Due process for me, but not for thee

The 5th Amendment reads: “nor [shall any person] be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.” Likewise, the 14th Amendment reads: “nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

One of the main arguments used by Democrats to support Roe v Wade was the assertion that to deny women the freedom to have an abortion would be to deny them liberty without the due process or equal protection of the law in violation of the 14th Amendment. For example, Justice Harry Blackmun, adopting this argument, wrote in the majority opinion for Roe: "A state criminal abortion statute of the current Texas type, that excepts from criminality only a life-saving procedure on behalf of the mother, without regard to pregnancy stage and without recognition of the other interests involved, is violative of the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment."

Likewise, one of the main arguments used by Democrats to support the Obergefell decision was the assertion that to deny homosexuals the freedom to marry would be to deny them liberty without the due process or equal protection of the law in violation of the 14th Amendment. For example, Justice Anthony Kennedy, adopting this argument, wrote in the majority opinion for Obergefell: "The imposition of this disability on gays and lesbians serves to disrespect and subordinate them. And the Equal Protection Clause, like the Due Process Clause, prohibits this unjustified infringement of the fundamental right to marry."

In my lifetime, then, Democrats have given the impression that they are dedicated to vindicating for all Americans the due process and equal protection rights guaranteed by the 5th and 14th Amendments. And yet, this week we learned that the Democratic Party is not interested in vindicating these rights … for Republicans.

Republican House Leader Kevin McCarthy wrote to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi today: “I am writing to request you suspend all efforts surrounding your ‘impeachment inquiry’ until transparent and equitable rules are established to govern the procedure, as is customary … Unfortunately, you have given no clear indication as to how your impeachment inquiry will proceed — including whether key historical precedents or basic standards of due process will be observed. … At a news conference yesterday, you insisted, ‘we have to be fair to the President.’ If those words are taken to be sincere, the American people deserve assurance that basic standards of due process will be present."

Speaker Pelosi denied Leader McCarthy’s request, making it clear that the Democrats’ idea of the 5th and 14th Amendments is: Due process and equal protection for all … except Republicans.