Constitutional limits on government power - constraints on what the government can do to you - are the hallmark of the American form of government, and an essential bulwark of liberty against tyranny.  Our Constitution is our nation’s “rulebook”, as our state Constitution is the rulebook for state government.

What happens when our governing officials - elected or appointed - refuse to play by the rules?

What happens when the branch of government charged with upholding and applying those rules - our judiciary - decides to abandon their role as impartial “referee” and instead bend the rules to favor their favorite “players?”

We don’t have to speculate - we just have to review our recent history.

The current majority on the Colorado Supreme Court has repeatedly demonstrated a disregard for the clear letter of the Colorado Constitution and a lack of consideration for your constitutional rights.  They have ruled consistently against individual protections and in favor of expanded government power. Upholding tax increases (such as the “Mill Levy Tax Freeze” property tax increase, or the “Dirty Dozen” new tax laws) imposed without the required vote of the people, enabling taxes to be collected under the guise of “fees” (such as the Colorado Car Tax), expanding eminent domain abuse to seize people’s property, and grabbing the (legislative) power to draw up voting districts (aided by the recent “Mary-mandering” bill) - this court is acting like rulers, not referees; re-writing the laws, instead of upholding them.  We are effectively living without a Constitution in Colorado, experiencing rule by judges instead of the rule of law.

The following article was written for (and appears in) the August edition of Liberty Ink magazine.

Living without a Constitution in Colorado

What would it be like to live without a Constitution? Absent written rules restricting their power, authority and scope of action, could government officials do pretty much whatever they pleased?

Unfortunately, that describes the situation in Colorado over the past few years - under the rule of the unjust justices of the Mullarkey Majority on the Colorado Supreme Court.

This court - especially the justices up for a vote this year - has been hostile to your constitutional rights, particularly your voice under the Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) in how much money the government takes from you in taxes and other “fees.” They’ve also been hostile to your property rights and have been grabbing more and more power that properly belongs to the other branches of government - or to the people.

That’s why the most important votes Coloradoans will cast this year aren’t for the state legislature or even governor or Congress. The most important votes Coloradoans can (and must) cast are “NO” votes on the Colorado Supreme Court justices asking for retention in office: Michael Bender, Alex Martinez, Nancy Rice and - until she recently announced her decision to quit rather than face the voters - Chief Justice Mary Mullarkey.

Thanks to rulings by the activist, anti-constitutional Mullarkey Majority on Colorado’s Supreme Court, our property taxes have increased, and we’ve been burdened by an explosion of other taxes and “fees” (such as the Colorado Car Tax or vehicle registration “fee” increases) - all without the constitutionally required vote of the people, as set forth in the Colorado Constitution.

This year, state legislators also exploited the “Mill Levy Tax Freeze” ruling to increase your tax burden by playing word games with your constitutional rights-insisting that eliminating a tax credit or exemption (the “Dirty Dozen” tax increase bills) does not “change tax policy” and therefore does not require your approval by a vote (despite the clear language of the Colorado Constitution to the contrary).

Our homes and businesses are also less safe from seizure by abuses of eminent domain powers, and the courts are grabbing more power from our elected legislators and local governments accountable to the citizens (arrogantly claiming powers to draw up Congressional districts, even deciding how much funding is “appropriate” for schools-overriding the “checks and balances” that keep judges from raising taxes).

This Supreme Court recognizes no limits on its power. This majority has arrogated to itself the ultimate power to decide all legal or policy questions in the state. For them, their word is law - according to them, the Constitution is what they say it is.

They are wrong. Our Constitution was written and adopted specifically to limit the scope and power of government - to restrain government, not to give the Colorado Supreme Court free reign over the rights of citizens.

Our system relies on the certainty that the law means what it says - that legal precedent and established rights cannot be overturned on a whim or “interpreted” out of existence. Our Constitution is like our rulebook for government, restricting what they can, and can’t, do to us. Our courts - especially our highest courts - are supposed to be the defenders and guardians of our rulebook, and our rights. To use a sports analogy, judges should be referees, not players - applying the law as written equally and fairly to all, not making up new rules as they go along.

However, the Constitution alone is powerless - mere words on paper - to defend our rights and limit government powers without the vigilance and action of CITIZENS - We the People. Inform yourself on what the Constitution actually says - it’s your law, not theirs - and not nearly so complicated as they would have you believe. “The ultimate touchstone of constitutionality is the Constitution itself and not what we have said about it.” (U.S. Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter, Graves v. New York, 1939)

Colorado Supreme Court justices are, and must be, accountable - to the law, to the Constitution and ultimately to the citizens of Colorado (We the People). Retention elections are the only mechanism by which the people of Colorado can hold our Supreme Court justices accountable.

Around the country, citizens are displaying a renewed interest in the American founding, and in the foundational documents (the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution) that established our system of government and laid the framework for unmatched freedom, prosperity and progress. It is no accident that constitutional limits on government power have enabled a free people to unleash their drive and creativity, and create the greatest nation in history.

Let’s Clear The Bench, Colorado!

Be a citizen, not a subject - get informed, then exercise your right to vote “NO” this November on the four (er, three remaining) ‘unjust justices’ of the Colorado Supreme Court’s “Mullarkey Majority”- (Justices Michael Bender, Alex Martinez, Nancy Rice, and soon-to-be-minus Chief Justice Mary Mullarkey) who need YOUR approval to continue taking away your constitutional rights: your right to vote on tax increases, your right to defend your home or business against seizure via eminent domain abuse, your right to be fairly represented in the legislature and Congress, and your right to enjoy the benefits of the rule of law, instead of suffering under rule by activist, agenda-driven “justices.”  Continue to support Clear The Bench Colorado with your comments (Sound Off!) and contributions - and vote “NO” on giving these unjust justices another 10-year term!

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