Just when we thought it was safe to come out of the water — of politics — the shark of “political weaponization” attacks us with a fury never before seen in American politics. The one branch of our federal government that has for 260 years been insulated from the pull of partisan politicians now finds itself in the bullseye of the evil of politics. The United States Supreme Court is no longer “untouchable” by politics and those who are consumed with its evil. Conservative justices on the Court find themselves today to be under attack by pro-abortionists who are hellbent on stopping the Court from declaring Roe v. Wade unconstitutional. The first justice in the bullseye of the left is Supreme Court Justices, Brett Kavanaugh, and Samuel Alito.
Pro-choice protesters descended on the homes of conservative Supreme Court Justices Kavanaugh and Alito, as well as the home of Chief Justice John Roberts in the past few days. The invasion of their family privacy came after their home addresses were posted online by a leftist group in protest over a Supreme Court draft opinion reversing Roe v. Wade that was leaked to a news outlet.
But it gets worse.
A man police say was carrying a gun, a knife, and pepper spray outside Brett Kavanaugh’s home has been arrested after he told authorities he wanted to kill the Supreme Court justice. Police told The Washington Post that the man, who appeared to be in his mid-20s, did not make it onto the Maryland property and was stopped on a nearby street.
A Supreme Court spokesperson confirmed the report, telling SCOTUSblog in a statement, “At approximately 1:50 a.m. today (Wednesday), a man was arrested near Justice Kavanaugh’s residence. The man was armed and made threats against Justice Kavanaugh. He was transported to Montgomery County Police 2nd District.”
It is unconscionable that members of the most sacred court in the nation who have all never before faced life and death situations for simply executing their sworn duties as Justices find themselves as targets — literal targets — of a crazed American in possession of a knife and gun in the wee hours of the morning.
No one should be surprised at this. This occurring was inevitable in light of what leaders in the Biden Administration and Democrat Party leaders have done and stated in the near past. Who can forget the threats against the conservative members of the Court by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer:
President Biden
With Democrats and their radical-activist base continuing to seethe after the criminal leak of a draft Supreme Court opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade’s concoction of a supposedly constitutional right to kill the unborn, former White House press secretary Jen Psaki made this statement before leaving her post at the White House, on behalf of President Biden:
The best interpretation of this astonishing assertion is that Biden wants people who choose to protest outside the homes of Supreme Court justices to remain peaceful, but is not recommending that they conduct such protests. A more rational interpretation is that the president is encouraging people to violate federal law by protesting at Supreme Court justices’ homes and that he views this as appropriate as long as the protesters do not resort to violence. This interpretation accounts for Biden’s constitutional duties to execute the laws faithfully and to protect both the security of the courts and the administration of justice,
To be clear, it is a criminal offense to picket or parade near a residence of a federal judge for the purpose of influencing the outcome of a judicial proceeding.
It is not a defense that the behavior is nonviolent. When a statutory crime does not necessarily involve forcible conduct, the fact that people commit it “peacefully” is irrelevant.
Parading and picketing are not inherently violent acts. They are acts of political pressure. Court cases are supposed to be decided based on law, not political pressure. Therefore, even peaceful protesting at the homes of judges undermines the institution of the judiciary, the integrity of judicial proceedings, and the administration of justice, because to put political pressure of any kind on a judge in order to influence a ruling obstructs justice.
This is common sense. It would, perhaps, be easier to understand if we consider witnesses and jurors in trials — they are covered by the same statute that protects judges. If protesters went to the residence of a witness or juror and simply stared angrily without engaging in violence, everyone would understand that the purpose was intimidation and corrupt influence. The crowd would be trying to get the witness to testify as the protesters wished, regardless of the truth; or to get the juror to reach the verdict the protesters wanted, regardless of what the evidence showed.
Under the circumstances, Biden is encouraging this lawlessness. He is the chief executive responsible for seeing that the laws are enforced and that government institutions and officials are able to function without interference. Unlike the rest of us, who do not have such duties and thus can sit back passively, the president of the United States has a positive obligation to take preventive action. If his administration does not protect the justices from illegal intrusions, nobody else is in a position to do it under the color of federal law. Ergo, Biden is encouraging lawlessness: It could not happen if he acted to prevent it, yet he refuses to do that.
