Kangaroo court

More significant than Sonia Sotomayor's "racist" comment is her assertion that the Court of Appeals is where policy is made. In a rule-of-law state, a court is supposed to interpret law, not make it. A comment yesterday by Chief Justice Pavel Rychetský of the Constitutional Court is in a similar vein. He told Czech TV that once both chambers of Parliament approve the Lisbon treaty, Pres. Klaus is obligated immediately to either sign it or submit a complaint to the Constitutional Court. In cases where the president has no time limit for making a decision, he said, it is of course assumed that he will act without delay. This key constitutional issue has never been addressed formally, and Rychetský has said that his court might have to rule on whether Klaus can be forced to sign the Lisbon treaty. In a rule-of-law state, a judge is supposed to interpret law, but not as a four- man kangaroo court in a TV studio. [Czech Republic Television ČT Česká televize]