It's that time of year again when state and local leftists snivel about their obviously mistaken claim that the Legislature has to do anything about McCleary.
They don't.
The Court knows it. The Legislature knows it. Sen Ann "Gas Tax" Rivers and her babble about "deadlines" knows it.
The question over what the nebulous term "paramount duty" means is one thing. That phrase is in the State Constitution. The Legislature can, in fact, chose to apply a definition to this term if they were so inclined, instead of leaving it to these clowns to develop one and ram it down their throats.
What is NOT in the State Constitution is ANY power over the Legislature to force them to do anything legislatively.
The Court can no more order the Legislature to legislate than the Legislature may order the Court to rule.
And let's take it a step further: as an academic exercise, what would the Court do if the Governor (Whoever that might be) vetoed such a measure? Order him to sign it? Threaten him?
Of course not. Why?
Because they have no power to force the Governor to sign anything.
That the Legislature has, in any way, responded to this Court is a voluntarily assumed diminishment of their legislative power.
The reason that this entire situation is fallacious is simple: The Court has interpreted this part of the State Constitution in this way.
Bully for them.
From that interpretation is no appeal.
Swell.
What's to keep the Court from interpreting the Constitution in a variety of other ways to forward a leftist agenda?
They made this up out of legal whole cloth.
So, they get together over drinks (or whatever) one day and decide they've had it with a sales-tax only taxation system in this state and have determined that the Legislature will now HAVE to develop and implement a state income tax in addition to the state sales tax and it has to be, say, 3% with increases for inflation.
People reading this might think, "Nah... it'll never happen."
What's to stop them?
Seriously. Because the Legislature has set this precedent that they'll even LISTEN to the Court, let alone jump through Court-imposed hoops... where does it end?
Should the Legislature kowtow to the Court on this matter... where, precisely, would it end?
The Court's abuse of power is obvious. That the Legislature is ALLOWING them to abuse this power?
Even more so.
Do not be deceived.
If the Court could have acted, they would have acted. This bizarre nonsense about "fining the Legislature" is a crock: the Treasurer has no such authority to pay any such fine; the Legislature has no such line item in their budget and, in fact, it doesn't seem that the fine HAS been paid or WILL be paid.
Nor should it be, since the Court has no power to force the Legislature to pay it... any more than the Legislature has the ability to pay it.
Further, this purely political ploy by a group of Puget Sound leftists builds just such a slippery slope because neither House has the guts to stand up and publicly oppose this idiocy.
McCleary is a mess. But it's only a mess because the Legislature is even acknowledging it, let alone responding to it.
Just sayin'.
They don't.
The Court knows it. The Legislature knows it. Sen Ann "Gas Tax" Rivers and her babble about "deadlines" knows it.
The question over what the nebulous term "paramount duty" means is one thing. That phrase is in the State Constitution. The Legislature can, in fact, chose to apply a definition to this term if they were so inclined, instead of leaving it to these clowns to develop one and ram it down their throats.
What is NOT in the State Constitution is ANY power over the Legislature to force them to do anything legislatively.
The Court can no more order the Legislature to legislate than the Legislature may order the Court to rule.
And let's take it a step further: as an academic exercise, what would the Court do if the Governor (Whoever that might be) vetoed such a measure? Order him to sign it? Threaten him?
Of course not. Why?
Because they have no power to force the Governor to sign anything.
That the Legislature has, in any way, responded to this Court is a voluntarily assumed diminishment of their legislative power.
The reason that this entire situation is fallacious is simple: The Court has interpreted this part of the State Constitution in this way.
Bully for them.
From that interpretation is no appeal.
Swell.
What's to keep the Court from interpreting the Constitution in a variety of other ways to forward a leftist agenda?
They made this up out of legal whole cloth.
So, they get together over drinks (or whatever) one day and decide they've had it with a sales-tax only taxation system in this state and have determined that the Legislature will now HAVE to develop and implement a state income tax in addition to the state sales tax and it has to be, say, 3% with increases for inflation.
People reading this might think, "Nah... it'll never happen."
What's to stop them?
Seriously. Because the Legislature has set this precedent that they'll even LISTEN to the Court, let alone jump through Court-imposed hoops... where does it end?
Should the Legislature kowtow to the Court on this matter... where, precisely, would it end?
The Court's abuse of power is obvious. That the Legislature is ALLOWING them to abuse this power?
Even more so.
Do not be deceived.
If the Court could have acted, they would have acted. This bizarre nonsense about "fining the Legislature" is a crock: the Treasurer has no such authority to pay any such fine; the Legislature has no such line item in their budget and, in fact, it doesn't seem that the fine HAS been paid or WILL be paid.
Nor should it be, since the Court has no power to force the Legislature to pay it... any more than the Legislature has the ability to pay it.
Further, this purely political ploy by a group of Puget Sound leftists builds just such a slippery slope because neither House has the guts to stand up and publicly oppose this idiocy.
McCleary is a mess. But it's only a mess because the Legislature is even acknowledging it, let alone responding to it.
Just sayin'.
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