Old Joe Biden showed us his autocratic side again on Friday, but his gambit has been swiftly exposed.
I wrote here about how Old Joe Biden had suddenly decided that we had a 28th Amendment to the Constitution and was proclaiming it to be “the law of the land.” Old Joe was trying to breathe some life into the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), a platform-shoed, bell-bottomed relic of the 1970s that angry feminists tried to resurrect in the late 2010s, as part of the now-moribund #MeToo movement.
In that article, I suggested that Old Joe was dredging up this piece of failed legislation as a weapon against Pete Hegseth (who opposes placing women in combat) and as a sop to the trans movement. Since then, it has become clear that he was pandering to other groups as well. Constitutional scholars, however, are refusing to play along.
Old Joe noted that the requisite 38th state had ratified the amendment in 2020. The catch was that the deadline for getting 38 states on board was 1979, so the harridans and shrews pushing the ERA were only 41 years too late. Apparently seeing Biden’s statement coming, archivist of the United States Dr. Colleen Shogan and Deputy Archivist William J. Bosanko stated in December: “At this time, the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) cannot be certified as part of the Constitution due to established legal, judicial, and procedural decisions. In 2020 and again in 2022, the Office of Legal Counsel of the U.S. Department of Justice affirmed that the ratification deadline established by Congress for the ERA is valid and enforceable.”
Heedless of this fact, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-Planned Parenthood) rejoiced on Friday:
President Biden just declared that the Equal Rights Amendment is now a valid part of the Constitution, and should be considered the law of the land. This is an incredible moment for reproductive freedom, and a historic day for equality – especially with Americans facing the further degradation of reproductive freedom as the incoming administration takes power. Now, women living in states with restrictions on their reproductive freedoms can – and should – file suits to overturn these unconstitutional laws that discriminate on the basis of sex. I know they will have ample support as they seek justice, and I promise to stand by their side in this fight.
Ah, so that’s what it’s all about: the babies must be killed, the sacrifices to Moloch must be made. That so often seems to be the overriding imperative for leftists, but in this case, Old Joe’s attempt to drag the ERA over the goal line appears doomed to failure. Thomas Jipping of the Heritage Foundation offered a devastating assessment, pointing out that even Biden’s desperately corrupt and thoroughly politicized Justice Department had defended Shogan’s assessment, and added this about Old Joe’s insistence that the ERA was now the law of the land: “If he wants to personally believe that, that’s fine, but it has no legal effect whatsoever, and all of the evidence says that he’s wrong. It’s like talking into the air — it has absolutely no effect beyond symbolism.”
Yes, but symbolism can be powerful, as former Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Kill Them Babies) is well aware. Feingold was thrilled on Friday at Old Joe’s announcement and said: “It’s completely historic to have the president of the United States say it’s already in the Constitution. I believe and many believe that whether or not the archivist certifies it or not doesn’t matter.” Typical leftist: the law only matters when it works to their advantage.
Feingold added: “For the president to recognize it as a matter of law is something we’ve been working on for years. It is a significant moment after 100 years.”
Yeah. But legal scholars aren’t buying what Old Joe is selling, either. Former Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew McCarthy said: "Biden’s announcement is both cynical and irrelevant. If he believed what he is saying, he would’ve said it when his administration started, not when he is on his way out the door as a failed, one-term president. More importantly, the president has no constitutional role in the amendment process, so his view carries no weight."
Related: The Equal Rights Amendment Is Back, and Old Joe Biden Says It’s Now the Law of the Land
Law professor Jonathan Turley agreed: "President Biden seems intent on moving his administration from the odious to the absurd. This was an embarrassingly pandering moment to the most extreme elements in his party. It is a position based on a long-rejected and frankly ridiculous foundation."
Embarrassing pandering has been the hallmark of Old Joe’s career. It’s no wonder that he would still be doing it on his way out the door. Nor is it any surprise that this corrupt authoritarian would attempt to pull a fast one, unilaterally declaring ERA to be the law. He has shown calculated disrespect for the democratic process throughout his misrule as putative president.
There's no pandering here, however. PJ Media and our sister sites are islands of truth amid the establishment media propaganda. Join us on the island: get your astonishing 74% discount on your VIP membership by using the promo code POTUS47!
Join the conversation as a VIP Member