Outrage That Is Not Contrived

Beginning, I think, with this Josh Marshall post, the left blogosphere has been buzzing about Senator John Cornyn's musings on whether or not judicial activism is the root cause of the recent spate of courthouse violence. Now, as Josh says, with everybody getting outraged, outraged, over everything these days, the punditry's white noise makes it difficult to distinguish cases that mean nothing from cases that are really worth getting worked up about.

However, contrary to what some liberal bloggers are saying, the answer is not to pressure Cornyn into resigning. I say this because of a general conviction against the "he must resign" impulse, at least when it comes to elected officials (in terms of private citizens disgracing themselves, that is sometimes the only available recourse). Resignation is, simply, a cop out. By resigning, Cornyn shields himself from the public opprobrium he so richly deserves. And by so doing, in a final outrage, he would transform himself from national embarrassment into martyr of the right's ongoing effort to overcome liberal PC oppression. (Appearances to the contrary, the right is still officially opposed to political correctness.) That cannot be allowed to happen. The just outcome would be for Cornyn to be run out of office by his constituents. Failing that, there would be something inversely just about his constituents imposing another term for him on themselves. Unless he has committed a crime, democratic principle insists that he can only be forced to leave office via democratic processes. And yes, he should be hounded mercilessly about these remarks every day until he is no longer a senator.