by Patrick J. Buchanan – January 29, 1996 Address to the
Heritage Foundation All just powers, Thomas Jefferson wrote in
the Declaration of Independence, derive from the consent of the
governed. Governments are republican, he later said, “in
proportion as they embody the will of the people and execute
it.” But in America today the power that stands astride this
country like a colossus is not the power of the majority; it is
not the power of the governed; it is the power of the Judiciary.
The Supreme Court, not the majority, decides what is right or
wrong in America. The Supreme Court has final say on criminal
justice, education, voting, employment and promotion, taxation,
immigration and deportation. In these areas, as in all others,
the majority can pass a law or make a proposal, but it is always
up to the Court to make the final decision. It may find a
“constitutional right” and decide the majority’s plan violates
it. End of majority plan. To revise Lincoln’s words, we today
have a government of the judiciar