Adam Liptak, the New York Times’s Supreme Court correspondent, and thus a reliable barometer of the progressives’ view of the Court, declared, “If Roberts assumes that position . . . he will lead a solid five-member conservative majority that would most likely restrict access to abortion, limit the use of race-conscious decisions in areas like college admissions, uphold voting restrictions, expand gun rights, strike down campaign finance regulations, and give religion a greater role in public life.”
Just so. The Supreme Court is not going to overturn Roe v. Wade (1973), the decision that somehow discovered a right to terminate a pregnancy in penumbras and emanations from various amendments, but that decision was clearly without adequate constitutional foundation, and the court has already begun the process of returning the protection of fetal life, at least in the later months of pregnancy, to the states, where traditionally it belonged. The same can be said of the protection of the right to vote, which even the 14th and 15th Amendments recognized was a matter for state and local governments.
Liptak is probably right about future court decisions by a conservative majority that may end other nefarious aspects of federal campaign regulation, as they should be ended. Such legislation, with the damnable McCain-Feingold law as the worst example, ought to be seen for what it is—incumbency protection. The remnants of McCain-Feingold and other such legislation effectively prevents newcomers to politics who cannot afford the consultants and lawyers who are necessary to conduct modern campaigns without running afoul of arcane and onerous rules, and the possible risk of fines and prison terms for violations.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member