The principal speakers at the Democratic National Convention conspicuously omitted one topic: the courts.

Speakers declined to say what kind of judges Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry would appoint, how his choices might affect future court decisions or why the Democrats blocked President George W. Bush's judicial appointments.

This silence about the courts is especially odd given that the Democratic Party has become a party of lawyers and that lawyers were given the prime time podium at the convention. Call the roll: Sens. Kerry and Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts, Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York, former President Bill Clinton and keynote speaker Barack Obama, a candidate for the U.S. Senate from Illinois.

If these lawyers think they can run government better than Republicans, why didn't they draw on personal expertise to say why they blocked Bush's judicial nominees and how Kerry's nominees would be better?

The only speakers who complained about the courts were the Rev. Al Sharpton and former Vice President Al Gore, who in his 2000 presidential campaign promised to appoint judges who believe the "Constitution is a living and breathing document" to be interpreted by "evolving experience."

Extreme Bush haters - such as Michael Moore, the producer of "Fahrenheit 9/11" - are fond of claiming that Republicans stole the 2000 election and promote other wacky conspiracy theories. But those complaints were kept away from the Democratic National Convention.

Apparently, Democratic strategists decided campaign rhetoric about right-wing judges and back-alley abortions doesn't scare voters. We already have a left-wing judiciary and everybody knows it.

Recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions have been against Bush administration handling of terrorism suspects, in favor of affirmative action, in favor of homosexual sodomy, in favor of limiting capital punishment and against restricting the flow of pornography to children via the Internet and home computers. The court even hinted it might declare the Pledge of Allegiance unconstitutional the next time it is challenged in court.

Kerry and Edwards probably agree with those decisions. But their legal philosophies are unpopular with the swing voters they need so badly.

Edwards, who represents the worst of the legal profession, made millions by using claims backed up by junk science to sue obstetricians. These lawsuits have caused malpractice insurance in many states to skyrocket and have driven many good physicians out of business.

Kerry claims he opposes gay marriage but voted against the Defense of Marriage Act, which would protect other states from having to recognize Massachusetts' same-sex mischief. He opposes legislation to maintain the traditional definition of marriage and praises judges who presume to redefine it. Continued...