Judical Activism or Judicial Restraint?
Saturday, August 14th, 2004The ruling required no novel legal theories or new constructions — no “activism” (as opposed to “action”) — regarding either statute or constitution; rather it was a perfect model of the traditional role of jurisprudence and separation of powers: to uphold the rule of law by holding the executive to the a priori terms of its text. It was, in fact, anti-”activist” in the best conservative tradition: the court, which we all suspect is sympathetic to the cause of gay-marriage, nevertheless declined to re-interpret the law or to allow an exception to it in the name of achieving the desired outcome.