Trump-endorsed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton led the charge in the Fifth Circuit to stop tyranny by Washington, D.C. by pushing the Biden Administration to suspend its unconstitutional vaccine mandate. Sitting in New Orleans, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit presides over Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi.
It has been said that the D.C. Circuit is the most important court other than the U.S. Supreme Court, but it is increasingly apparent that the Fifth Circuit may be more significant. The Fifth Circuit is acting more quickly and with greater clarity than the Supreme Court itself.
For instance, the Supreme Court juggled its schedule to hold a special extended oral argument for the benefit of abortion clinics, and some justices outdid each other looking for a way to hold against a pro-life Texas law. With immense legal issues facing our country, surely the Supreme Court could have first addressed those that have long awaited resolution, such as illegal immigration.
The Fifth Circuit has no difficulty in upholding good Texas laws, which are attracting hundreds of thousands of Americans each year from the other 49 states. The Fifth Circuit does not favor abortion clinics when it schedules its oral arguments, and does not limit review to cases brought by the same small group of familiar practitioners as the Supreme Court seems to do. Other federal appellate courts have received petitions challenging the Biden vaccine mandate, but it was the Fifth Circuit that acted. Other circuits have Trump-appointed judges on them, as does the Supreme Court, but they seem lost as to which direction to head.
The Fifth Circuit is a case study in proper jurisprudence. When conservatives let bad federal judges run free, they can wreak havoc that sends shockwaves throughout every branch of government at every level. When judges know their proper place and show judicious restraint, they are an important part of the Founding Fathers’ design for our national government. Just like a stellar congressman with a proper understanding of his limitations can be a force for good, so too can a restrained originalist judge.
