Filed under: Politics | Tags: "Whole of Government Effort", Nancy Pelosi, Roe v. Wade, Supreme Court
When the people get a little angry and emotional, the truth seems to come out! The biggest flap so far today, is that the Supreme Court has allowed the Texas abortion law to go into effect. Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, devout Catholic, said “When we go back to Washington, we will be putting Roe v. Wade to the House floor in the wake of the supreme Court’s decision to allow a Texas abortion law to go into effect. The Texas law, signed by Republican Gov. Greg Abbot in May, prohibits abortions once medical professionals can detect cardiac activity, usually around six weeks.
President Joe Biden has launched a “Whole-of-Government Effort” to fight the Texas Pro-Life Law about banning abortion of a child who has a heartbeat. Mr. Biden may need some new advisors. I don’t know that this new fight is going to recover his favorable rankings. They are all currently remarkably unfavorable over Afghanistan.
“Progressives” claim that Republicans overturned Roe V. Wade., which is not true. The court denied an emergency appeal from abortion providers and others to sideline the law while appeals are made, allowing the law to go into effect Wednesday. If you can’t remember just what Roe v. Wade was all about, here’s a summary We will be hearing a lot about this one, until the law is settled, once again.
ADDENDUM: The outcry!!! Mostly from Hollywood “celebrities.” I add the quotes because I’ve never heard of most of them. I might remember them if I saw one of their movies and remembered the name, but when I see a movie, I’m interested in the story, not the actors. I am not interested in their public or private lives, their love lives, their homes, or what they wore for what occasion. I guess some people are. And apparently as their names are “known” they act as “click bait” to get someone to read an article.
I checked. There are 14 different ways of preventing pregnancy, starting with The Pill, so there should not really be a need for abortions, with the obvious exception of cases of rape and incest. And there are so many families who cannot have children and desperately want to adopt.
The situation does not seem to warrant Joe Biden’s “Whole of Government” effort. Seems pretty foolish, and unlikely to improve his negative approval ratings.
Filed under: Politics | Tags: Joe Biden, Supreme Court, Texas Case, vote fraud
The Supreme Court has rejected the Texas Case on vote fraud, with Alito and Clarence Thomas voting to hear the case. I don’t know if there are other cases filed. If not, we can expect the Democrats to repeat their success, for more permanent control. A majority of Republicans believe there was vote fraud and a surprising segment of Democrats do as well. What is alarming is the efforts of Big Tech to control the narrative. You Tube, a subsidiary of Google, has announced that they will not allow anyone to question the election on their website.
The tech companies are all too new to notice that previously, business made a clear effort to stay out of elections and avoid taking sides, on the simple basis that they saw no benefit to angering half the population But the Tech companies apparently have large segments of their work force who expect the companies they work for to represent their partisan feelings, which I find extremely odd. Politics does not belong in the workplace.
Joe Biden, with his announced nominations for his cabinet is fulfilling all the worries about his ability. Andrew Cuomo as Attorney General? Susan Rice? His picks don’t seem to include qualifications. Pete Buttigieg as Ambassador to Britain? And of course he’s including all those he worked with in the Obama administration, and will make sure that all the racial divisions are represented. Hollywood celebrities are pushing someone who is a Native American, because they are Native American rather than for any normal reason for being qualified. How did we get to this divisive point, and why does the fact that one’s name might be recognizable because they were once in a movie make them qualified to inform the rest of us on all things political? Melinda Gates just objected vigorously to the fact that the Covid virus inoculations would first go to Americans. Explain that one.
Most worrying is that Biden’s “byline” seems to be “Build Back Better” which is the theme for “The Great Reset,” a truly frightening world government idea emanating from the Davos forum, but I have written about that before. Scroll way down, or enter it just above Bob Hope’s head in the sidebar. Trump Derangement Syndrome has gone way too far. Some have lost their connection to the real world, the Constitution, or why we have such an elderly document in the first place.
Christmas gift idea, or stocking-stuffer. Pocket-size constitutions are available from Amazon or the Cato Institute, inexpensive and a valuable desk drawer reference when you can’t remember what that amendment was all about.
