Leaving the Decision to Congress
Argues that disputes arising from the FL vote in the 2000 presidential election should have been resolved by Congress rather than the Supreme Court. An analysis of Bush v. Gore maintains that the US Supreme Court's decision to remand the case & stay the recount indicates an inherent conflict of interest on the part of the justices that sets it apart from earlier election law cases reviewed by the Court. Charges of partisanship would have been avoided if the Court had left the matter to the political sphere. Claims that failure of the Court to intervene in the election would have caused a constitutional crisis are based on unfounded fears stemming from distrust of the political process. Not only is there no evidence that the political crisis would have damaged the institutions of governance, but it is likely that the dispute could have been resolved by state actors. If not, it is contended that the proper forum for determining the outcome was the US Congress, which has a framework for constraining opportunism & channeling deliberation. J. Lindroth