CrimLaw

Rehnquist has criticized the latest changes Congress made to the sentencing guidelines without involving judges.

Of course, this was always one of the greatest dangers which the sentencing guidelines presented. Legislators need something to brag about in order to get re-elected. Telling the people back home about your vote on some sub-committee to raise allotted research money for development of a microchip which won't be available for at least ten years and will only have practical use in a nuclear submarine just isn't going to connect with Ma and Pa citizen. Telling them that you voted to make it impossible for some soft hearted judge to let a nasty, evil criminal escape one day of his sentence is something that the people will understand. And the folks back home will certainly understand if your opponent points out in the next election that you voted to allow criminals to get out of jail without serving the full term they were supposed to.

There will always be this pressure to make the sentencing harsher and since the supreme court has ceded this formerly judicial power to the Legislature there's not much more that the judges can do but gripe. After all, once you have a decision which states Congress' power grab was constitutional why do you need to involve the judges anymore?