Furious over recent court rulings in favor of same-sex marriage and other offenses against their idea of all that’s right and good, conservatives in several Western states are pushing ballot measures that would limit the power and independence of judges, the Los Angeles Times reports.
A measure in South Dakota would allow citizens to sue judges over their rulings (but can they go on to sue the second judge if he or she don’t rule against the first?). One in Colorado would impose term limits on judges, another in Montana would allow residents to easily recall them, and yet another in Oregon would require high court judges “to be elected by geographic district, so they reflect the values of conservative rural communities as well as the liberal legal establishment in Portland,” sums up the Times.
Judges, presumably, will put up a fight against these impositions on their authority, and they’re no slouches in the electoral politics arena. In the many states in which they are elected, judicial candidates have for years been raking in huge campaign contributions.
