The Neil Gorsuch nomination, by president 45, for the US Supreme Court has many problems, but the worst is that he consistently “Favors Corporate ‘Rights’ Over Human Rights”. For those of us, like at MoveToAmend (MTA), this nomination allows us to draw a line in this sand and say “No, you will not do this”. It is a time to find our voices like we have never done before, a time to spread the word and empower all the support possible, because if we lose this one it may take generations to have a similar impact on the public mindset or it may just be game over.
MTA’s has published a statement “rejecting Neil Gorsuch and Any Nominee That Favors Corporate ‘Rights’ Over Human Rights”. So what why is that so important? It comes down to the power of case precedence which today seems invariably in favor of corporations. To correct this MTA’s We the People Amendment, clearly and unequivocally states that:
- Rights recognized under the Constitution belong to human beings only, and not to government-created artificial legal entities such as corporations and limited liability companies; and
- Political campaign spending is not a form of speech protected under the First Amendment.
The Gorsuch nomination covertly attempts to extend and even surpass the effect Justice Scalia had during his time on the court. Gorsuch, in his introduction as a nominee, proudly boasted his praise for his mentor Scalia. As if this were not shocking enough to those who reject corporate personhood, but when we begin to examine his extensive list of decisions favoring corporations against both individuals and the state, chills if not outright fear become to dominant our reactions. Here are a couple examples:
- “Voting against workers – He was one of five judges who ruled in favor of Hobby Lobby which eventually led to the Supreme Court’s ruling in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. that a corporation could claim religious rights under the First Amendment to refuse providing insurance with birth control coverage to employees as required by the Affordable Care Act.”
- “No deference to the EPA – Judge Gorsuch’s opinion harshly criticized the Supreme Court’s 1984 Chevron decision, which says that courts should not second-guess an agency’s interpretation of a vague federal law unless the agency clearly got it wrong. Judge Gorsuch argued that this common-sense rule—one that federal agencies have relied on for decades—allows agencies “to swallow huge amounts of core judicial and legislative power and concentrate federal power.” He complained that it made complying with federal regulations so complicated that one needed “an army of perfumed lawyers and lobbyists” to obey the law.”
This nomination gives us a particular opportunity to accurately define and loudly voice one of the most important principles of our constitution. A principle that has been hijacked by the powerful and wealthy. The simple fact that the constitution of the United States did not even mention corporations and it was written about and for “human persons”, not legal, fictional monsters that have gained almost total control over what we are led to believe is a democracy. We must not let this moment slip away!