An Open Letter from the American People to the Judiciary
We the People, as the sole source of the powers vested in the governments of the United States, call on the courts to protect our rights and liberties by:
1. preserving the separation of powers enshrined in the
Constitution and reinforced by two-and-a-half centuries
of precedent and practice;
2. ensuring government policies are established and
implemented solely through legal means; and
3. zealously safeguarding the courts’ unique constitutional
role as the final arbiters of what is and is not legal.
We echo, as the U.S. Supreme Court did last term, George Washington’s prescient fear of government falling into a “frightful despotism” of “alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge.” [1] As did the Founders, we continue to believe “the best way to avoid that cycle” is “to ensure that government powers” remain “properly distributed and adjusted” [2] among governments’ three branches.
We recognize, as the Founders did, the precariousness of the courts’ role in our constitutional system, for they must rely on the integrity and self-constraint of the executive and legislative branches to respect and enforce judicial decisions, as well as on public confidence in their independence, objectivity and humility. We similarly recognize there are those in our country who are not only ready to ignore the bedrock principle that “[i]t is emphatically the duty of the Judicial Department to say what the law is,” [3] but also to support efforts to implement their policy preferences through illegal means, including in defiance of court orders. Some have already gone further, threatening retribution, impeachment, and even physical harm to those they perceive as standing in their way. We strenuously oppose any such efforts to make courts hesitant to exercise the powers the Constitution has given them.
So we close as we began, noting that those powers, as do all the powers of government, flow from us, the People of these United States. Having no intention of relinquishing our right to determine how and when they may be exercised, and by whom, we pledge to stand with those who act within their constitutional powers, and with respect for well-established precedent, to preserve the restraints the Founders placed on those elected and appointed to serve and protect our interests. And we call on Congress to provide whatever resources and support are necessary to protect the safety of judges, their staffs and their families, so they can fulfill their essential constitutional duties.
[1] Trump v. United States, Slip Opinion at 42 (quoting 35 Writings of George Washington at 226 (J. Fitzpatrick ed. 1940)).
[2] Id. (internal quotation marks omitted).
[3] Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. 137, 177 (1803).
To sign this open letter, go to: An Open Letter from the American People to the Judiciary - Action Network
Vision
With PublicVoices.org, my goal is to give voice to citizens who respect differences of opinion but remain committed to preserving the system of government that has protected our rights and liberties for more than 200 years.
Matthew Duchesne, Private Citizen
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