Last Week:
The Real Economic
Health of America

Next Week:
What Are We Doing About
the Next Hurricane Ike?

September 12, 2016

While on the campaign trail in 2008 Barack Hussein Obama promised to fundamentally transform the USA.  In the past seven years, along with the help of Senate Democrats and some Republicans, he has delivered on at least part of that promise, doing so under the radar. 

When Obama took office just one of the thirteen U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals was controlled by liberal judges. Some fifty-five successful presidential nominations later, liberals control nine of the thirteen.  That means that currently seventy percent of the justices on circuit courts are liberal.  This is a major transformation and it will have a major impact upon the United States as we know it. 

Unfortunately, outside of legal circles, this transfer of power has gone largely unnoticed.  While most people are focusing on the U.S. Supreme Court, it only hears about one hundred cases annually.   The thirteen appellate courts hear about 35,000.

In just under eight years, Obama has appointed 179 judges to the appeals courts and 268 to district courts which are one rung lower on the ladder than the appellate courts.

The impact of these appointments will be felt for a very long time since these appointments are for life.  One example of how these appointments have impacted us here in Texas is the Voter ID decision by Federal District Court Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos.  That decision claims the Texas Voter ID requirements were discriminatory as opposed to being an effort to guard the integrity of the voting process.  Ramos was appointed in 2011 – three years into “Obama’s” presidency.

But the President didn’t make this happen by himself.  He had help from some Republican Senators!  Some contend Republican senators have turned over the keys to the kingdom to the President and that Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee have allowed these nominations to go forward without a fight.  In the case of Judge Ramos both Texas Senators (Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn) voted for her confirmation.   Cornyn is a high-ranking member of the Judiciary Committee and also on the senate Republican leadership team.

The former attorney general of Virginia Ken Cuccinelli has said “These nominees can’t be characterized as anything but radical liberals, and senators knew that when they were voting!”  It appears the senate Republicans are surrendering on the president’s nominees. 

While the Senate was in Democratic hands the Republicans were able to stall several judicial appointments to the Appeals Court until the then Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid invoked the “Nuclear Option” changing the Senate rules so judicial nominations could be approved by a simple majority while not being threatened by a possible filibuster.   This now allows a political party that holds both the White House and Senate to push thorough judicial nominations with little resistance. 

Therefore we need to get a constitutional conservative appointed to the Supreme Court and, just as important, also to federal district and appellate courts.  We know what Hillary Clinton will do if she is elected! That leaves only one viable alternative!

Bill, Mark, and John