The buzz about tonight’s debate isn’t so much about who’s participating -- but who isn’t. Front-runner Donald Trump has almost certainly dropped out, the result of a fiery feud with the Fox News network. That should have an interesting effect on the rest of field, who will be all too happy to step in the spotlight normally taken up by one of the race’s biggest personalities. And while Donald Trump may be missing, I hope something else isn’t: an earnest conversation about the Supreme Court.
As I told a crowd in Iowa last night, the Court hasn’t been discussed in these debates, which does a huge disservice to voters. Given the age of the high court’s bench, the next president is going to pick as many as two to three justices whose legacies will outlast any president. Americans deserve to know what kind of men and women they’d nominate. On Friday, I stood on the National Mall for the March for Life, because 43 years ago the Supreme Court declared that a child was a “choice.” That wasn’t something the people decided. It wasn’t even something the state legislatures decided -- or the Congress. It was the courts! Then, on June of this past year, Americans watched with horror as five justices declared that they knew better than 50 million voters when they imposed a radical redefinition of marriage on the entire country.
As influential as the other branches are, our modern cultural landscape has been largely shaped by the courts. And as the country weighs its choice for president, voters have to consider what kind of justices these candidates would nominate. Unfortunately, previous Republican presidents have either been unable to identify liberal jurists in conservative clothing or have been unwilling to fight for true conservative nominees. This isn’t a problem that Democratic presidents have had. Can you name one liberal Democratic appointment to the High Court who turned out to be a conservative?
America needs a president who understands the Constitution and fights for constitutionalists who respect the rule of law. Let’s hope tonight’s debate sheds some light on who that would be! Tune in tonight at 9 p.m. (ET). For more on my busy schedule in Iowa -- or to hear my remarks, click over to my Facebook page and follow me @TPerkins.
