That's exactly what gun-control advocates have long wanted: legislation from the bench that they could not persuade real legislatures to pass. A majority of legislators, who are elected, see the absurdity of gun control and recognize the valuable self-defense function of guns.
The role of judges should be (as U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts repeated in his confirmation hearings) like that of baseball umpires: calling the balls and strikes, but not changing how many strikes constitute a strikeout. Judges should interpret ambiguous laws fairly but not legislate from the bench.
Gun control has become so unpopular that not even the Democratic presidential candidates dare brag about their views. Instead the anti-gun crowd hopes to get what it wants from supremacist judges.
Misuse of courts to obtain a result contrary to the will of the American people should not be allowed on other vital issues. Congress should also take away from judges issues such as the Pledge of Allegiance, the Ten Commandments, the Boy Scouts, and the definition of marriage.
Take another example: Federal courts should not entertain lawsuits by illegal immigrants against local ordinances that enforce U.S. immigration laws.
This refreshing gun decision by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals signals the way for Congress to return the judiciary to its proper place in our constitutional separation of powers system. In the previous Congress, the House of Representatives did pass bills to curb court mischief about the Pledge of Allegiance and the definition of marriage, and now it's time for the U.S. Senate to step up to the plate and take action against judicial supremacists.
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