McCain Assures Conservatives of His Stance on Judges

By Elizabeth Bumiller - New York Times
Wednesday, May 07, 2008 - Web Link
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WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Senator John McCain reached out to conservatives on Tuesday by vowing to appoint judges he characterized as strictly faithful to the Constitution and who did not engage in what Mr. McCain condemned as “the common and systemic abuse of our federal courts.”

The issue is of enormous importance to conservatives, who have rallied against what they call activist judges who they say decide cases based on their personal beliefs rather than the law. Mr. McCain has faced suspicions among conservatives about his intentions on the judicial front, and although he regularly says in his campaign appearances that he would appoint only judges who “strictly interpret” the Constitution, he has not given a lengthy speech on the subject until now.

“With a presumption that would have amazed the framers of our Constitution, and legal reasoning that would have mystified them, federal judges today issue rulings and opinions on policy questions that should be decided democratically,” Mr. McCain said before a large crowd of students assembled in Wait Chapel at Wake Forest University here. “Assured of lifetime tenures, these judges show little regard for the authority of the president, the Congress and the states. They display even less interest in the will of the people.”

Mr. McCain’s speech was a clear embrace of the judicial philosophy of President Bush and other recent Republican presidents who sought judges who generally construed laws as narrowly as possible, who for the most part favored government authority in criminal matters and who were opposed to the expansion of abortion rights.