Theocracy 101
The Constitutional Restoration Act and the War on America's Judiciary
 

April 21 2005
Counterbias.com
Mel Seesholtz


The Constitutional Restoration Act reads, in part: "Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, the Supreme Court shall not have jurisdiction to review, by appeal, writ of certiorari, or otherwise, any matter to the extent that relief is sought against an element of Federal, State, or local government, or against an officer of Federal, State, or local government (whether or not acting in  official personal capacity), by reason of that element's or officer's acknowledgement of God as the sovereign source of law, liberty, or government."

"The Supreme Court shall not have jurisdiction... God as the sovereign source of law": Theocracy 101.

And, of course, "God" and "His wishes" will be defined by politically motivated religious "leaders" like Louis Sheldon and James Dobson, and religiously motivated political "leaders" like George W. Bush, Tom DeLay and Bill Frist. All five men have stated they are on a messianic mission to embed their "biblical worldview" into American law. All five avidly support a constitutional amendment to make gay Americans permanent second-class citizens. And all five men are now trying to remake the judiciary "in their own image," by any means necessary.

The Constitutional Restoration Act is only one of their means to an end of "liberty and justice for all." The tactics of the evangelical Christian Right and their political minions are historically familiar. A true democracy can exist only if there are checks and balances to assure that one fanatical "grassroots" group doesn't take over all branches of government. That's the rationale for a separation of powers: a means to assure that current political (and religious) voting trends don't compromise the equal civil rights of all citizens. Passing "grassroots" legislation that abolished any semblance of a "separation of powers" and damned certain groups of citizens was also the tactic Chancellor Hitler used to consolidate his regime's power and legitimate its ideology. Then as now, controlling the judiciary is critical to a final solution to the non-believer problem.

On March 29, 2005, Rev. Louis Sheldon and his Traditional Values Coalition launched a $10 million campaign against "the anti-God Left" who, they claim, have "been using America's courts to impose an anti-religion, anti-family agenda on America." On April 4, 2005 James Dobson and his Focus on the Family launched their own campaign against the judiciary. FOF is also selling a CD by Phyllis Schlafly on "stopping judicial tyranny." But those were only the opening salvos.

On April 7-8, 2005 a conference was held in Washington, D.C. Its title was "Confronting the Judicial War on Faith." According to a Los Angeles Times story, "Its sponsor was the Traditional Values Coalition, social-issue reactionaries who back legislation to restrict federal courts from ruling on anything involving GodŠ Its so-called Constitutional Restoration Act is sponsored in Congress by Sens. Richard C. Shelby (R-Ala.), Zell Miller (D-Ga.), Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), and Reps. Robert B. Aderholt (R-Ala.) and Mike Pence (R-Ind.)."

There is no "war on faith." (But the rhetoric does underwrite the strategy of making the victimizer the victim that the Catholic Church used so well at the height of its pedophile sex scandal.) So-called "people of faith" can have their faith. That's a private matter. But the public, political "war" is to force the beliefs of the most fanatical "people of faith" onto everyone by embedding them in the laws and packing the courts of a secular nation that once claimed to stand for "liberty and justice for all." That traditional American value is not tenable in a theocracy. And that's the point.

An April 14, 2005 Christian Underground article entitled "Vote Against Gay Marriage and For Other Moral Values or else -" reported on a meeting of conservative Christian leaders in New York. Following the "summit," Bishop Harry Jackson, chairman of the High Impact Leadership Coalition, issued this threat: "We came together in New York City to send a strong message to elected officials and candidates for public office in New York and across America: vote against gay marriage, abortion and for other moral value issues or evangelical Christians throughout the U.S. will continue to vote you out of office." One can almost hear the words of fanatical homophobe Randall Terry echoing in the background: "I want you to just let a wave of intolerance wash over you. I want you to let a wave of hatred wash over you. Yes, hate is good... Our goal is a Christian nation. We have a Biblical duty. We are called by God to conquer this country."

The evangelical Christian Right has built a powerful "grassroots" political organization skilled in using fear tactics - "Gays and lesbians will destroy this country with their lifestyle. Don't let this world be ruled by gays." - and faith-based fanaticism to bringing out the vote. They can, in a very real sense, "control" elections. For example, on April 5, 2005, Kansas became the eighteenth state to amend its constitution to deny gay citizens the civil right to a civil marriage. The evangelical Christian Right chirped with glee and bravado: a 70 percent vote in favor of discrimination... 550,000 voters express their bigotry.

