Youngstown Vindicator - Unelected Grab too Much Power

Op-Ed

By Bill Johnson

The U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that the Constitution somehow conveys a fundamental right to change the definition of marriage. This ruling essentially vacated the voice of approximately 30 million Americans from 13 states, including Ohio, who had already acted to protect the traditional definition of marriage -- through the ballot box.

Many now fear, confirmed by the solicitor general, that it is possible, if not likely, that ministers will face lawsuits or government investigations if they don't agree to abandon their deeply held religious beliefs and officiate at gay weddings. Using this new Supreme Court decision, government agents and lawyers are more likely than ever before to target Americans who still -- in the words of President Obama -- dare to "cling to their faith."

As a man of faith, I share their concerns. While I don't think government should ever be involved in regulating the private morality of American citizens, I also don't think the term "marriage" -- the building block of our society -- can, with the stroke of a pen, be changed. Even some liberal scholars have acknowledged that the court overstepped its constitutional authority by circumventing the people's role in our democratic process or using reasoning without constitutional roots. This type of abuse of power is creating a widening fracture in our society. We must ask ourselves: If the courts can dictate this, then what will they dictate next?

EXECUTIVE BRANCH OVERREACH

The Supreme Court isn't alone in being a branch of the federal government making sweeping policy changes that it shouldn't be. The executive branch, through regulation, is enacting thousands of policies that directly and indirectly impact almost every aspect of our lives. These unelected Washington bureaucrats are not accountable to the American people, despite their legislating via regulation.

Today, regulators, at the president's direction, are actively trying to put the coal industry out of business and raise our electricity costs through regulations issued by the EPA and the Office of Surface Mining. The unelected commissioners at the Federal Communications Commission recently voted to begin regulating the Internet -- the effects of which we'll feel after the lawsuits have been settled. Bureaucrats at the Department of Health and Human Services are determining what can -- and cannot -- be included in Americans' health insurance policies. The Food and Drug Administration issues diet dictates and calorie counts on America's food producers, and, today, most aspects of financing a home are governed by Washington; not coincidentally, fewer families are receiving mortgages to buy homes.

Unelected citizens -- be they judges or bureaucrats -- imposing their will on their fellow citizens is not healthy for our democratic republic.

Chief Justice John Roberts was correct in his dissent of the Supreme Court's recent ruling when he said that only through our democratic process are both sides able to claim ownership in the final outcome of important policy decisions like this.

SOUL OF NATION IGNORED

That means that in the final outcome, in a system of government "of, for, and by the people," relying on a forced victory through the narrowest of court decisions to trample the will of the people -- regardless of the issue -- will not fully speak for the heart and soul of our nation. Such big government overreach will ultimately lose the hearts and minds of our people.

Our Founders did not want policy set by the unelected -- that's why they broke free of King George and the British Empire to establish something new, where the will of the people would determine the course of government.

We can do better than this era of top-down government. We must do better. We owe it to our children and our grandchildren. We owe it to those before us that put their lives on the line to create America, and all those generations since that paid the ultimate sacrifice to preserve it.

We cannot afford to remain silent on these issues.

Republican Bill Johnson, who lives with his wife and son in Marietta, is the U.S. House representative for Ohio's 6th District, which includes Columbiana County and portions of Mahoning County.

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