276
Thomas, J., dissenting
intra-Party disputes over that choice well illustrate.16 Even
if, as might be said here, "[t]he government erects the platform" upon which a private group acts, the government "does not thereby become responsible for all that occurs upon it." Edmonson v. Leesville Concrete Co., supra, at 632 (O'Connor, J., dissenting).17
The basis for today's decision, which subjects a political party to the requirements of § 5, can only be state-action doctrine. But treating the Party as an agent of the State in this case is not only wrong as a matter of statutory interpretation, it also squarely contravenes our state-action precedents. In short, there is no legal justification—statutory, constitutional, or otherwise—for the conclusion that the Party is an entity governed by § 5.18
16 See Editorial, Primarily Primaries, Richmond Times-Dispatch, Nov. 28, 1995, p. A-8 (describing contentious debate between supporters of the incumbent Virginia Senator and those of his Republican challenger over nomination methods and noting that "[i]t is only human for sides to favor the means—convention or primary—perceived to give their candidate an edge").
17 With respect to Congress' power to prohibit discrimination in party affairs, see ante, at 223-224, it is enough for purposes of this case to note that it is well established that Congress may not regulate purely private behavior pursuant to its enforcement power under the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments. See James v. Bowman, 190 U. S. 127, 139 (1903) ("[A] statute which purports to punish purely individual action cannot be sustained as an appropriate exercise of the power conferred by the Fifteenth Amendment upon Congress to prevent action by the State through some one or more of its official representatives"); Civil Rights Cases, 109 U. S. 3 (1883).
18 Indeed, Justice Breyer's concurrence is founded on little more than sheer disbelief that Congress passed a statute that does not go as far in terms of coverage as he thinks, in light of the history of voting rights, the statute should. See ante, at 236 ("How is it possible that a Congress, knowing this obvious history, would have wanted to enact a 'voting rights' law containing a major and obvious loophole . . ."). We are not free to construe statutes by wondering about what Congress "would have wanted to enact." There are myriad reasons why measures that "a Congress"—I assume Justice Breyer means a majority of the Members
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