Filed under: Conservatism, Democrat Corruption, Election 2020, History, Law, Politics, Progressivism, The Constitution, The United States | Tags: Appellate Court, Notre Dame Law School, Supreme Court
Another strange day as we move ever closer to the election. Amy Coney Barrett appeared before the Judicial Committee, beginning the first step towards confirmation. So naturally a bunch of women turned up outside in “Handmaiden” costumes in reference to Margaret Atwood’s dystopian novel about women forced to be reproductive factories. Unpleasant book, dumb idea, don’t bother reading it.
If you are attracted to the idea, Amazon has “handmaiden” costumes for sale. Possibly in preparation for demonstrations? Halloween is coming up. As a demonstration against a candidate for the Supreme Court, it is not only beyond ignorant, but shows no understanding whatsoever of what a judge actually does, nor what the Supreme Court does. We do need to get our schools teaching a little history and civics. Which means that if you have kids in public school, you need to pay close attention to what they are learning. There are a lot of examples out there of kids being instructed on who to support in the upcoming election, which is not a teacher’s job.
It would be highly improper for a prospective judge to indicate in any way their feelings about issues that might come before the court. Judges don’t rule on what they like and don’t like. They consider all the implications of the precise case before them and how it relates to the Constitution of the United States of America.
There were, of course, questions about Barrett’s religious faith. She is a practicing Catholic, Some find that worrying, The first Amendment states firmly: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. “
I copied the whole thing because we seem to be deep into First Amendment territory right now, especially the “peaceably to assemble” bit. That’s where all the descriptions in the press came from. Peaceful protest.
Amy Coney Barrett is a splendid nomination, and will be an excellent addition to the Court.
Filed under: Politics | Tags: Amy Coney Barrett, Nancy Pelosi, Supreme Court
Nancy Pelosi, I am disturbed to find, is suggesting “Why bother holding a Presidential Debate? Trump Isn’t Committed To Our Constitution” For those confused by this absurdity, what she is really saying is that “they have to keep Joe Biden out of any opportunity to speak publicly unless they can control what he says ” because his mental decline might be noticeable. I guess they think if they can get him elected, they can cover for him. This is so weird.
With many criticizing 2020 Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden of hiding in his basement for the majority of his campaign, presidential debates seemingly would be a good way for the former vice president to refute claims of a decline in mental cognizance and that he is pushing a socialist agenda.
During a Friday interview on CBS’s “This Morning,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) doubled down on saying Biden should not debate President Donald Trump. Pelosi argued that Trump “has no fidelity to fact or truth” and “isn’t committed to our Constitution,” thus she asked “why bother” holding a debate with him.
Pelosi replied. “Not that I don’t think he’ll be excellent. I just think that the president has no fidelity to fact or truth, and actually, in his comments the last few days, no fidelity to the Constitution of the United States. He and his henchmen are a danger with their comments, are a danger to our democracy. So, I didn’t want to give him — you know, why bother — you know, he doesn’t tell the truth, he isn’t committed to our Constitution.”
And no surprise. Democrats started smearing Judge Amy Coney Barrett on Friday night — primarily for her Catholic faith and her seven children, especially the adopted ones. That seems a bit dumb. There are a few other Catholics in the country besides Judge Barrett, and a few folks with adopted children. She is highly qualified and the youngest nominee since Clarence Thomas. She clerked for Justice Scalia. Every time you think the Democrats cannot sink lower in their quest for control, you are wrong. They can and will always go lower. I thought we had, as a nation, respected all religions. But there we are. Disgusting.
Filed under: Immigration, Iran, Iraq, Law, National Security, News, north Korea, Syria, Terrorism, The United States | Tags: Stay on Travel Ban, Supreme Court, Trump administration
The Supreme Court gave the Trump administration a major victory today. They stayed the orders of two lower courts that blocked enforcement of the president’s revised travel ban. This means that travel from the affected countries can be banned or limited, while the courts continue to process appeals in the two cases.
When a court requests preliminary relief like those at issue here, a key part is the court’s assessment of which party is likely to ultimately prevail. The Court’s two orders today suggest that a solid majority of the Court thinks the travel ban will be valid and enforceable.
Remember that the ban was only on those nations that have produced a significant number of jihadists or terrorists. It was not a ban, as has been claimed by the left a blanket ban on all Muslim nations and an attack on a religion.
