The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
The appointment of Mr. Justice Marshall Rothstein to the Supreme Court was very well received by his colleagues, former law teachers, students, and even the Justice Minister of Manitoba. This appointment also made history in the country, as Rothstein had to undergo parliamentary questioning before being officially on the high court, rather than just being named by the Prime Minister. As Stephen Harper pointed out, Justice Rothstein has the support of both the Liberal and Conservative parties, who combined have a large majority in parliament. As pointed out previously, the Liberals really had no choice since he was on their list. A couple of the Court's judges, including Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin spoke out against such public hearings, which as she complained would "politicize" the judiciary. Her complaint is patently ridiculous as the system has always been political, especially under the various Liberal governments who always followed their "Culture of Entitlement." In several television interviews during the election campaign, the long-time NDP Member of Parliament and Justice Critic Joe Cromartin, from Ontario, brought this up several times. He said that if you were a lawyer without Liberal credentials, just forget about being appointed by any Liberal government. Don't even bother to put your name on the list. In late February, the Real Women of Canada organization, which is pro-life and anti-gay marriage, issued a press release about Liberal political appointments to the judiciary. Their research shows that in the two years of a Paul Martin government, with Irwin Cotler as Minister of Justice, nine judicial appointments were made with all individuals having close ties to the Liberals. Two were Cotler's executive assistant and chief of staff, and one was the legal council to the Ontario Liberal party. But it gets more blatant. Rosalie Abella, appointed to the Supreme Court, is the wife of Cotler's close friend, Marsha Erb, an Alberta fundraiser for the Grits. Abella is also a very close friend of former deputy prime minister Anne McLellan. John Gill co-chaired the 2004 federal Liberal campaign, and two Alberta Liberal candidates were appointed, as was the former Liberal Minister of Finance in New Brunswick. If we wonder how the Liberal Party gets people to run in sure-loss Alberta, this is how they do it. Real Women points out another danger to Canadian democracy, as they fear the unelected Supreme Court is assuming power and authority over Canadians, as evident in some recent rulings. They also point to a recent speech by the Chief Justice, who claimed that judges could render opinions on "unwritten constitutional laws" even when other laws clearly forbid such opinions. This of course is not part of the British parliamentary system under which Canada is governed. It is also one reason that we have the much misunderstood Notwithstanding Clause, which Parliament and the provinces can use to overturn any rogue judicial rulings. Don't forget that Paul Martin in the campaign offered to eliminate this clause, which Stephen Harper and most judicial experts called a foolish idea. Introducing public hearings for judges (and maybe other major appointments in the future) is Harper's way of increasing the power of Parliament while decreasing the "Divine Right" of the Prime Minister's Office so evident under Chretien and Martin. Harper has also promised free votes on most parliamentary bills, not tying members to having to follow the party line like trained seals. If he follows through Ð and it will be more difficult to do with a slim minority Ð the average MP will be far more effective than at present. Roger's Right Corner runs Wednesdays.
