The Despotism of the Judiciary

American Minute from William J. Federer

The U.S. Senate confirmed Clarence Thomas as a Justice on the Supreme Court on OCTOBER 15, 1991.

When questioned by Senator Thurmond on judicial activism during the hearings, Clarence Thomas stated: "The role of a judge is a limited one. It is to...interpret the Constitution, where called upon, but at no point to impose his or her will or...opinion in that process."

On OCTOBER 15, 1788, James Madison warned: "As the courts are generally the last in making the decision, it results to them, by refusing or not refusing to execute a law, to stamp it with its final character. This makes the Judiciary department paramount in fact to the Legislature, which was never intended and can never be proper."

Jefferson wrote September 11, 1804: "The opinion which gives to the judges the right to decide what laws are constitutional...not only for themselves in their own sphere of action, but for the legislature and executive...would make the judiciary a despotic branch."

Abraham Lincoln stated March 4, 1861: "If the policy of the Government upon vital questions...is to be irrevocably fixed by decisions of the Supreme Court, the instant they are made...the people will have ceased to be their own rulers."

William J. Federer is a nationally recognized author, speaker, and president of Amerisearch, Inc, which is dedicated to researching our American heritage. The American Minute radio feature looks back at events in American history on the dates they occurred, is broadcast daily across the country and read by thousand on the internet.