BUSH’S FIRST SUPREME COURT VACANCY?

In his first term, President Bush did not have an opportunity to fill a vacancy on the nine-member Supreme Court. It’s believed that 3 and possibly 4 justices could retire in the president’s second term.

The first could come in a matter on months. Chief Justice William Rehnquist (80-years-old and ailing) is expected to announce his retirement when the court’s current term end in June.

Since Rehnquist is one of the court’s three conservatives (along with Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas) this presents a major challenge for Christians.

The other side is gearing up to force the president to appoint a so-called moderate (like Anthony Kennedy or Sandra Day O’Connor) instead of another Thomas or Scalia.

If they succeed, it will be a staggering defeat for those of us who believe that life begins at conception and are committed to Biblical values. A liberal court (especially on social issues) will become even more liberal. We must hold the president to his repeated campaign promises to appoint only strict constructionists to the high court.

Then we need to gear up for the battle to confirm his choice. Never forget what the left did to Robert Bork. Granted, the president’s party now controls the Senate by a comfortable margin. But liberal interest groups will work on Republicans who don’t share the president’s values on marriage and the family to block the confirmation of an authentic, pro-life and pro-family conservative. That’s why, as believers, we must be engaged on these issues.

Christians must join this battle united and determined. Sadly, the United States Supreme Court has become a super-legislature – re-writing the Constitution at whim. The forces bent on killing the unborn and destroying the family must not be allowed to gain ground here.

LATEST JUDICIAL ATTACK ON THE TEN COMMANDMENTS

U.S. District Court Judge Richard Young has ordered the removal of a 10 Commandments monument on the lawn of the Gibson County, Indiana courthouse, in the latest judicial assault on America’s founding ethos.

The monument was placed there in 1956 by the local Elks lodge. The owner of a strip club, who spied the display while being hauled off to jail for public indecency, said viewing the monument caused him “irreparable harm,” and sued with the aid of the ACLU. As a result, the monument will no longer be there.

Congressman John Hostettler (R-IN) has asked the president to instruct U.S. marshals not to comply with this illegal order. We commend the courage of Congressman Hostettler! It’s high time someone stood up to judicial autocrats intent on purging faith from the public square.

SUPREMES TAKE UP “CONSTITUTIONALITY” OF DECALOGUE

Next Wednesday (March 2), the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in McCreary County v. ACLU of Kentucky, the first 10 Commandments case to come before the court. (It involves a display including the Decalogue and other historical and legal documents – all in frames of equal size – in Pulaski County courthouses.)

What the Court will do is anyone’s guess. Since its evolving interpretation of the Establishment Clause is divorced from history and unrelated to any logical interpretation of the words of the First Amendment, its decisions here are frequently contradictory.

In its amicus brief, Liberty Counsel notes the following: “Moses and the 10 Commandments occupy a central place in the East Pediment of the Supreme Court building. Twin tablets with Roman numerals 1-10 engraved thereon grace the doors leading to the Supreme Court’s courtroom. In this room, on the south frieze, Moses appears again. This time the tablets he’s holding are inscribed with a Hebrew text. For over 100 years, the seal of the 9th Circuit Appeals Court has contained the 10 Commandments.”

None of this may sway a court, which, as Chief Justice Rehnquist notes, has time and again shown a pronounced animus toward faith. Whatever the Supreme Court decides, we must rally the forces of judicial reform and continue the crusade to save the Constitution from the courts.

VICTORY IN PHILADELPHIA

Judge Pamela Dembe of the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas has dismissed all charges against four Christians who were arrested in October for evangelizing at a city-sponsored homosexual celebration.

The four behaved peaceably and complied with all police orders, but still were arrested at the direction of homosexual lawyers. A group called the Pink Angels (described as a homosexual mob) was neither arrested nor charged. The Christians were charged with a number of felonies. Each could have received a maximum sentence of 47 years in prison for bearing witness.

In dismissing the charges, Judge Dembe noted that the Christians were doing no more than exercising their First Amendment rights. “We are one of the very few countries that protects unpopular speech,” the Judge observed. “That means that Nazis can march in Skokie, Ill. . . . That means that the Ku Klux Klan can march where they wish to. We cannot stifle speech because we don’t want to hear it, or we don’t want to hear it now.”

The judge is saying – correctly – that the Philadelphia 4 were being prosecuted (persecuted) for expressing ideas.

While the criminal case is concluded, lawyers for the Christians are proceeding with a federal civil rights action against police and the City of Philadelphia. Like Paul and Silas in Philipi, they are saying: “We are citizens too!”

Winning the civil rights suit would be the ultimate vindication for these brave souls who have suffered a grave injustice.

THE FATE OF TERRI SCHIAVO

The fate of Terri Schiavo could be decided in the next few days. A stay barring the removal of Terri’s feeding tubes is scheduled to expire at 5pm, EST, today.

Terri suffered sudden brain damage in 1990, and has since been hospitalized. Her husband, Michael – who has had two children with the woman he’s currently living with – has fought doggedly to have her put to death. Here parents have tenaciously opposed him.

The battle seesawed back and forth. A court ordered the tubes removed. The Florida legislature passed Terri’s Law, allowing Gov. Jeb Bush to prevent this. The law was overturned by the Florida Supreme Court. The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal.

It now comes down to last-ditch legal maneuvering. I wish more Americans understood the nature of this case. Terri isn’t on a ventilator. She is not in a persistent vegetative state. She’s awake much of the time and responds to stimuli. Experts have testified that with rehabilitation, her condition would improve.

Michael Schiavo claims his wife told him she wouldn’t want to live in these circumstances. (Her family has produced one of Michael’s ex-lovers who testified that Michael told her he no idea what Terri would want.) Unfortunately, the courts have bought his story, and dismissed the pleas of her parents.

If her feeding tubes are removed, it could take as long as 10 days for Terri to starve to death. Pray that she’s spared this horror. And pray for a nation where such an abomination could be sanctioned by law.

Can you imagine the outcry if the nation was compelled to witness the forced starvation of an animal. Surely we can do better for a human being! Beloved, we must get preachers involved in the mission of Vision America. Help us.

COMING SOON – CONFRONTING THE JUDICIAL WAR ON FAITH

On April 7-8, a very special conference will take place at the Washington Marriott in Washington, D.C. – Confronting the Judicial War on Faith. The event is being sponsored by The Judeo-Christian Coalition for Constitutional Restoration. I am honored to be chairman of the Coalition's Executive Committee. The registration fee is $149. To register on-line, or for more details, go to http://www.stopactivistjudges.org