Filed under: Domestic Policy, Energy, Law, Regulation | Tags: Enviromental Zealots, Michiga v EPA, Supreme Court
In the case of Michigan v. EPA, the Supreme Court addressed a matter that is genuinely outside of voter’s control, the way-too-rapid expansion of the regulatory state. The problems all began with the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act. The problem seemed simple to Congress. We want clean air and clean water, and that’s what the EPA should be doing.
But the EPA is an agency filled with environmental activists and zealots, fully in line with Obama’s unwarranted belief in a dangerous global warming, and sure that the correct answer is to get rid of fossil fuels, carbon dioxide as a pollutant, and carbon in general. The answer is to force Americans to want to rely clean energy sources like solar and wind, with no understanding that solar and wind do not produce enough energy to be a significant source of power.
The EPA wants to force all coal-fired power plants to either shut down or do a lot or retrograding to eliminate any emissions from that nasty fossil fuel. Around 40 percent of our electricity is supplied by coal-fired power plants. The EPA’s new regulations would cost $9.6 billion annually, but the EPA claimed that it was appropriate to consider only public health risks. Well, nobody seems to know if there actually are any public health risks. They always put asthma at the top of their list of future childhood death, but the medical profession does not currently know what causes asthma, so that is a complete canard. By some estimates the cost of electricity would go up by as much as $1,200 per year for every American household.
The majority opinion, authored by Justice Antonin Scalia, found that the EPA “unreasonably” interpreted the Clean Air Act to constitute a vehicle by which the environmental regulatory agency could institute new guidelines that were all but overtly aimed at shuttering “dirty” power plants. “EPA strayed well beyond the bounds of reasonable interpretation in concluding that cost is not a factor relevant to the appropriateness of regulating power plants,” the opinion read. That’s significant; contrary to the wealth of shallow emotionality that suffices for modern political commentary, profits matter. Individual livelihoods and the economic health of the nation are still protected by the Constitution, and they should not be subordinated to environmental sustainability in the zero-sum game that has become America’s regulatory culture.
Filed under: Democrat Corruption, Economy, Health Care | Tags: King v Burwell, Legislating from the Bench, Supreme Court
The Supreme Court announced their decision in King v, Burwell. Conservatives are dismayed at the Court’s complicity in rewriting the Affordable Care Act. President Obama has been threatening the court for days attempting to cow the Supremes. What influence his threats had is not known, but hopefully is is none. Nevertheless, Chief Justice Roberts bypassed the separation of powers, and decided to help the Democrats out by assuming that the law didn’t mean what it said, and he would fix it by rewriting it. Essentially what he did the last time around. Rewriting the words of Congress to mean what they would have to say to make the law work — is making law. The Supreme Court is supposed to decide whether the words as written are Constitutional, that’s the judicial function. Justice Antonin Scalia, dissenting, called it “somersaults of statutory interpretation” but it is legislating, not judging.
Holman Jenkins got it right:
By one standard no government program can fail, and that’s the standard being applied to ObamaCare by its supporters: If a program exists and delivers benefits, the program is working.
The polls do show that 74% of ObamaCare’s eight million enrollees are satisfied with their plans, because 87% of them are getting taxpayer subsidies that amount to an annual $3,312 per recipient, which is a pretty good deal for the recipients, not so much for the taxpayers. Oddly enough, those who are basically in good health, but just need flu shots or treatment for some minor deal, a broken arm, a sore throat are pretty pleased with their health care.Taxpayers who find that their premiums are going up 20% – 30%. or who find out their deductible has gone up to $6,000 aren’t so happy, because they are paying their premiums and their full medical bills besides. Jenkins again:
The right question about any program is whether the benefits justify the expenditure of taxpayer money. ObamaCare’s cheerleaders provide not cost-benefit analysis but benefit analysis—as if money grows on trees or is donated by Martians or can be printed in limitless quantities by the Fed. …
In the meantime, however, no worthwhile thoughts about ObamaCare, pro or con, are to be heard from people who count a program as a success just because Americans enjoy receiving benefits at the expense of other Americans.
