British "Guardian" : It looks as if the U. S. Supreme Court will sweep legitimate federal powers, as well as the fourth and 14th amendments, under the rug - Antonin Scalia uses inane Republican buzzwords like a third-rate wingnut talkshow host

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The British Guardian Newspaper describes the U. S. Supreme Court as "pursuing a states' rights, anti-federal agenda, reckless of the constitution".

British "Guardian" Newspaper
This supremely Republican supreme court
Friday 27 April, 2012

By Scott Lemieux

Scott Lemieux is a professor of political science at the College of Saint Rose, Albany, New York, specialising in public law and constitutional law. He contributes to American Prospect and blogs for Lawyers, Guns and Money and TAPPED.

This supremely Republican supreme court


Some excerpts :

And earlier this week, what appears to be another imminent Roberts court attack on federal power could be seen at the oral arguments addressing the constitutionality of Arizona's controversial SB1070. Much of the legislation, which requires state law enforcement officials to enforce federal immigration laws, seems to directly contradict plenary federal powers over immigration and naturalization, but the court is very likely to uphold some or all of its provisions.

Perhaps the most disturbing part of the oral argument – aside from yet more Fox News-style posturing by Scalia – was the fact that Chief Justice Roberts immediately announced that the potential for racial profiling not be considered by the court. This is a strange contention, given that the Arizona law requires local police to ascertain the immigration status of people "reasonably suspected" of being undocumented – a recipe for racial profiling if ever there was one. This is problematic not only because of human rights considerations, but because the need to protect civil rights is a crucial reason why the federal government wishes to preserve the uniform rules it is constitutionally entitled to make. In its zeal to side with the states over federal power, it looks as if the Roberts court will sweep legitimate federal powers, as well as the fourth and 14th amendments, under the rug.

The Republican party may have lost in 2008, but its political will still lives on in a Republican-dominated supreme court that, at times, cannot even bother to pretend that it is doing constitutional law.

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