Bench Memos on National Review Online

Bench Memos on National Review Online

If memory serves, Abraham Lincoln said that the best way to get rid of bad laws is to enforce them strictly.

Even if Lincoln did not say it, I would suggest it is very good practice. As the Democrat administration proved the corollary on gun laws, by failing to enforce law, a more motive base can be convinced that new, stricter laws are necessary. Compare the Bush gun enforcement practice and the lack of discussion for new gun laws.

Another corollary to Lincoln's theory is that the best way to get prevent a long stream of "out of the mainstream" judges is to let them get appointed and confirmed quickly. As recent discussions of Clinton's appointments suggest (e.g., Bader Ginsberg, J.), letting their ridiculous show makes the Republican case for better originalist judges to be appointed. If a Clinton femme administration were to come to power, letting her have judges with a 50 vote Senate (and the requisite vote of the VP), she could make her best case for Republican domination.

Don't misunderstand, I am an one of those "kick me" Republicans that thinks the best way to win is to lose. I just don't think that violating the principle of majority-rule using the filibuster has served the Republicans well in getting the control that their policy popularity with the grass roots of America would suggest is likely and probable.

Speaker Gingrich once said that motivating the base by fighting the majority is the best way to win. He proved it. The Democrats are trying to be a second Gingrich. Let them. If their policies (by the way, name some concrete action that they are proposing; nevertheless, let's assume that they have one for discussion's sake) were that popular, then they will win control of the Congress.

The only exception is the tennis rule: if you hit the ball back enough, your opponent's error will give the point eventually. If the Democrats keep saying "no" long enough for l'affaire de Delay (or is that L'affaire de Lay) or some Bush scandal to develop, the Democrats may get Congress by the Republican's foot fault -- to continue the tennis analogy.

So given the options, the best solutions for the Republicans would seem to be to look at the removal of the filibuster as the best way to demonstrate their superior policies. Then even if the tennis rule does take over, they can still point to policy successes and the mere need to get new, more ethical leadership.

Republicans should play to win and risk the Democrats being able to hit the ball back. The truly good player will be able to beat the backboard player most days of the week. Let's be truly good players.