"The constitution of the United States does not give to any court — district court, circuit court or supreme court — the right to pass upon and declare unconstitutional the acts of the sovereign assembly of this nation," declared Senator Owen of Oklahoma, in discussing a provision in the ship subsidy bill that recognizes the court's power.

The lawmaker quoted an early decision by Chief Justice Marshall to support this view, which the chief justice afterwards changed in the Marbury case when he held that the supreme court has the right to pass upon acts of congress.

"The congress of the United States ought then and there to have impeached John Marshall," said Senator Owen. "He was guilty of a violation of the true meaning of the constitution; he himself, in that act, as a judicial officer, violated the spirit and purpose and meaning of the constitution and he assumed the sovereign power over the legislative agents of the people of the United States.

"No civilized nation permits the judges on the bench to declare unconstitutional or void the acts of their parliaments. Great Britain, on February 6, 1700, declared that judges should hold their offices 'while they behaved themselves well,' subject alone to removal by resolution of parliament. This control of the judges sufficed. That is what I proposed in 1911 for the United States. I thought the time had then come for that rule in the United States."

"France does not permit the laws of her parliament to be set aside by the French judges. No French judge would dare to declare an act of the French parliament void or invalid in part, as this bill proposes to permit."

"Italy in her written constitutional law, provides that the judges shall not set aside an act of parliament."

"Austria does not permit judges to set aside an act of the Austrian parliament."

"Germany does not allow the judges of Germany to set aside an act of the Reichstag."

"Belgium does not permit her judges to set aside the laws of Belgium."

"Denmark does not permit her judges to set aside the laws of the legislature of Denmark."

"Australia does not permit it; New Zealand does not permit it."

"I speak of these things because the civilized world, which has considered government by the people, has all agreed upon this doctrine, and there must be sound reason for this unanimous opinion of mankind. It is not an accident; it is written out of the blood and tears of centuries."

Labels: Alternate universe

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