Everyone’s favorite theocrat — former Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore — continues to generate news. I’m glad; it’s actually fun to follow someone as misguided as he is.
Moore spoke at some length to the New York Times over the weekend, responding to a variety of ongoing controversies. Two points, in particular, jumped out at me.
First, many are drawing comparisons between Moore breaking the law in Alabama by using his office to promote his faith and Mayor Gavin Newsom breaking the law the San Francisco by issuing marriage licenses to gay couples. I’ve completely rejected the comparison because Moore violated a federal court order concerning his actions, while Newsom is committed to allowing his controversy to work its way through the judicial process.
For his part, Moore also rejects the comparison, but for entirely different reasons.
Gavin Newsom is utterly, outrightly [sic] disobeying the law. To say that a mayor can come along and say, well, I think anybody can get married – then that mayor can think 15 men can get married. Can he not? Where does he get the standard?
Now this is amusing. Current law clearly states that the government cannot promote religion, yet Moore did the opposite. Current law states that all of us are subject to follow federal court orders, yet Moore did the opposite. And now Moore wants to create a distinction between himself and Newsom because Newsom is “disobeying the law”? Mr. Pot, meet Mr. Kettle.
The other noteworthy exchange came when Moore talked politics. The Times noted, for example, that many of the officials who removed Moore from office were Republicans, just like him, and asked if that’s changed his opinion about the GOP. He said it hadn’t, but added:
It’s reaffirmed my view that it’s all about power between the two parties. It’s not about obedience to the Constitution and observance of the standards upon which the country was founded.
For those of us hoping Moore will run for president, challenging Bush from the far-right, it’s encouraging to see Moore criticize the Republicans for their lack of “obedience to the Constitution.”
Better yet, the NYT noted that Moore could run as the Constitution Party’s nominee. Moore’s response:
I don’t rule out anything. But I have no plans to do that at this time.
That’s hardly an emphatic, Sherman-esque response.