Bush Blasted for Nominating Liberal Judge Neff to Federal Bench
by Allie Martin
August 8, 2006
(AgapePress) - - President George W. Bush's recent appointment of a liberal judge to the U.S. District Court in Michigan is a move that has generated concern and criticism among conservatives.
Judge Janet T. Neff, a member of the Michigan Court of Appeals, has been nominated to serve on the bench of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan. The appointee's political leanings are decidedly liberal; according to a New York Times report, Neff even presided over a commitment ceremony for two lesbians in 2002.
Brian Fahling of the America Family Association Center for Law & Policy (Law Center) finds President Bush's choice of Neff troubling. When it comes to policy on important social and moral issues affecting the nation's families, the pro-family attorney observes, "the judiciary is where everything starts, it seems."
Certainly, Fahling asserts, legalized abortion in America began with the judiciary. And "with respect to same-sex 'marriage,'" he says, "Massachusetts courts gave us same-sex marriage, and we also had some early difficulty with federal courts striking state marriage amendments."
What America needs, the AFA Law Center attorney contends, is "judges who will simply declare what the law is, not judges who take it upon themselves to legislate and implement their own sense of what ought to be." He questions whether a liberal like Neff will fit the former, rather than the latter definition, and he hopes pro-family voters will put pressure on the President to reconsider Neff's appointment or on other government leaders to oppose her confirmation.
"People ought to be moved to action, to call their senators and to let the president and his aides know that we're still watching," Fahling says. He points out that many people voted for George W. Bush, in large measure, "because of the influence we thought he would have on the federal courts; and for the most part, it appears to be that he has kept the faith with that promise."
However, Bush's appointment of Neff "clearly suggests a departure" from his commitment to appoint conservative judges, the pro-family attorney says. This move, he suggests, has many conservatives questioning the president's judgment, if not crying foul.
It would be "a great accomplishment" if the chief executive could be convinced to back down from his support for Judge Neff, Fahling adds. He says when it comes to nominating judges to serve on the federal judiciary, President Bush should stick with solid, proven conservatives who will interpret the law and not try to legislate from the bench.
Allie Martin, a regular contributor to AgapePress, is a reporter for American Family Radio News, which can be heard online.
