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The Montana Citizens Council on Judicial Accountability presents this retort in response to recent extra-curricular activities by Judges and Justices, and recent articles around the state, headlined, “Attorneys gather to discuss attacks on courts,” or variations thereof. They generally cry foul against citizens and legislators alike, who demand accountability from our state courts, not for selfish wants, wishes, or desires, but to the Laws and Constitution[s] of We The People. Factually, and contrary to their rhetoric and lamentations, there are no “attacks against the Judiciary.” The issue here is a Judicial branch that has systemically refused to observe, obey, and fulfill the duties and obligations our Constitution, Statutes, and Canon of Ethics have expressly prescribed.

The Power of a Sovereign People

It is imperative that responsible citizenship become a priority for The People of a sovereign Republic…IF they wish to remain sovereign.

Too many of us have forgotten the first principle of our liberty. We The People are sovereigns over the servants in our state government. This includes our judiciary.

When judges ignore wording such as “The Court must…” or “The Court shall…,” this is the advancement of judicially sanctioned anarchy. Responsible citizenship is necessary to put a stop to this misconduct to preserve, at our best, a Constitutional Republic, and at the very minimum, a Representative Democracy. Focusing solely on state government, especially Montana’s Judiciary, we are neither.

In his book, “The People Themselves,” Larry Kramer, the former Dean of Stanford Law School, introduces “Popular Constitutionalism,” which posits that ultimate authority lies with the populace rather than solely with the courts, and advocates for a participatory approach to constitutional law. Within this system, the general will of the people influences legal decisions and policies; the people assume an active and ongoing control over the interpretation and enforcement of constitutional law. The enemy of this system is “judicial supremacy.” Sadly, that is where Montana has been for decades.

It is a misconception that our government operates under “three equal branches of government”. Montana’s judiciary has been pontificating and promoting this deception to an unwitting public for years, as they scramble to hoard the power they have been attempting to steal from the People’s elected Representatives (the Legislative branch).

The U.S. Constitution established three distinct branches of government: Legislative, Executive, and Judicial. An independent judiciary, free from political whimsy and transient causes, is healthy, but only within the boundaries established by the Legislative branch. Montana’s courts have stretched this so far that they are effectively independent of the Law itself. That cannot stand.

Historical documentation provides irrefutable evidence regarding the genuine intent of the Framers, which was for Congress (our legislators) to be supreme among the three branches of government. This is consistent with the nature of truly representative government. It is logical to understand and appreciate why the Founding Fathers, and more importantly, the Framers, inherently gave the most power to the branch of government closest to The People.

There is a Latin phrase, “Obsta Principiis,” which means “to withstand beginnings, or resist the first approaches or encroachments.” IN OTHER WORDS, when even the slightest violations of the Constitution appear, it is imperative that we nip them in the bud. As citizens and electors of this Republic, we have failed (until recently) at this simple but indisputably necessary duty.

John Adams recognized a fundamental truth: When you allow a government to chip away at the limits on its power, eventually the dam will burst. You will have a government exercising virtually unlimited authority, arbitrary power, and repeated abuses and usurpations. At that point, it becomes difficult to rein in. And today, we see this with our state Judiciary, whose commonplace violations of our Constitution and Statutes have led to a judicial branch operating well outside of its Constitutional authority.

Accountability has been relabeled as an “Attack.”

The servants of our state Judiciary are there to perform a job, not promote divisive rhetoric and propaganda. Yet, many of our licensed Attorneys, Judges, and Justices spend inordinate time politicking, not for office, but against legislation aimed at conforming their conduct back to within established bounds. A superb example of this is a recent “forum” held at the University of Montana to “address attacks being made on the Judiciary.” These “forums” are nothing more than a thinly veiled attempt by the Judiciary to convince the public they “are being targeted” and “are being attacked” to upend future bills they know will be coming in 2027.

Let this point be made crystal clear to those employed within Montana’s legal system: Hundreds of hours of testimony from Montanans specifically regarding abuses by our judicial branch have been delivered to our legislators during both session and interim committee hearings. Within this vast amount of testimony, we now have a public record of stunning evidence of dereliction of duty, ethical violations, blatant corruption, backroom deals, general disregard of ministerial duties, and, in some cases, quite literally, felonious conduct on the Bench by some Judges and Justices of Montana’s Judiciary.

It is the duty of our legislative branch to investigate, verify, and protect Montana citizens from this abuse of power. The proper means of exercising this duty is to pass laws that shield Montanans from those Judges and Justices seeking to violate the civil liberties established by our Federal and State Constitutions.

What the Montana State Bar and Judiciary view as “attacks” would be more accurately defined as The People’s Representatives doing precisely what we have elected them to do: Listen to the People, and rein in the Judiciary’s tyrannical lawlessness.

Article II, Section 1 of Montana’s Constitution states: “ALL political power is vested in and derived from the people. ALL government of right originates with the people, is founded upon their will only, and is instituted solely for the good of the whole.”

Article II, Section 8, then guarantees citizens “the right to expect government to be responsive to their will” and “to participate in the operations of government.”

This necessarily includes the right to seek oversight of our judiciary. When the citizens of Montana see or are affected by a judiciary clearly usurping their authority, the People have both a right and a duty to act. Our Representatives and Senators have their finger on the pulse of the public, and very well know what needs to be brought forth.

An adage says, “You know you’re over the target area when they really start shooting at you.” The Judiciary is frantically firing accusations and finding it necessary to hold “community forums” in a desperate attempt to slow the wave of eye-opening education sweeping across Montana. Our highest law stands as written! Our Constitution is the law. We The People, the collective sovereigns, retain all powers and authority to enforce it, and to do so as stringently as WE decide.

If members of Montana’s judiciary prioritized integrity and fidelity to their Constitutional oath, Statutes, and Canon of Ethics over self-preservation or participation in politically motivated public forums, the people of Montana would be far better served. True service lies in upholding the Constitution and maintaining accountability to the citizens and their elected representatives.