It’s Branstad’s call

By The Gazette Editorial Board

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Outgoing Gov. Chet Culver has the legal authority to appoint three new state Supreme Court justices during his final days in office. But it would be a mistake for him to do so. Culver should leave that task to governor-elect Terry Branstad, who decisively won the election.

The search for three well-qualified, impartial justices for the state's top court should not be crammed into the final days of a lame duck politician's term. Culver should respect the voters' will and pass the appointments on to his successor.

For his part, Branstad must be sure to choose his appointees on the basis of merit, not ideology, when he considers the nominating commission's recommended candidates.

Should Culver pass on selecting justices, Branstad must avoid making choices based largely on how likely they are to “vote right” on any single issue.

We were disturbed by the political campaigning that led to the ouster of Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice Marsha Ternus and associate justices Michael Streit and David Baker this month.

The three failed to receive a simple majority of votes needed to retain their positions on the court in the wake of an organized, well-funded political campaign against them. Their terms will end Dec. 31.

The justices' removal clearly was a response to the court's unanimous ruling in April 2009 that paved the way for same-sex marriages.

We were disappointed so many voters were persuaded by political arguments that mischaracterized the court's ruling and the role of the judicial branch in our state government's system of checks and balances.

Some experts worry that vote will have a chilling effect on courts in Iowa and in other states - that justices will be more reluctant to reach potentially unpopular decisions, for fear of political retribution.

Branstad should not take that vote as a mandate to stack the court with judges who can be expected to bend their interpretations of the law to fit the prevailing political wind.

Our judicial system is the one branch of our government that must operate independent of political influence.

We do agree with Branstad's proposal to improve the judicial merit-selection process - to make an already strong process even fairer and more representative. It makes sense, as he suggested, to balance the political affiliation of the membership of nominating commissions tasked with selecting qualified candidates for the governor's consideration.

But that's where party considerations should end.

The nomination and appointment of three new justices should not be rushed before Branstad takes office in January.