Wirth, Timothy E.

English

Colorado Law

University of Colorado Law Review Volume 84 Issue 1 Annual John Paul Stevens Lecture Article 10 Winter 2013 Remarks of the Honorable Timothy E. Wirth: Symposium in Honor of David H. Getches Timothy E. Wirth Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.law.colorado.edu/lawreview  Part of the Natural Resources Law Commons Recommended Citation Timothy E. Wirth, Remarks of the Honorable Timothy E. Wirth: Symposium in Honor of David H. Getches, 84 U. COLO. L. REV. 229 (2013). Available at: https://scholar.law.colorado.edu/lawreview/vol84/iss1/10 This Comment is brought to you for free and open access by the Law School Journals at Colorado Law Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in University of Colorado Law Review by an authorized editor of Colorado Law Scholarly Commons. For more information, please contact lauren.seney@colorado.edu. REMARKS OF THE HONORABLETIMOTHY E. WIRTH: SYMPOSIUM INHONOR OF DAVID H. GETCHESTIMOTHY E. WIRTH*Good morning and thank you all for coming. I feelprivileged to be here today to join you in reflecting on the lifeand work of David Getches, one of the real treasures of thelegal profession, of environmental history, of this University,and [ofl our broader community.David was my friend-we ran rivers together, talked a lotof politics, and he flattered me by inviting me many times tomeet with his faculty and students. He recruited my son,Christopher-one of his students-to be his assistant on thelittle book, Water Law in a Nutshell, which has a proud spot inour library.We all feel cheated by David's early departure-I think ofpunctual David; he was always on time. It is still a jolt to thinkof the late David Getches. I would have valued his counsel-as[always], we would have sat on river banks trying to puzzlethrough what had gone wrong in our country and what wecould do about it. David and I-and many of you here today-were of a generation keenly aware of the opportunities we hadbeen given and our responsibilities to [ensure] that futuregenerations [have] [those] opportunities as well.Like John Leshy,' I would like to frame my remarksin a generational context. Many [of my] thoughts echoJohn's good talk. We were products of a previousgeneration that made huge investments in our public spaces:* Former U.S. Senator (1987-1992) and U.S. Representative (1975-1986) fromColorado. He is President of the United Nations Foundation, founded by R. E."Ted" Turner. The Foundation connects people, ideas, and resources with theUnited Nations to address key global problems. The Foundation has majorcampaigns in the areas of energy and climate change, population and women'sempowerment, and children's health. This talk was delivered at the University ofColorado Law School symposium A Life of Contributions for All Time: Symposiumin Honor of David H. Getches on April 27, 2012.1. John D. Leshy, Reflections on Social Change and Law Reform, 84 U.COLO. L. REV. 221 (2012).UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO LAW REVIEW* our great public universities;* remarkable advances in the public health;* public parks and public libraries;* a vast public transportation system, open toeveryone; and* public electrification, public broadcasting, and a publicinterest standard to govern the public's airwaves.The public invested in the Marshall Plan, rebuilt ourinternational financial institutions, and built the UnitedNations. For our lucky generation, these investments weregoverned by a broadly shared sense of public responsibility andthe public interest. An unprecedented number of Americansbenefited [from the] deep sense of possibility and optimism.David, and much of his generation, built another Americanstructure on this public legacy and developed a new layer ofcommon, public institutions:* the Civil Rights Movement, in all of its ramifications;* women's access and equality;* the voice of the consumer; and* the environmental awakening (perhaps most profoundright here).David was dedicated to making our country moreeconomically, socially, and environmentally just. He believedthat it was important to break down barriers to equalopportunity in the United States. He worked throughout hislife to help ensure that all Americans had access to theeducational experiences that underlie individual and societalprogress. He valued wilderness and the natural world andwanted to make sure that future generations could enjoy thesame experiences he had climbing the mountains of Coloradoand running the rivers of the west.Based on these values, David fought and won the Boldt 2decision that gave Native Americans in Washington access tosalmon fisheries. He founded and ran the Native AmericanRights Fund. His knowledge and work ethic made him apreeminent resource in the creation of wilderness areas andthe establishment of water rights within them. He helped2. United States v. Washington, 384 F. Supp. 312 (W.D. Wash. 1974), aff'dand remanded, 520 F.2d 676 (9th Cir. 1975).