Prime Minister Stephen Harper can't seem to buy a win in the courts these days.
His bid to reform the senate without the support of the provinces, the case to have Vancouver's supervised injection facility Insite shut down, his fight to preserve Canada's prostitution laws, his attempt to appoint Marc Nadon to the highest court, and pieces of his tough-on-crime legislation beyond count have all been crushed under judges' gavels.
Like a fly repeatedly bouncing off a window, the PM has been slow to learn that the Charter of Rights and Freedoms is the supreme law of the land.
So it's understandable, though not excusable, that his frustration boiled over into a PMO press release casting aspersion on Supreme Court of Canada Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin last week.
Harper and Justice Minister Peter Mackay are now being raked over the coals by the Opposition, law professors, the Canadian Bar Association, and editorial boards across the country for lashing out.
McLachlin and the courts were only doing their jobs. And with the prime minister's reputation as an ideologue and leader with little interest in the constitutional limits of his power, it is more important than ever that we have a robust, unflinching branch of government willing to assert its independence and put a check on executive's power.
Prime ministers and their governments come and go - even Harper's Conservatives.
The role of our laws and courts is to make sure the institutions and foundations the country is built on aren't legislated away by just 155
