The SCOTUS To Review DeLay's Gerrymander

As all of you Democrats, Republicans and others on the Left and Right who have followed the fight to bring Congressman Tom DeLay (R-TX) to justice are aware, he is accused of breaking fundraising laws in Texas. The true crime he is guilty of, however, is far more serious and yet receives far less attention. That crime is his gerrymandering attack on the people of the Great State of Texas. This is the most serious crime he has committed (in Texas at least) and yet little serious attention has been paid to it. Now, the Supreme Court of the United States has agreed to review the case. Hopefully the addition of strict constructionism to the court via Chief Justice John Roberts and perhaps in the end Alito will make a difference in how the court sees this case. After all, the SCOTUS has ruled against the American people before.

Last Year's Trial Of GOP Gerrymandering

As some of you may already know, the SCOTUS reviewed a GOP redistricting scheme last year in Pennsylvania that was very similar to DeLay's scheme in Texas. The court's 5-4 ruling in favor of Republicans at that time left little room for any kind of case to be brought against DeLay. Justices Stevens, Souter, Ginsburg and Breyer dissented with the majority ruling while then-Chief Justice Rehnquist and Justices Scalia, O'Connor, Thomas and Kennedy voted in favor of Republicans on the basis that the SCOTUS would not interfere in partisan politics. It appears that the court at that time was divided purely on ideological lines.

Changes In SCOTUS Provide Hope For Justice

Fortunately for America, the SCOTUS has changed since 2004 and is still changing as we speak. Chief Justice Roberts, who claims to and appears to be a constructionist, will have no choice but to view DeLay's political redistricting scheme in Texas as anything but gerrymandering and thus an attack on the people of Texas. He will have to rule against DeLay's scheme because it was an admitted ideological attack on Texas voters and nothing more. The SCOTUS must make sure the Constitution is protected from partisan politics. Soon-to-be-confirmed Justice Alito also claims to be a constructionist and as such he will have little choice but to rule against DeLay. Americans should be glad that such honorable individuals have been nominated to the SCOTUS.

What Will This Mean?- Lawmaking From The Bench Again?

In ruling against DeLay, the SCOTUS will not be making law from the bench but rather protecting the Constitutional rights of the American people and particularly those of Texans. If DeLay's scheme is rejected, depending on the manner in which it is rejected, that will mean that either the old Congressional districts be re-established or that Texas Democrats and Republicans sit down and work together in a fair and bipartisan way to ensure that Texas voters are accurately represented. The second would be the better of the two possibilities but knowing the bloodthirsty leadership that controls both parties, that is as unlikely as snow in July.