Reply #5: enumerated rights vs penumbral rights vs open-ended 9th

[ulTRAX]

Nikia wrote: "I would have thought that there might be some basis on the interpretation of right to privacy, but with the Bush court that might be struck down as well."

This goes to the heart of the matter. Bush claims he wants judges who will just interpret the Constitution.... justices like Scalia. But Scalia is a radical activist in his own right. By ignoring the open-ended 9th amendment, he claims only enumerated rights are actually protected. Behind this legal facade, Scalia is free to use the court to promote his own bigotry.

Aside from the 9th, there is court precedent for the concept of penumbral rights... rights that must exist to give enumerated rights some substance. I really wish Kerry... and Democrats generally did more to expose Bush's radical agenda for the court. But all Kerry talked of was the right to choose.