[Vol. 84230REMARKS OF TIMOTHY E. WIRTHbroker the agreement that recognized the water rights of theSouthern Ute and Mountain Ute Tribes in southwest Colorado.He created the Natural Resources Law Center here. And, asDean, he rebuilt this law school-as is reflected not only in thisbuilding but also in the diverse and dynamic scholars herecruited.His life's work demonstrated that the law, the legislature,and the courts can be made to work for the disadvantaged, thedisenfranchised, and the environment. But, as David-ever thecheerful optimist-often pointed out, this work was gettingharder all the time. [For example]:* our environment is more threatened than ever, withaccurate measurements that tell this important anddepressing story;* battles for equal opportunity have had mixed results atbest, with income indices for minorities, immigrationlaw, and even the rights of women now under broadassault; and* the gap between rich and poor has grown dramatically;while our historic investments in public institutionshave frayed for one America, the other America liveswithin a gated community, with access to qualityschools, good health care, and real economicopportunity.David would be wrapping his head around these hugechallenges, urging his faculty to join, and leading his studentsin a set of new commitments for what is right for America.[David would ask the following questions]:* What is the role of corporations in governance? Is therean antidote to their enormous concentration ofeconomic and political power?; and* How should financial institutions be regulated? Theywere once considered akin to public utilities, and nowseem to have become vehicles for private gain. Is thisright, and if not, what is the solution?As John Leshy described so well, the Executive [branch]and Congress are under attack, so too are the courts.3 Who else3. Leshy, supra note 1.2013] 231UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO LAW REVIEWcan adjudicate questions of the common good, and will theymaintain their more progressive role?Work used to be defined in pretty much the same way, andso were incomes. But modern specialization has led to greatdisparities. Is capitalism too efficient?Under what condition might our country, and the world,accept a climate treaty? What building blocks must first be inplace, and what new legal regimes will be required?Finally, and perhaps most important[1y], how might wedeal with the tangled and destructive campaign financesystem? From the earliest days of the Republic, specialinterests have attempted to purchase politicians and politicaloutcomes. What is different today is the size and pervasivenessof the money involved, the growing veil of secrecy surroundingpolitical money, and the apparent naivet6 or indifference of ourhighest court to this powerful, corrupting, and stultifyingpolitical cancer. As Justice Stevens wrote in his dissent toCitizens United, "A democracy cannot function effectively whenits constituent members believe laws are being bought andsold." 4These are some of the major issues of today and tomorrow.As [Professor Sarah Krakoff] wrote in her invitation to thissymposium, David lived several lives in one. His scholarshipwas as far reaching as his curiosity and grew to assume newissues and to try to understand new challenges. As he openedup Indian law, forged some order from the chaos of water law,codified new approaches to natural resource law, and eventried to streamline and reform the Department of the Interior,David demonstrated his enormous capacity, his ethicalstandards for how we should operate, and his moral code forright and wrong.He had built his school, grown his faculty, and pointed theenterprise in the direction he had calibrated. I am certain that[now] he would [turn] his attention to the great emergingchallenges of today and to ways in which the law couldcontribute. His cheerful leadership would have helped to sketchnew definitions of the public good.We are left behind to do that work without him. I suspectthat we all know what he would [urge] us to do. So let us getwith it before the country slips away. Time is short and there isso much to do. Thank you.4. Citizens United v. Fed. Election Comm'n, 558 U.S. 310 (2010).232 [Vol. 84UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO LAW REVIEWUNIVERSITY OF COLORADO LAW REVIEWUNITEDSTAITEs Statement of Ownership, Management, and CirculationPOSTAL SERVICE. (All Periodicals Publications Except Requester Publications)I nln. Cbd. La R.ena17'Quanmanamar a ooUneryo ColoradoLawReview 0 g Auust a2012320-D Wolf Law Building Boulder CountyBoulder, Colorado 80309-0401a slyun eFonessrraosra~msne~e e , (4) OS i-  Wolf Law Suildirg r County 0400Boulder, Colorado 80309-0401(03 214320-0..W....aw n ouNas .. Eo0..r 0sa e., Carmmnty r401 UCBUniversity of Colorado Law Review Boude, CO320-0 Wolf Law Buiding 80309-0401e .- .meom> 320-D Wolf Law BuildingJessca S.Dt 401 UCBUniversty ofClorado Law Review Boulder, CO 803090401~neaowa320-0 Wolf Law BuldingKatherine Nelson 401 UCBUniversity of Colorado Law Review Boulder. CO 8030.0401Uneity, of Cado La Review UnivsityofC.rd La. Review3200 Wet Law Buiding401 UCBBouor0 CO 80309oemsonSe05a4on$ aion , am 0-coes.,... 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Remarks of the Honorable Timothy E. Wirth: Symposium in Honor of David H. Getches

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Remarks of the Honorable Timothy E. Wirth: Symposium in Honor of David H. Getches

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