Illustrative Image
Written by Dr. Binoy Kampmark
The US Supreme Court Chief Justice was furious. For the first time in history, the raw judicial process of one of the most powerful, and opaque arms of government, had been exposed via media – at least in preliminary form. It resembled, in no negligible way, the publication by WikiLeaks of various drafts of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the forerunner to the current Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.
The subject matter was positively incendiary: the potential overturning and judicial eradication of Roe v Wade, a 1973 decision which has generated a literature both for and against its merits of herculean proportions. In its draft form, Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health entertains a full-throated attack on the decision that had legalised abortion via constitutional fiat, even if the original grounds centred on privacy.
Such an inner illumination of processes was never the intention of the US Supreme Court. For over two centuries, it had not seen the like of this. For the most part, whatever their persuasion, the justices have kept religiously mum on the issue of a case till final publication. In an address to the American Constitution Society, given on June 15, 2012, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was not giving anything away to the audience about what fate awaited the Affordable Care Act. The justices had originally voted on the matter on March 30. By mid-June, opinions had already been drafted and circulated in the judicial conclave. “Those who know don’t talk,” teased Ginsburg. “And those who talk don’t know.”
The same, remarked Jack Goldsmith in The New Republic, could not be said about the national intelligence community, where the loquacious roam. Those knowledgeable and in the know on such matters were often the same ones willing to spill, babble and discuss.
The draft, published in unadulterated or abridged form, comprises 98 pages and 118 footnotes, with an accompanying 31-page length appendix covering the historical state abortion laws. Delivered by Justice Samuel Alito, it states with punchy certainty that, “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start.” The reasoning adopted in the decision was “exceptionally weak, and the decision has had damaging consequences.” It is a paean for state power over federal dictation. Laws on abortion should finally be returned to the fold of State legislatures.
Judgments do go through various iterations. This version stems from February. The fact that it is now circulating in public like a demon of agitation, stirring up the various party bases and groups, is an experiment of itself, bringing down the rickety façade of the Supreme Court as a non-partisan body. “Unquestionably, it drags the court into the political scrum and rubs some of the polish of it,” opines George F. Will.
A statement from the Supreme Court, in an effort to keep up appearances, claims that its operations has only suffered a minor hiccup. “Although the document described in yesterday’s reports is authentic, it does not represent a decision by the Court or the final position of any member on the issues in the case.”
Whether the justices congeal or adjust their current view on Roe in light of the Politico leak is, at this point, unanswerable. But a distinct sense of bloodlust has taken over in the effort to find the culprit. Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., in a statement, described the leak as “a singular and egregious breach of trust that is an affront to the Court and the community of public servants who work here.”
The message captivating the establishment is whether the leaker violated any laws and, if so, what penalty might fellow. While pro-choice supporters are well infuriated by the draft, but the conservatives seem intent on crucifying the perpetrator. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) fumed that this “lawless action” be “investigated and punished as fully as possible.” The editors of the National Review insist that this incident “is intolerable and cannot go unpunished.”
The Chief Justice, for his part, has directed the Marshal of the Court, Col. Gail A. Curley, to begin an investigation into the source. Doing so potentially rings off the process from the prying eyes of the FBI and the Justice Department. No judicial officer wants them to get involved.
The prosecution effort is unlikely to amount to much. In the first place, a Supreme Court draft decision fails to have the gravity, standing or properties of a legal document to warrant such action. “As far as I can tell,” submitted the seasoned UC Berkeley legal authority Orin Kerr, “there is no federal criminal law that directly prohibits disclosure of a draft legal opinion.”
The only real legislative foothold to use against the opportunistic leaker, if that even counts, is the statute known as 18 U.S.C.§ 641 which covers public money, property or records, namely prohibiting the theft or misuse of government-owned “things of value”. The lingering question here is whether the statute covers information and whether the concept of information could be said to be a “thing of value”.
The guidelines of the Justice Department also suggest that it would be “inappropriate to bring a prosecution” where an individual had legitimate access to the information or document and used such material “for the purpose of disseminating it to the public.”
As the Colonel gets busy with her investigation, the debate over how to cope with a world after Roe has begun in desperate fury. The Biden administration has reiterated its support for the principle of the case and notes, in the event of its overturning, that the onus will fall to the elected and the electors “at all levels of government.” At the federal level, it will pursue a process that codifies Roe. Either way, the politicians of the US imperium are going to get busier over matters of the foetus.
Dr. Binoy Kampmark was a Commonwealth Scholar at Selwyn College, Cambridge. He currently lectures at RMIT University. Email: bkampmark@gmail.com
2 Peter 2:6-9 KJV 6 And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly; 7 And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: 8 (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;) 9 The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:
When there were military leaks, snowden went to jail. When there were wikileaks, that was Russian collusion. But when it was a SC leak on a conservative win, it suddenly is without any liability. US govt offices are partisan unprofessionals who undermine their own government like the guy in the fbi who was anti-trump. Personally, SC justices are unfaithful to their Constitution. The provision is clear, The state cannot deprive ANY person of life… without due process of law. It did not state, persons BORN, it did not state SUCH person. It did not state CITIZEn. It plainly said ANY person.