A federal appeals court has upheld a U.S. district court’s injunction preventing the Obama administration’s executive amnesty programs from moving forward.
U.S. District Court Judge Andrew Hannan placed a preliminary injunction on Obama’s executive amnesty programs in February, and denied a second request from the Justice Department in March — ruling that the executive order must not be implemented until the lawsuit from the states is decided, keeping the programs from taking effect. Obama’s attempts at amnesty included the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA). Judge blocked the programs after a coalition of 26 states challenged the executive amnesty. The federal government did not help their case by preceding to grant work permits to illegals anyway, in spite of the injunction.
Justice Department lawyers sought a stay on the injunction fro the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. The Court declined to issue a stay on a 2-1 vote because it concluded the government is unlikely to succeed on the merits of its appeal. This represents a significant setback for Obama’s executive amnesty plans.
Judge Smith noted that the:
affirmative act of conferring “lawful presence” on a class of unlawfully present aliens. Though revocable, that new designation triggers eligibility for federal and state benefits that would be otherwise available.’
Although prosecutorial discretion is broad, it is not ‘unfettered.’ Declining to prosecute does not convert an act deemed unlawful by Congress into a lawful one and confer eligibility for benefits based on that new classification.
Both the State of Texas and the Obama administration have signaled willingness to take the case to the Supreme Court. The
Texas is leading the 26 state coalition that is challenging the amnesty. Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia and Wisconsin are members of the coalition.
Filed under: Conservatism, Law, Liberalism, Politics, The Constitution | Tags: Obama Nomination, Solicitor General Elena Kagan, Supreme Court
President Barack Obama nominated Solicitor General Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court today. The nomination is the major news on the internet today. There is much to be troubled by, but it will take time for exploration of her background and qualifications to take place.
Attorney Paul Mirengoff of Power Line wasted no words:
She has no judging experience.
She has little experience as a practicing lawyer.
She has approximately one year of experience as Solicitor General of the United States.
She has lots of experience in academia, but has published only a small amount of scholarly work, none of which seems particularly noteworthy.
As the dean of Harvard Law School, she was tolerant of conservative law professors, but not of the United States military.
This briefly sums up what everyone else has said in a brief space. We will have ample time to fill in the blanks.
A Supreme Court nomination is a very big deal. It is a lifetime appointment, and decisions will influence the country for generations. At present there is a great divide between those who revere the Constitution that has served us so well for 223 years, and those who feel that the Constitution must change and develop in concert with the ideas of the political party in power.
Filed under: Law, Politics, Progressivism, The Constitution | Tags: Democrat Lies/Dirty Tricks, Freedom of Speech, Supreme Court
The Supreme Court handed down a major decision in Citizens United v. FEC, the “Hillary: The Movie” case that was first argued last March, reargued in September, and finally decided last Thursday, January 21, 2010.
Background: During the 2008 election campaign, the nonprofit group Citizens United wanted to make a film available on cable-on-demand that was critical of then-candidate Hillary Clinton. Because Citizens United is organized as a corporation, under the McCain-Feingold campaign-finance law, its speech was banned. The movie was not allowed to be shown, and the law was backed by criminal sanctions. Section 441b makes it a felony for all corporations — including nonprofit advocacy corporations — either to expressly advocate the election or defeat of candidates or to broadcast electioneering communications within 30 days of a primary and 60 days of a general election.
Citizens United challenged this ban, and the Supreme Court struck down this provision of McCain-Feingold , reversing a previous ruling — Austin v. Michigan Chamber of Commerce —that permitted the government to ban corporations and labor unions from promoting or opposing political candidates.
Paul Sherman, an attorney with the Institute for Justice, which litigates free-speech cases nationwide points out:
The ruling in Citizens United is a straightforward application of basic First Amendment principles: “When Government seeks to use its full power…to command where a person may get his or her information or what distrusted source he or she may not hear, it uses censorship to control thought. This is unlawful. The First Amendment confirms the freedom to think for ourselves.”
The Democrats are OUTRAGED: Corporations are not entitled to free speech, political expenditures are not “speech”, protections of the Free Speech Clause properly apply to individuals not corporations, this will corrupt the democratic process, will radically increase powerful corporate influence in politics, blah, blah, blah. Democrats are afraid that corporations benefit Republicans, and free speech should not apply to anyone who might be critical of Democrats.
