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I don't usually look to Justice Thomas' opinions for constitutional brilliance, but he at least knows how to provide comedic relief:
quote:We have overseen and sanctioned the growth of an administrative system that concentrates the power to make laws and the power to enforce them in the hands of a vast and unaccountable administrative apparatus that finds no comfortable home in our constitutional structure. The end result may be trains that run on time (although I doubt it), but the cost is to our Constitution and the individual liberty it protects. (emphasis added)
While Justice Thomas might find an important connection between the reign of King Henry VIII and modern day Amtrak, the intention of Section 207 in the PRIIA legislation is to authorize the creation of on-time performance standards by the stakeholders most affected by the issue and administered by the relevant Federal agency. It might have been tidier if the authorizing legislation had vested only the FRA with the ultimate authority to create the standards (with input from Amtrak and the other stakeholders); but it seems clear that in the PRIIA legislation, Congress authorizes the Executive branch to create the on-time standards. Would Thomas prefer that Congress establish the on-time standards in the legislation and leave the FRA to merely enforce those standards?
I think it's time for Amtrak to evolve away from its current business model as the agency that runs the trains to an agency that administers, facilitates and oversees passenger rail transportation between the various states (which I think would be more satisfactory to Justice Thomas' viewpoint). But as we unfortunately see in the Hoosier State/Iowa Pacific situation, it appears that the current management at Amtrak will be reluctant to evolve in that direction.
Mike Smith Member # 447
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Justice Thomas is the most brilliant constitutional Justice on the Supreme Court. All you have to do is read his opinions and possess some logic, common sense, and analytical abilities.
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