How can Oklahomans fix the liberal Oklahoma Supreme Court so that the justices make rulings base on law instead of politics?
Most of those justices – particularly those appointed by liberal governors – have stymied legitimate laws, which were overwhelmingly passed by the Legislature and signed by the governor.
A case in point is the law to allow public display of The Ten Commandments. The court declared it unconstitutional even though the U.S. Supreme Court had previously ruled that Texas could display the same monument on the grounds of the Capitol.
The liberal Oklahoma Supreme Court has killed every serious attempt to curtail abortion in Oklahoma by deferring to the U.S. Supreme Court despite the fact that Oklahomans abhor abortion and elect lawmakers who want it stopped.
Right now, the only way to replace a justice is through a retention vote. No judge has ever lost his seat due to the retention votes. This time, the percentage of yes votes did fall – indicating more people are fed up.
State Sen. Nathan Dahm thinks the retention law should be changed so that justices have to get 60 percent plus one vote to be retained, rather than the 50 percent plus 1 threshold. If that were in place, Justice James Edmondson would have lost his spot on the court.
Another idea would be to end nonpartisan judicial races. Knowing the political affiliation of a judge might make a difference to a large number of voters.
Something needs to be done. Activist judges feel safe from accountability to the public.
Good justices should be supported and politicized judges should be removed. This is a much-needed reform.