This letter, submitted by Meg Lucas, is co-signed by Nancy Witherill (Bartonsville), Sherry Maher (Athens), Tatiana Schreiber (Westminster West), Barbara Ternes (Bellows Falls), and Arlene Scully (Westminster West).
SAXTONS RIVER-On Oct. 31, Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly, a senior judge in the District of Columbia, ruled against the Trump administration in parts of the case involving the president's executive order to restrict voting rights.
She entered a permanent injunction that prevented the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) from implementing the worst provision of Trump's executive order: one that would require proof of citizenship to register to vote, such as a passport or birth certificate.
Judge Kollar-Kotelly found that this requirement is an unconstitutional violation of the separation of powers, given that electoral rules belong to the states and Congress, not the president. This is one of many examples of lower court judges standing up for the rule of law as, of course, they should do.
Unfortunately, in these times, judges put themselves at increasing personal risk in the form of threats, harassment, and physical violence, when they perform their constitutionally sworn duty.
These courageous judges deserve our visible appreciation.
We encourage others to voice support in public ways, such as letters to the editor in your own communities, to help counter some of the vitriol against these judges as they do their best to hold the line against a runaway wannabe dictator and all those so willing to do his bidding.
Meg Lucas
Saxtons River
This letter, submitted by Meg Lucas, is co-signed by Nancy Witherill (Bartonsville), Sherry Maher (Athens), Tatiana Schreiber (Westminster West), Barbara Ternes (Bellows Falls), and Arlene Scully (Westminster West).
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