Americans have always prided themselves on being a rule-of-law nation. For decades we have condemned many other countries for human rights violations and for failing to guarantee what we consider fundamental rights of all people to have a fair trial and/or humane treatment. We have staked out the moral high ground when it comes to the rule of law, pointing out our wonderful Constitution and the Bill of Rights as proof of our righteousness.
Human Rights R Us, or so we think.
The Guardian recently published an article based on a Rule of Law Index survey which rated countries on their commitment to protecting human rights and governing by law. So, where does the U.S. rank? Out of the 113 countries rated, the U.S. could do no better than 19. In the Fundamental Rights category of this survey, the U.S. ranked 26.
The basis for any claim we may have as a nation of laws that protects human rights is the strength of our Constitution. But just how strong is it?
Many columnists have been making comments about a potential constitutional crisis if, for example, President Trump fires Robert Mueller or Rod Rosenstein. Or if he pardons (in advance) Paul Manafort or Michael Cohen. Their assumption is that our Constitution is intact, for now, but could be threatened by an abuse of presidential powers.
It seems to me we are already plunging headlong into a constitutional crisis. All warning signs are burning brightly and red flags waving brilliantly. The U.S. appears to be following a global trend of suppressing human rights, squelching the free press, and undermining the rule of law in all three branches of our government.
Here are a few notable signs of this constitutional crisis:
• We have allowed one political party to redraw voting districts and change voting laws in such a way as to ensure that they control a majority of votes in the House of Representatives even though they do not represent a majority of the voters.
• We have allowed this same party to stack the U.S. Supreme Court with politically biased justices whose rulings are diminishing the rights of laborers, minorities, and women while enhancing the rights of powerful corporations. The Supremes are now divided on nearly every important decision according to politics instead of their interpretation of the Constitution.
• The president of our country has launched and sustained an attack on the Justice Department and the FBI, its chief law enforcement agency. These are the most important institutions charged with ensuring rule of law and protecting the Constitution.
• The president constantly condemns our free press, attempting to undermine its veracity with the public. The First Amendment states: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." This may be the most important part of our entire Bill of Rights, and it is being attacked every day.
• The Executive Branch has been filled with anti-government, poorly qualified administrators who are doing their level best to destroy decades of consumer protections, environmental laws, public education, and any hope of universal healthcare. These same administrators are committing so many breaches of ethics laws and conflicts of interest that none of us can keep up with them.
• The Legislative Branch is so polarized by adversarial politics that it is paralyzed and virtually ineffective. We have lost the checks and balances on the Executive Branch supposedly guaranteed by our constitution. Even worse, half the country doesn't seem to know enough about our constitution to recognize what is transpiring.
• The Judicial Branch has actually ruled via the Supreme Court that Corporations have the same right to free speech as citizens. This ruling opened the door for large private corporations to make unlimited campaign contributions without accountability or transparency.
• The attorney general of the United States ordered law enforcement agencies to commit violations of human rights by incarcerating the children of immigrant parents in separate facilities. The U.N. Human Rights Council is now condemning the U.S. for these actions. Our president's reaction? He will withdraw the U.S. from the U.N. Human Rights Council. (The president reversed this immigration policy on June 20, but thousands of children remain isolated from parents. It is unclear how and when they may be united with parents or relatives.)
• Every day, it seems there is some sort of encroachment on the separation of church and state. Go tour the state Capitol grounds. Enough said.
• We have an opioid epidemic in our country that is killing or ruining the lives of hundreds of thousands of our own citizens. These opioids are being provided by big pharmaceutical companies through legitimate distributors in obscene quantities. There are plenty of laws in place to prevent this. The DEA and FDA have enough clout to stop this distribution by fining and prosecuting these large corporations. Neither the Congress nor the DEA appear to have the will to do this. Mega-rich corporations are allowed to influence our officials to look the other way with millions of lobbying dollars.
• Our elections have become so tainted by the recent and well-documented Russian interventions via our own social media and other software manipulation that voters are losing confidence in our electoral system. We were already averaging about 40 percent voter participation in midterm elections. This is just a few steps from turning over our democratic process to some autocratic power or person.
Are we still a rule-of-law nation? Perhaps, but for how long? Whether one is a Republican or a Democrat, we should all be very concerned about the rapid erosion of our Constitution while our elected representatives stand by and watch.
Boyd Ward, retired, is former executive director of ARORA and author of a novel, Journey Through Chaos: The Valley. Follow his blog A Yellowdog Takes Aim on Facebook.
Editorial on 07/01/2018