One thing that makes his argument hypocritical is that Roberts, 58, has actively opposed the Voting Rights Act for more than 30 years, at least since 1981 when he was in the Reagan Justice Dept. He wasn't concerned with "current conditions" then -- his concern was that violations "should not be too easy to prove" and to achieve that, Roberts helped the Reagan administration push for elimination of voter discrimination only when it could be proved to be intentional. The unspoken immorality of that position is that unintentional discrimination becomes fine and dandy, a position long enjoyed wherever discrimination has been practiced.
The Right of Citizens
of the United States to Vote Shall not be Denied"
The constitutional basis of the Voting Rights Act is the 15th Amendment (1870) to the Constitution (1791). The amendment in its entirety:
Section 1. The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.
Section 2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation. [1]
As Roberts knows perfectly well, the intent of the amendment is to eliminate discrimination, without regard to whether that discrimination is intentional, unintentional, or striped like a zebra. But that's not what he wants (quia volo).
At the beginning of his final paragraph, Roberts is not only hypocritical, but exquisitely deceitful and cynical when he writes:
"Our decision in no way affects the permanent, nationwide ban on racial discrimination in voting found in [section] 2. We issue no holding on [section] 5 itself, only on the coverage formula. Congress may draft another formula based on current conditions. Such a formula is an initial prerequisite to a determination that exceptional conditions still exist justifying such an "extraordinary departure from the traditional course of relations between the States and the Federal Government.' "
Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
1
1
1
