The fundamental importance of the government acting in a neutral fashion in handing its basic duties is reflected in the fact that the U.S. Constitution has two separate provisions barring “bills of attainder” — legislation that imposes punishment on a specific person or group of people without a judicial trial.
But earlier this month, some of the California Coastal Commission blithely violated this principle to reflect their pique with SpaceX owner Elon Musk. Despite strong from the U.S. military, which regularly uses SpaceX rockets to carry a variety of payloads into space, SpaceX’s request to schedule more launches from Vandenberg Space Force Base was rejected by commissioners on a 6-4 vote. Three commissioners explicitly linked their votes to what they saw as Musk’s dangerous actions and beliefs. The Biden istration, however, ed the Pentagon’s request, and Gov. Gavin Newsom was critical of the commission’s decision.
Now, or course, the context here is that Donald Trump — the presidential candidate Musk is boosting by spending tens of millions of dollars on “independent” pro-Trump committees — eagerly embraces the idea that governments should make many normally pro forma decisions on political grounds. Specifically, in recent months, he’s repeatedly vowed that if elected again, he will deny emergency relief to California if state officials don’t do his bidding on several fronts.
But progressives shouldn’t abandon the principled position that this is outrageous just because of the threats of the loudest voice on the other side. As divided as Americans have become, many millions of us still hope we can return to an era of more normal civic life. The nation must not normalize a modus operandi that is so hostile to good governance and a healthy society.
