John Puri writes for National Review Online about the important civics lesson embedded in one U.S. Supreme Court justice’s recent opinion.
At the end of his concurring opinion in the IEEPA tariff case, Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump, Justice Neil Gorsuch gave one of the finest explanations of why Congress matters in the American constitutional design. Citizens of all ideologies should demand that our federal legislature reclaim its role as the engine of the policymaking process. These days, they serve merely as cheerleaders for or hecklers against the president — bloviating on social media and busking on television — as the executive branch governs unilaterally.
Here is the entire section from Gorsuch’s opinion:
“For those who think it important for the Nation to impose more tariffs, I understand that today’s decision will be disappointing. All I can offer them is that most major decisions affecting the rights and responsibilities of the American people (including the duty to pay taxes and tariffs) are funneled through the legislative process for a reason. Yes, legislating can be hard and take time. And, yes, it can be tempting to bypass Congress when some pressing problem arises. But the deliberative nature of the legislative process was the whole point of its design. Through that process, the Nation can tap the combined wisdom of the people’s elected representatives, not just that of one faction or man. There, deliberation tempers impulse, and compromise hammers disagreements into workable solutions. And because laws must earn such broad support to survive the legislative process, they tend to endure, allowing ordinary people to plan their lives in ways they cannot when the rules shift from day to day. In all, the legislative process helps ensure each of us has a stake in the laws that govern us and in the Nation’s future. For some today, the weight of those virtues is apparent. For others, it may not seem so obvious. But if history is any guide, the tables will turn and the day will come when those disappointed by today’s result will appreciate the legislative process for the bulwark of liberty it is.”
