The sun., 1918-07-18
Camouhage OF the judicial Recall.

An important note of warning Is
tee Of the American Bar Association
to oppose judicial recall which has
been prepared for presentation to that
organization at its meeting in Au-
gust at Cleveland. The opposition to
direct legislation or constitutional
amendment providing for the recall Of
Judges or Of judicial decisions has
been SO strong and successful that
the enactment of such measures, show
ing on their face just what they seek
to accomplish, Is no longer to be
feared. The foes of an independent
judiciary. however. have by no means
abandoned their purpose of making
the bench subservient TO the tempo
rary whims of the people and depriv-
ing the Judges of the power to pass
upon the constitutional validity of
legislative acts. They are proceeding
by stealth and indirection instead of
openly; and as the committee of the
American Bar Association warns the
legal profession, "the dangers of the
judicial recall propaganda have be
come increased because-using the
new and much abused term--it now
works under many forms Of camou-
flnge."
The committee records It's opposl-
ton to the bill for the superannua-
ton of Federal Judges now before
Congress, which the Acknowledgement
has characterized simply as "a bill
for the appointment OF additional
Judges where the incumbent is over
20 years of age" The report is
signed by representative lawyers
from nearly every State in the Union,
men of the highest character and
professional standing, and they ex-
pressly charge that the Attorney-Gen-
eral of the United States in recon-
mending the passage of this bill has
ignored the unconstitutional provision
for judicial recall which 1t contains.
No other member of President WILL
SONS Cabinet, so far rs we know,
favors the recall of Judges. In Con-
gress, the most vociferous advocate
of the doctrine Is Senator OWEN OF
Oklahoma. He does not term his
method recall, but he would simply
unseat Judge who ventured TO de-
eide that an act of Congress was I'M
constitutional. A short time ago, just
nfter the Supreme Court had adiudGed
the Federal child labor law to be in
valid, he introduced In the Senate an
amendment which provided among
other things that any executive or
judicial officer who in his official ca
pdcity should deny the constitution
atty of the act should ipso facto va
cate his office! The theory Of such
statesmen is that the legislative
branch OF the Government Is the only
authority competent to pass upon the
validity of the laws enacted by itself.
In almost every State Constitution
there are specific prohibitions affect
ing the action of the Legislature,
which would be wholly Intellectual in
case the courts were without power
to nullify any legislative action taken
in disregard or defiance of the high
est expression Of the peoples will.
The most formidable promoters of
the judicial recall, however, in the
judgment of the committee of the
American Bar Association, are the
leaders Of new political organiza-
ton in the Northwest known as the
NonPartisan League. ats creed and
platform are based upOn nbrognting
constitutional protection and ellmi-
mating the primary functions of courts
of justice, whether State or national.
In other words, it advocates Judicial