Did Jewish liberals say the same things when the Democratic-controlled Senate did not want to appoint a Republican nominee to the Supreme Court just before an election? I doubt it.
Laura W. Brill is a media law and appellate litigator who writes frequently on legal issues. She served as a law clerk to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She writes:
One of the most popularly quoted Torah phrases about justice is “Tzedek, tzedek tirdof,” meaning: Justice, justice shall you pursue.
This is in Deuteronomy 16:20, in a Torah portion called “Shoftim,” meaning “Judges.” Shoftim actually begins two verses earlier, in Deuteronomy 16:18, with a commandment that gets much less attention but that seems every bit as important for people who care about justice: “You shall appoint for you judges and officers in all your gates…”
The obligation to appoint judges doesn’t appear to be optional. We “shall appoint judges.” There is no exception when a president is in his last year of office, or for protecting gun ownership.
