O'Connor warns of dangers of attacks on judicial independence

[unschooler]

WASHINGTON, March 13 (UPI) -- Former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor has lashed out at GOP right wingers who attack the judiciary.

(snip)

O'Connor, who retired only last month after 24 years on the Supreme Court, said repeated attacks on judges for alleged liberal bias could boost an atmosphere of violence against judges. "We must be ever-vigilant against those who would strong-arm the judiciary," she said. "...It takes a lot of degeneration before a country falls into dictatorship, but we should avoid these ends by avoiding these beginnings."

In her address to an audience of corporate lawyers on Thursday, O'Connor focused on former House Majority leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, for his comments during the Terry Schiavo "right to die" case last year, The Guardian newspaper in London reported.

After the decision last March that ordered Schiavo removed from life support, DeLay said: "The time will come for the men responsible for this to answer for their behavior." He later called for the impeachment of judges involved in the Schiavo case, and called for more scrutiny of "an arrogant, out-of-control, unaccountable judiciary that thumbed their nose at Congress and the president."

Such threats, Ms O'Connor said, "pose a direct threat to our constitutional freedom," and she told the lawyers in her audience: "I want you to tune your ears to these attacks ... You have an obligation to speak up."

http://www.upi.com/SecurityTerrorism/view.php?StoryID=20060313-110413-6034r

Anybody have a link to the full text of her speech?

[wake.up.america]

1. As was mentioned earlier: a day late, a dollar short

Where has she been?

I hope she tours the country and drives these points home.

[funflower]

2. Judges aren't supposed to be "political" (some are obviously a bit

lacking when it comes to this particular ethical matter). I'm delighted to see her speaking out now that she is off of the bench.

[wordpix2]

3. she can now speak out and she is--we need all the voices we can get

[unschooler]

4. She's the kind that "swing voters" will actually hear.

When somebody like Sandra Day O'Connor speaks, white suburban moderates listen. That's why she's so important. Even if (maybe especially because) she did throw the 2000 election to the Chimp.

Of course, that presupposes that the MSM inside the U.S. will pick up the story....

[Supersedeas]

5. Lil' late for that, ain't it.