Pearce: “Rule of law” vs. “Balance of Rights”

by David Safier

Craig's post below is about Pearce declaring it's OK for legislators to carry guns in the Senate because he said so, even though it's against the law. At one point, he said he had a "Don't ask, don't tell" policy about legislators packing heat. Now he says he gets to say what people can and can't do in the Senate.

Except if there's anything Pearce believes in, it's the Rule of Law.

"I believe in the rule of law … I've always believed in the rule of law. We're a nation of laws."

I don't know, maybe he's just talking about laws that apply to brown people, not his legislative buddies.

Then again, when it came to passing a law saying protesters must stay at least 300 feet away from a funeral, Pearce said that had to do with a "Balance of Rights" — the protester's Freedom of Speech rights versus the rights of the mourners.

I don't know, maybe it's more important for legislators to be able to shoot before getting shot than to obey the law.

Except, wait a minute. "Balance of Rights" is about Constitutional rights, like the First and Second Amendments. There's always room for interpretation there. "Rule of Law" is about the law, which you have to obey in Pearce's world — no compromise.

Pearce better pay attention to that old Johnny Mercer lyric, "Don't mess with Mister In-Between." If he starts making exceptions to his hard and fast "rule of law," where will it all end?