But what they neglected to say was that, according to October 2004 official government figures, there were 1,687,896 registered voters in the Bible Belt state of Kansas. In other words, less than one-third of eligible voters (32.6 percent) were able to legislate discrimination in the sunflower state. In her April 11, 2005 story for the Christian news service AgapePress, Allie Martin acknowledged that "the grassroots effort to pass the [Kansas] amendment was spearheaded by the Christian activist group One Voice of Kansas."

The evangelical Christian Right already has the White House. Politicians indebted to and using them - the symbiosis is indeed deadly - dominate both houses of Congress. The only branch of government still not under their control is the judiciary. It's also the only independent branch of government that could thwart their plans to theocratize America. Hence the fanatical campaigns to remake the judiciary "in their own image" and by any means necessary.

That paragon of ethics and self-proclaimed evangelical Christian politician Tom DeLay offered an example of "by any means necessary." The New York Times reported on April 14, 2005 that the House majority leader had "stepped up his crusade against judges, announcing that he had instructed the Judiciary Committee to investigate federal court decisions in the Terri Schiavo case and to recommend possible legislation." A 365Gay.com report acknowledged the wider scope of DeLay's call for investigation and action against offending jurists: "He specifically called for the committee to probe rulings that were favorable to same-sex marriage and decisions in the Terri Schiavo."

Within a day, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist provided another example of "by any means necessary." According to New York Times writer David D. Kirkpatrick's April 15, 2005 story entitled "Frist Set to Use Religious Stage on Judicial Issue," the Senate majority leader will "join a handful of prominent Christian conservatives in a telecast portraying Democrats as 'against people of faith' for blocking President Bush's [judicial] nominees." Among the other speakers are Dr. James Dobson (of SpongeBob fame) and Chuck Colson (of Watergate infamy). Now there's a real pair for you.

The April 24 event is being called "Justice Sunday" and comes replete with fliers depicting "a young man holding a Bible in one hand and a gavel in the other." Under the heading "the filibuster against people of faith," the flier reads: "The filibuster was once abused to protect racial bias, and it is now being used against people of faith."

No, Senator Frist. It's being used to prevent self-righteous demagogues from transforming the last independent branch of government into another weapon for the evangelical Christian Right to use in its unholy war to make America a theocracy. But thank you for confirming that you are indeed one of the evangelical Christian Right's most dangerous puppets.

The New York Times noted as much in an April 16, 2005 editorial entitled "Bill Frist's Religious War": "Right-wing Christian groups and the Republican politicians they bankroll have done much since the last election to impose their particular religious views on all Americans. But nothing comes close to the shameful declaration of religious war by Bill Frist, the Senate majority leader, over the selection of judges for federal courts."

The Times made another important observation in relation to "Justice Sunday's" claim that liberals, Democrats and other people who think "are conducting an assault 'against people of faith.' By that, Senator Frist and his allies do not mean people of all faiths, only those of their faith." If the evangelical Christian Right and their political minions can control all branches of government, they can - and will - impose their twisted religious beliefs on everyone. So much for the "religious freedom" they claim to be protecting.

In his letter to Sen. Frist, People for the American Way president Ralph G. Neas called "Justice Sunday" and its claim of a war against people of faith "religious McCarthyism. It is dishonest, destructive and despicable." Another section of Mr. Neas' letter warrants
repeating: "as our eye-witness report from last week's 'Confronting the Judicial War of Faith' confirms, there is no tactic or rhetoric too low for them to use to destroy our independent courts and the checks and balances that protect them. Conference attendees even heard right-wing author and attorney Edwin Vieira appear to suggest death for judges whose rulings conflict with far-right ideology, ominously paraphrasing Joseph Stalin's quote, 'Death solves all problems: no man, no problem.'"

The expressed goal of the evangelical Christian Right and their political gofers is to entomb all Americans in a theocratic, homogeneous bubble in which "justice" will be rained down like fire and brimstone upon "homos," non-Christians, non-Republicans, intellectuals and other "undesirables" as they become identified.

And make no mistake about it.

An unending supply of fresh "undesirables" will be needed to maintain
the theocracy.

First they came for the Jews
and I did not speak out
because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for the Communists
and I did not speak out
because I was not a Communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists
and I did not speak out
because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for me
and there was no one left
to speak out for me.

- Pastor Martin Niemöller

Mel Seesholtz is a Professor of English at Pennsylvania State University.

---