The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1936-01-31
COURT CRITICS
FOUND RIGHT
0NLY4TIMES
BY WILLIAM H. MURRAY
Former Governor Of Oklahoma

(From an address deIipered before
the Association for Economy
and Tar Equality at
Enid, OklG.J
Now, as to the Supreme Court
There were only four times In
the history of that court, for
nearly $50 years, a just reason
or excuse, for criticizing that
court, largely due to the fact
that in the beginning for more
than 60 years it was presided
over by two men: John Marshall
and Roger B. fancy, the two i'm,
mortalS.
The four criticisms are these
When the court in the Dredd
Scott case, stepped aside to rule
upon things not before the
court. This caused Lincoln and
the leaders of the Republican
party to criticize the court and
justly so.
The second was the decision
Of 1871, caused by the courts
being packed with politicians and
overturning the decisions Of the
court for more than 80 years.
Third Criticism
The third criticism and the
most reprehensible of all, was
when the Electoral Commission
was created, providing for five
members of the House, five :nem-
bers Of the Senate, and five
members of the Supreme Court,
/ to decide the Tilden-Hayes con-
test, resulting in a vote of seven
to eight; seven for TilGep and
eight for Hayes, cast on party
lines; the judges falling into
partisanship, just like Congress.
. But that had it's foundation in
the holdover of the stacked court,
above referred to.
In that case the court should
have said:
"AlI political power belongs
to Congress and not to the
court, and the jurisdiction Of
our court is fixed by Article 3
and the Eleventh Amendment
Of the Constitution; and Con-
greSs cannot delegate power to
this court, and we decline, there
fore, to act"
Had the court done this, 1t
would have shined like a noun.
tain, but when it proved its mem
bers to be purely partisan. much
Of the prestige of almost century
was lost, and thus began doubts
in many" minds of the stalwart,
fair and just-mindedness OF the
court.
Just Criticism
The last just criticism was along
In the eos, when the Supreme
Court by a five-to-four vote upheld
the income tax law and the next
morning one of the judges
(shires) changed his opinion. re-
Sulting in declaring such law by
p five-to-four vote unconStitu-
tional, again overturning five de-
cisions declaring such tax co1sti-
tutional.
And that's my reason for say
ing awhile ago that the Sixteenth
Amendment was already conSti-
tutional, for the first power Of
a sovereign is the power to tax,
which has it's basis in the inherent
power of self-determination anC
support.
Oh, one says, "The court can
not declare law unconstitutional,
because there is no word in the
Constitution authorizing it." No,
there is no word; nor is there any
word in the Constitution prohibit
ing a citizen from suing the gov
eminent; nor is there any word
in the Constitution giving the
\, court power to fine for contempt,
even to enter a judgment, because
these are fundamentals-too fun
damental to be put in writing
They are the A B C'S OF govern
ment itself.
The fact that the Constitution
created three separate, independ-
ent, co-ordinated branches of gov
eminent; the fact that the court
was given power to construe and
declare the law, it became inner
emily the authority of the court
to wipe away the redundancy
claimed for law, carried with 1t
the power to declare such re-
dundancy not in harmony with
the Constitution, as null and void
Just as inherent as the power
of a court to fine for contempt;
Just as inherent as the citizen can
not sue the government without
its consent, although not written
In the Constitution, or the law;
lust as inherent as the govern
ment is not subject to Limitation"
"Laches" or "Estoppel," although
not written in the Constitution, or
the law; just as fundamental as
, the Tenant cannot deny the
landlord title;" otherwise it would
be unsafe to let a man go into
your building-theSe things and
many others which must be un-
: derstood by the Constitutional
lawyer, before he can understand
how to interpret Constitutional
law; because they are funda-
mental; they are automatic; they
are too elemental for a sensible
man to think of writing into law,
or the Constitution.