The checks and balances that were not just talked about but taught seem be just agreements one party can choose not to do when they take power. The ability for one party to refuse to hear a supreme court nomination and make sure they get two in place while they’re in power, that’s not what was intended either.
I am not saying our government structure is ideal. Clearly it’s not. The majority here is doing whatever it wants and it seems to answer only to itself. And that’s before we look at voter suppression and the fact we have maps going into the election season that are already declared unconstitutional which is total bullshit. Go back to the old ones. That’s answer when the happens.
Unfortunately it has always been that way. When SCOTUS ruled that only the Federal government, not the states, could treat with Native Americans, on the grounds that the Native American tribes were effectively sovereign nations and therefore not under the jurisdiction of the states, Andrew Jackson declined to do anything to enforce the ruling, saying (as the legend goes) ‘John Marshall has made his ruling, now let him enforce it.’
When the courts began to view FDR’s legislative agenda with skepticism, FDR’s response was to threaten to simply add more justices to the Court until his view had a majority. In the end he didn’t, but only because the Court decided not to overturn his legislative agenda. So he basically coerced the Court and bent it to his will.
Our system, for better or worse, depends on the character and goodwill and sense of duty of the people elected or appointed to run it. I’ll wager that’s not far different from any other democracy.
Roberta was character, Sen. McCain did some campaign events with her in 2000 when she was spry 88 and we saw her at 2009 convention. She had probably the single best response to anti-aging I’ve heard. Sometime in her 90s she went to Europe to do some traveling. Her husband died in 1981, so she had lot of single years. The rental car company informed her that she was too old to rent, so she simply bought the car and continued her month long trip.
Love it. My mom and dad took a trip to Africa with some friends back in the 90s and met Roberta at a restaurant there one evening. They struck up a conversation and had a lovely time with her.
