Ignorance on parade. Courts don't make laws under our constitutions. And a lawless, arbitrary court opinion does not equate to a 'sudden shift in attitudes' among the American people.
That was pre-obamacare.
And even then, the USSC was more than ready and willing to shit on the Constitution for the sake of political expedience — Schenck v. United States [1919]:
We admit that, in many places and in ordinary times, the defendants, in saying all that was said in the circular, would have been within their constitutional rights. But the character of every act depends upon the circumstances in which it is done. […] The question in every case is whether the words used are used in such circumstances and are of such a nature as to create a clear and present danger that they will bring about the substantive evils that Congress has a right to prevent. […] When a nation is at war, many things that might be said in time of peace are such a hindrance to its effort that their utterance will not be endured so long as men fight, and that no Court could regard them as protected by any constitutional right.So, according to this ruling, the Congress has a duty/right which trumps
Congress shall make no law respecting […] abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.
I'm in the minority when I assert that the first amendment, even via the 14th's incorporation, should not bind the states as it specifically mentions and binds Congress. I'm of the opinion that to assert otherwise is to assert that there is some magic which suddenly makes the words not mean what the words say.
“a lawless, arbitrary court opinion does not equate to a ‘sudden shift in attitudes’ among the American people.”
No, but the response to it does.
Where is the massive public outrage to this judicial overreach? Where are the protests, the parades? We’ve seen nothing. The only response is the predictable one from the “press release warriors” looking to pick our pockets.
Even most Republican governors are now knuckling under without a fight. That’s because they know what side their bread is buttered. In very few states is opposition to gay marriage even close enough to 50/50 that a politician can risk coming out hard against it.
We need to stop kidding ourselves about the task ahead of us. We’re not just facing a couple rogue judges or a handful of craven politicians, we’re lining up against a majority of the American people. We need to recognize that if we’re to have any hope of turning them back.