In the context of the Freedom Convoy, Matt Gurney at The Line asked me to write about the challenges for conservatives when faced with such challenges to the rule of law. I thought the Convoy needed to be set against the attacks on the rule of law from both left and right.
“When the rule of law is supreme, political authorities cannot arrogate unto themselves the power to decide when and if to apply the law to protestors based on the politicians’ affection for the cause being defended. If they succumb to this temptation, the law stops being a neutral instrument that protects everyone’s right to engage in lawful activities, that commands everyone’s obedience precisely because everyone is under the law, the rich, the powerful, the poor, the meek, the virtuous and the vicious. Instead the law becomes the subject of partisan contention, with parties vying to control the law so that they can comfort their friends and afflict their enemies. In fact the very best test of a government’s commitment to the rule of law is whether they are willing to apply it, not just to their enemies, but to their friends as well.”
February, 2022
