According to an article by Jeffrey Toobin in the September 21 issue of The New Yorker, President Obama already has the chance to nominate judges for 21 seats on the federal appellate bench---more than 10 percent of the 179 judges on those courts, and at least half a dozen more seats should open in the next few months.
In a Detroit speech, Obama said the role of our courts "is to protect people who don't have a voice"the vulnerable, the minority, the outcast, the person with the unpopular idea, the journalist who is shaking things up"And if somebody doesn't appreciate that role, then I don't think they are going to make a very good justice."
Surely, hundreds of foreign prisoners tortured in an illegal war made by the U.S., or their survivors, are supplicants entitled to a fair hearing, not non-persons to be brushed aside as judges Silberman and Kavanaugh have done this past week. Their ruling that, essentially, injured parties cannot sue the Warfare State and its contractors, drives a tank through the Constitution. Americans had better pray Obama's judicial choices will aspire to a higher standard. #
(Sherwood Ross is a Miami-based media consultant who has written for major dailies, wire services, and national magazines. To reach him or support his Anti-War News Service contact him at sherwoodross10@gmail.com. )
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