Yesterday, Jeffrey Simpson writes, the Harper government got what it deserved:
The Harper government figured it would teach the Supreme Court justices a lesson by appointing Marc Nadon to their midst. Instead, the justices taught the Harper government a bunch of lessons.
Among the lessons: Don’t play politics with the judiciary. Don’t play fast and loose with the law. Pick the best-qualified, not the average. Understand the Constitution.
The Harperites came to Ottawa with one purpose -- to rig the system in their favour. The Court has sent a clear message. You can't rig the court -- although the government almost did just that:
They almost succeeded, which ought to produce a lot of soul-searching among those who care about the integrity of the courts. The country’s legal profession remained abjectly silent in the face of a less-than-satisfactory process that produced an obviously ideological appointment. The parliamentary committee barely studied the candidate, in fairness perhaps because MPs were given so little time to investigate a nominee about whom so little was known. Law professors, with a few exceptions, clammed up despite their beloved tenure. It took the Supreme Court, by a resounding 6-1 majority, to say “No.”
It was Toronto lawyer Rocco Galati who got the legal community to take notice.
The elites -- who the Harperites used rail against -- are on the government's side. It will take a revolt from ordinary Canadians to send them packing.
