On Friday’s “PBS NewsHour,” New York Times columnist David Brooks said that he isn’t sure the recent Supreme Court rulings on DACA and the Civil Rights Act were “judicial,” and that they look “a little legislative to me,” and stated that the judicial branch has taken control because it has become “the only functioning branch of government we have.”
Brooks said, “Well, when you don’t have a functional Congress, then the power of the branch of government that is actually functioning is going to take control. And that’s sort of what’s happened here. As Mark said, with — both in DACA and the LGBTQ case, overwhelming majorities, 80%, 70%, think it’s a terrible idea to be able to fire somebody on the basis of their sexual orientation. They support DACA. And Congress is unable to act when you’ve got gigantic majorities. And so, the Supreme Court acted. I’m not sure it was judicial, what they did. It looks a little legislative to me, if you look at the decisions. But, you know, the country moves with the people. And the people have moved on both these issues. And the court is now the only functioning branch of government we have.”
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