Litigation

?Endangered Species List? Urged for Some Judges

By Peter Hardin

In remarks that some commentators interpreted as virtually a verbal attack, a Montana congressman said federal judges should be put “on the endangered species list.”

Rep. Denny Rehberg (photo at left), a Republican, made his remarks before the state legislature. He was critical of a court ruling to keep the grey wolf on the Endangered Species List, according to a Talking Points Memo article. Here are his remarks, based on a report from the Helena Independent Record:

“When I first heard his decision, like many of you I wanted to take action immediately.

“I asked: How can we put some of these judicial activists on the Endangered Species list?”

Ted Dick, executive director of the state Democratic Party, said afterward, “Congressman Rehberg’s veiled threat against federal judges he disagrees with is in light of the murder of a federal judge in Tucson less than a month ago.”

Jed Link, a Rehberg spokesman, responded to the criticism by saying, according an article in The Hill, “This hand-wringing is nothing but an attempt to distract Montanans from the substance of the speech and the fact that Washington Democrats have been wrong on just about every issue they’ve tackled including some of the judges they’ve sent to the federal bench.”

Rehberg is seeking the Senate seat held by Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mt. The entire text of his remarks is available here.

Full post as published by The Gavel on February 08, 2011 (boomark / email).