Now for any dumbfuck who says that the fetus is not a person, the Constitution right there indicates that the intent is to secure the blessings of liberty not ONLY to themselves but to their posterity. Back then, persons were not slaves, were not minors, were not women in medieval times. In the US context, they had problems with slaves and women. If these rights were accorded to include these other groups, then all the more reason it should include the fetus from which everyone comes from. The start of life in the womb is affirmed also by scientific advances.
People like me never has said there is no fetos. We also are not happy about it.
We say something like its no human yet. Here we include the one, which has to take care of it the nexy many year. Theydont count in Your world.
Its very strange things are like that in USA. Its well proven the very poor low or non edcated people makes more poor and uneducated people. From that perspective its a very bad investment.
Thats why Sanders like the Danish model. It create less unwanted children and makes them more helthey and we also lives longer. We also has more and better taxpayers to support the low or uneducated into at leats supporting themself in most things.
That kind of aoutbalancing also makes less contrast by less shame on You. We help when shit happens and turn it into good things. It makes no sense only to try to avoid hormons go away.
We use good advice, tools and help people to a good life enven a cild happens or not. By that they would like to make me a good life, when I grow old.
One would have thought that with all the contraception available, unwanted pregnancies would be at an absolute minimum. Personally, i feel that abortion should only ever be allowed before the cells become a being and attain a consciousness, or for medical reasons.
Its a very good example. Its very difficult to make a perfects system.
We have the same disputes, when we has to replace the top. Do we have to have them to they die. Do we have them for no chage and stability and by that makes even reforms impossible.
Denmark of course is ony a small state if were were members of United.
But the Goverments let all vote forspecific questions lke that now and then. They by that listen. But they still has the uppehand and the Goverment has not.
If it was death penalty it would be same thing.
If We then follow the constitution. Actually its a very old thing with a lot of repair. Of the smaller things we have a Queen in the formalized to instead of the demand for having a king.
This is a preemptive cover move for the vaccine damaged women who can no longer have babies. Thereby, making Planned Parenthood moot and to be discarded. Too bad most won’t get this.
Number of criminals convicted from the Ghislaine Maxwell pedo trial = ZERO
In this I always has been aganst abortions. But I add and subtract.
I dont want to be born as unwanted the next 18 years and 9 months. I dont want parents or only one in constant low economy and often on wellfare telling she witout me had 25 dolars an hour in 40 hours instead of 60 by 10 dollar and supplement from some random father or taxpayers mercy.
By that I speak for sexual actibity just telling no is very visible. he less You know, the more children You get before You have the facilities and minds for it.
By that You ahs to learn those things well in th schools and not only the many ways to avoid onwanted children and abortions. There has th be sober lessons and not only some ribber over a banana.
Its vry difficult for me to see when a foster is a child or not. Pregnacy should be spotted fast as routine, so abortions after fx 3 month is a NEVER unless there importatnt healt probles for one or both.
There now are the next day pills too.
Im one of those having no holyness in this. We are just as much animals as dogs and carts in this. Old men in a courts should not decide what Young vomen (and men) do.
Instead they should be helpfull to find the best solutions in realisme. Condemsitions for sexual activity should be out. Its made into some good thing.
Thats the reason we are here. Its also the reason we are too many here. Making children is the easy part.
Yes, however, abortion is murder anyway. And the excuse that the parents are poor. Well the parents are poor because of the stupid politicians that govern us.
An immoral Democrat think tank sees an opportunity to get votes, along with this issue the CIA can spray some covid-19 variant and with a few mules the Democrats can continue to destroy America after the next election.
They want to be like God to decide who is human or not and leave it to electoral caprice to decide. It has never fallen lower in human history.
God, our slave in heaven, has no say in the matter.
Hola Jens. En que momento mágico un feto se transforma en ser “humano” y porqué? El modelo que propones, el danés, parte de la ideología del liberalismo (la libertad por encima de todo inclusive sobre la de Dios) en la cual el ser humano sólo puede llamarse asi si posee autodeterminación, autoconciencia y autonomía, por lo tanto si merecen el nombre de humanos, y claro, una criaturita en el seno de su madre no tiene ningún derecho por no ser humano ni un niño en sus primeros añitos tampoco; pero es que además tampoco los muy ancianos, los discapacitados, los enfermos mentales, las víctimas del síndrome de Down, etc. Para ellos tenemos la eutanasia, el suicidio asistido, el aborto y el infanticidio. Donde no tenemos a Dios tenemos a Satanás.
The US regime needs this distraction so sleepy uncle joe can sleep in a little longer. It’s also handy for dividing the people of the nation, just as BLM have done, and every other self righteous spook infested syop pushed by their fake MSM.
Quite soon american’s will be dying and killing for the same lies we were told during every other american war. However, during this next american war, american’s can kiss goodbye to their homes and neighbourhoods. US civilians won’t be sitting this next world war out at home like they did they last. This time they will see just why europeans are reluctant to walk down the world war path again. That goes for the Russian too.
Indeed. If the pinheads in the USA knew that their own homes would soon be destroyed, they just might be a little more circumspect about calling for “Moar War!”
As an American whose only home is a modest house we built in Ukraine some years ago, and had to abandon it and everything my wife and I own, I’d shed no tears for the Neocons mansions.
The timing of this event is suspicious. Do you think Roberts is a compromised homosexual pedofile? Could he be the leak ?
The USA has become a mobocracy, guided and led by the small hats who control the media and the government.