The question: Are these protests a violation of federal law?
The Biden Department of Justice has not commented on the protests by pro-abortion activists outside of justices’ homes even though a federal statute forbids such actions that are designed to “influence” “any judge, juror, witness, or court officer.”
In a recent op-ed for The Hill, Jonathan Turley, a noted law professor at Georgetown University, wrote, “In this case, the Biden administration and the Justice Department have condemned the court’s leaked draft — but not the threatened protests at justices’ homes, even though those arguments could be treated as a crime. Under 18 U.S.C. 1507, it is a federal crime to protest near a residence occupied by a judge or jury with the intent to influence their decisions in pending cases, and this case remains pending.”
What About Trump Inciting Protestors On Jan. 6?
When then-President Donald Trump told protesters to march “peacefully” to the Capitol on January 6th, he was roundly condemned. The rally was legal. The situation is quite different when Democrats are involved it seems. White House press secretary Jen Psaki has continually encouraged the protesters threatening the Justices to protest outside their homes. This is despite the fact that it’s illegal to protest outside a Justice’s home to bully them into a ruling they want. On top of that, some of the protesters are dangerous communists.
Trump’s exact instructions to January 6th protestors:
“Everyone here will soon be marching over to the Capitol building to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard.”
We also have Democrats like N.Y. AG Tish James screaming to followers in crowds, riling them up.
When Democrats amped up their base by inciting intimidation of the conservative Justices, Justice Alito and his family went into hiding because he has had so many death threats. A Daily Signal reporter/producer Doug Blair said the protesters outside Justice Kavanaugh’s home were very angry. “It was the scariest thing he ever saw,” he said.
Even some neighbors of the Justices participated in these protests.
No one seems to care that those homes were not inhabited by Supreme Court Justices. There are spouses and young children who live there.
Summary
Besides the obvious lawlessness suborned by Democrats in D.C. and the resulting effects of this incitement, it’s unacceptable that Democrat Party leaders refuse to give these angry Pro-Choice fanatics the worst-case scenario for abortions if SCOTUS actually does overturn the Roe decision.
If the Court does overturn Roe v Wade, that act will NOT outlaw abortions. It will only send the decision of the legality of abortion (along with the specific details governing the process of abortions) to the various states!
People either forget — or simply reject — that there is NO provision for abortion in the United States Constitution. If our forefathers had done so, there would be no argument. That fact is why the Supreme Court never found itself engaged in the determination of the legality of abortion until the Roe decision. Until that point, the state legislatures each made that determination for the citizens in the respective states. And if the Court overturns Roe, the determination of the legality of abortion will, once again, be determined by each state.
Besides the anger, hatred, poor leadership, and rank divisiveness purposely sowed by leaders in the Democrat Party, these actions have actually placed the lives of the Justices and their family members in danger. And, sadly, it appears that many on the left actually enjoy seeing this happen.
What every abortion supporter needs to realize is that the political pendulum of the United States Representative Republic swings back in the other direction. It will do so in this no matter the outcome.
Wouldn’t it have been wise for President Biden to “presidentially” step into this debacle even before it began and “taught” rank-and-file Dems the truth of the issue? Joe Biden’s an attorney with 36 years of life in the United States Senate. He knows what’s right in this according to the law. His choosing to support Mob Rule in this tells a sad tale about the condition of his party.
No matter the outcome of the Court in this significant decision, what will surely remain will be a much wider gap between Pro-Choice and Pro-Life Americans. The ancillary fallout will certainly consume the dialogue of Americans for a long time.
If you think the angst in Washington is as ugly as it can get, just wait and see how Pro-Choice protestors act if the SCOTUS sends the determination of the abortion legality back to each state. It most certainly will be Part II of what was a controllable disagreement that turned violent because of the inaction of President Biden and poor leadership from the White House and Democrats in Congress.
Maybe that was purposeful.
