Supreme Courte Decisions and The Law

Whether you agree with SCOTUS decisions or not, they are the law. The Supreme Court has the final say in the federal court system. While their decisions are irrevocable, they're not necessarily permanent. Under the Constitution, there are ways to overrule a Supreme Court decision.

1. Congressional Statute

If the Supreme Court has struck down all or part of a federal statute, Congress can go back and adjust the statute to their liking. This is often used to supplement or augment Court decisions. For example, the Supreme Court decided in the 2000 case FDA v. Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp that the FDA didn't have the authority to regulate tobacco. Congress changed that with the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act of 2009.

Until a case concerning this federal statute comes before the Supreme Court, Congress has the final say.

2. Constitutional Amendment

The Supreme Court has the final word on the meaning of the Constitution. But there is a process of amending the Constitution. Article Five of the Constitution lays out the specific process. Amendments can be proposed by Congress, with two-thirds approval in both the House and the Senate. States can also propose them with a two-thirds majority, and the holding of a convention for proposing the amendments. Once proposed, the amendment must be ratified by a three-fourths majority of the states. The voting to ratify or reject the proposed amendment can take place in state legislatures or state conventions.

Since the adoption of the Bill of Rights, 17 amendments have been ratified. One principle example of a Constitutional amendment overturning a Supreme Court case is the Sixteenth Amendment.

In Pollock v. Farmers' Loan and Trust Company, the Supreme Court declared a progressive federal income tax unconstitutional. In 1913, the Sixteenth Amendment was ratified — completely negating this decision.

3. Of course the Supreme Court can change their mind. 

This has proven to be the most unlikely path taken.

So, there you have it. Congress has the power to make law to suit their agenda regardless of Supreme Court rulings! However, this seldom is done. Why? Lull the American people into accepting Judicial Actions as "uncontestable law" and not endure political risks!

 Biden’s Disastrous Plan for American Energy

In Pennsylvania this week, Joe Biden asked: “Do I look like a radical socialist?” The better question is whether the socialists who are gaining power in the Democratic Party are exerting a greater influence on Biden’s platform. The answer is clearly yes.

Since Biden was in Pennsylvania to talk about energy policy, it is worth starting there.

 Fracking. Which Joe Biden should Americans believe on fracking: the one who said he would “make sure it’s eliminated” and agreed with the socialist Bernie Sanders that it should be banned, saying “no more”? Or the Biden who now says the opposite?

It is telling that Kamala Harris, his VP pick, favors the total fracking ban that’s part of the Green New Deal. So do the socialist activists who increasingly dominate the Democratic Party. It is hard to see Joe Biden standing up to them, especially since he’s already caved to their demands to move further left.

Green New Deal. Joe Biden avoids saying he supports the Green New Deal demanded by the Democratic Party’s most radical wing. But activists and journalists have spent months pointing out that Biden’s energy plan is the Green New Deal in all but the name.

It’s true: Biden’s $2 trillion plan would raise electricity prices on families, dole out untold billions of dollars in corporate welfare to politically-favored energy companies, and put America back in the Paris Climate Accord — hurting our economy while strengthening adversaries like China. No matter what he calls it, Biden’s energy plan is a raw deal for Americans.

When Joe Biden was vice president to Barack Obama, they enacted some of the most economically harmful energy policies in American history. Four years later, the Democratic Party is even more extreme on energy, and Biden is set to go with the radical flow. The losers will be the millions of Americans who could soon be paying more, losing jobs, and facing blackouts.