons why we conservatives shuddered at his victory at the polls.

Elections matter. Take note of how your senators vote.