SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — With President Barack Obama’s nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor for the U.S. Supreme Court, attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund reiterated their position on all judicial appointments: that true justice is only achieved when judges rule according to the law and the Constitution and do not legislate from the bench.
“We have long stated that any justice nominated to the Supreme Court should apply the Constitution faithfully and according to the intent of the founders and not according to their own subjective experiences,” said ADF President, CEO, and General Counsel Alan Sears. “If you are in court, and you are in the right, you don’t want to be fearful that the judge might let empathy for your opponent affect his or her decision instead of ruling impartially according to the law. That wouldn’t be true justice or true compassion.”
President Bill Clinton appointed Sotomayor to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit in 1997. In 1991, President George H.W. Bush had appointed her to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York upon the recommendation of Democratic Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan.
Sears explained that the Constitution prohibits federal policymaking by any other body than Congress.
“Thomas Jefferson noted in 1804 that ‘the opinion which gives to the judges the right to decide what laws are constitutional and what not, not only for themselves in their own sphere of action but for the Legislature and the Executive also in their spheres, would make the judiciary a despotic branch,’” said Sears. “If confirmed, we pray that Judge Sotomayor will heed the magnitude of Jefferson’s concern and respect the limits of her judicial office, ruling according to the Constitution, and not legislating from the bench.”
ADF is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations defending the right of people to freely live out their faith. Launched in 1994, ADF employs a unique combination of strategy, training, funding, and litigation to protect and preserve religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family.
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