The Courts Won’t Save Our Republic
by Peter Rykowski, Research Associate and Bulletin Editor
In the past few months, we saw several major pro-Constitution victories in the Supreme Court. Among other rulings, the Court overturned Roe v. Wade, a lawless decision that resulted in the deaths of over 63 million preborn babies; made a historic pro-Second Amendment decision; and made multiple rulings upholding religious freedom. These decisions are certainly heartening and positive to see.
However, they should not fool us into becoming complacent. We cannot put our hope in, or rely on, the courts to save our Republic. Instead, we must continue influencing our state legislators to nullify federal usurpations.
Despite the positive court rulings listed above, many federal usurpations still exist. There remain countless federal laws, court rulings, and regulations with no constitutional basis, and it is not likely that the Supreme Court will strike down many of them in the near future. In fact, the Court upheld several unconstitutional policies this term. For example, in Torres v. Texas Department of Public Safety, the Court upheld a federal law that directly commandeers certain aspects of state governments. And despite striking down a radical Obama-era climate-change regulation in West Virginia v. EPA, the Court claimed that if Congress wanted to, it could enact an identical law.
Congress certainly has its share of federal overreaches. On June 25, Joe Biden signed the so-called “Bipartisan Safer Communities Act” — pushed by U.S. senators of both parties — which implements several gun-control measures, including expanded background checks and provisions incentivizing state red flag laws. Additionally, in the wake of Roe v. Wade’s reversal, the Left is trying to enact the so-called “Women’s Health Protection Act,” which would unconstitutionally codify unlimited abortion “rights” nationwide. Biden has even called for creating an exception in the Senate filibuster to pass it.
And finally, although the Supreme Court has made multiple pro-Constitution rulings recently, there’s no assurance this will continue. The Court only needs one or two additional leftist justices to see its rulings shift starkly to the left, and this year’s rulings reversed.
Accordingly, please continue your efforts to promote nullification as the solution to federal usurpations. Regularly contact, meet with, and educate your state legislators, urging them to proactively enact strong legislation that nullifies unconstitutional federal laws, regulations, and court rulings.
Furthermore, continue distributing our materials about nullification to educate your legislators and fellow citizens. These include the “Federalism Is the Best Step” TNA reprint, which helps show that the recent positive Supreme Court decisions have barely made a dent in the vast number of unconstitutional federal programs. Additionally, the “Nullification: What States Can Do” slim jim and The Founders’ Brilliant Solution to Big Government: Article VI booklet help explain the principle of nullification and how states can use it.
It can be easy to become complacent following good news such as this year’s Supreme Court rulings. However, we cannot let down our guard, and we must continue to promote nullification. If we remain persistent, we can achieve a lasting and significant limitation of government.