[EL] Brad Smith's view of the reason for judicial review

[Morgan Kousser]

   I do believe that the African-Americans whose political, economic, 
and social rights were protected or restored by judicial invalidation of 
legislation that didn't sound nice to anyone except white supremacists 
would disagree with Brad's ultimately cynical view that "the primary 
reason for judicial review of constitutional matters [what other kind of 
"judicial review" is there?] is that politicians will be afraid to vote 
against legislation that sounds nice."  And probably a few teachers of 
constitutional law, not to mention other "discrete and insular 
minorities" might agree with them.
Morgan
-- 

Prof. of History and Social Science, Caltech
surface mail:  228-77 Caltech, Pasadena, CA 91125-7700
phone 626-395-4080, fax 626-405-9841
home page: <http://www.hss.caltech.edu/~kousser/Kousser.html 
<http://www.hss.caltech.edu/%7Ekousser/Kousser.html>>
   . . . without the clarity that makes doubt productive, historians 
will never be able to fulfill their highest moral responsibility, to 
build a better world . . .
                       -- from "The New Postmodern Southern Political 
History"
   Perfection . . . in /any/ institution is a dangerous myth; there is 
only the repeated correction of imperfections.  As long as there is 
discrimination, there will always be more work to do.
                        -- from "The Strange, Ironic Career of Section 5 
of the Voting Rights Act"
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://webshare.law.ucla.edu/Listservs/law-election/attachments/20130227/481129a6/attachment.html>