The First Amendment is about political speech, and if free speech only applies to speech that is pleasing to you, then it isn’t free, and it isn’t freedom — but tyranny. You might find it interesting to keep track of the numerous and constant efforts of the Democrats to stifle speech that they don’t like. For example, President Obama’s ban on Fox News continues.
Just watch. There will be a concerted effort on the part of the Democrats to overturn or overrule this decision. The “Democrats” aren’t much on Democracy, the Constitution (needs updating for modern times), especially the First Amendment — although that religion part is useful for getting rid of religious influences. They’re fairly fond of the “establishment” bit but always, always, ignore the — making no law that might “prohibit the free exercise thereof” part.
Progressives are passionately fond of larger government, the growth of government, and the exercise of lots of government power. The Constitution puts some firm limits on what government can and cannot do. They don’t like that.
Filed under: Domestic Policy, Election 2008, Foreign Policy, History, Iraq, Liberalism, News, News the Media Doesn't Want You to Hear, Politics, Socialism, Terrorism, Uncategorized | Tags: abortion, Broken Promises, Campaign Finance, Cuba, Democrat lies, Flip Flops, Gay Marriage, Illegal Immigration, Iran, Iraq, Jeremiah Wright, John Kerry, Liberal lies, marijuana, NAFTA, Obama, Special Interests, Supreme Court, Warantless Wiretaps
Welcome Michelle Malkin and Ed Driscoll Readers!!
Mr. Good Judgment himself, the man in the bunny suit, also known as Senator John “I voted for the war before I voted against it” Kerry, yesterday reassured concerned Americans that he is still a world-class flip-flopper by declaring that the man he repeatedly begged to be his running mate lacks the judgment to be president.
Remember, this is the man whose service John McCain defended in the 2004 campaign.
Nonetheless, shilling for Barack Obama, the former Democrat presidential candidate, and eternal loser (who by the way served in Vietnam and has yet to release his full military records), said that John McCain, “has proven that he has been wrong about every judgment he’s made about the war.”
Oh really?
Back in the 2006 election cycle, when John Kerry, Barack Obama and the Democrat party were calling for an, up to then, undefined “change” in Iraq policy — which later turned out to mean unconditional surrender of Iraq to insurgents, terrorists and Iran — John McCain had long been supporting troop increases. A policy that Obama not only opposed, but insisted would never work. A policy that even the liberal press is being forced to admit, has been tremendously successful, and has turned out to be exactly the right strategic decision.
John McCain had exactly the right judgment. If we had followed Barack Obama’s “judgment,” the United States military would have cut and run, and Iraq today would be aflame with genocide and civil/regional war between insurgents, al Qaeda, former Ba’athists and Iran all vying for control of the world’s second largest oil supply.
It’s no wonder Obama has announced that he is “refining” his position. If he’s smart, he’ll go back to his 2004 position when he said he wouldn’t do anything differently than President Bush is doing — because President Bush, like John McCain, is right.
So, it is fitting that Mr. Kerry should be one of Obama’s biggest campaigners. The spatula has passed from one world-class flip-flopper to another. Indeed, not only does Obama seem absolutely determined to out-flop his political predecessor, but even before he has officially clinched the nomination it appears he has already done so.
It’s not just Iraq, although it is major, since the centerpiece of his campaign has been his supposed judgement on Iraq, opposition to the surge, and promises to immediately withdraw — it’s hard to find find an issue on which Obama hasn’t drastically contradicted himself. Some examples:
- Campaign Finance: Obama pledged, verbally and in writing, to take part in the federal campaign financing, that is until it became clear he was rolling in money. Then he claimed that the system, which has not changed since he made the pledge, was broken, and that he was going back on his promise because of as yet non-existent Republican 527 attack ads. In reality, the only attack ads thus far have been waged against McCain by the Democrat 527, MoveOn.org.
- NAFTA: During the primary, Obama appealed to his isolationist base by decrying NAFTA and promising, if necessary, unilateral renegotiation. It has since come out that his staff were simultaneously telling Canadian officials not to worry, that Obama was just playing politics and had no intention of following through. Indeed, he admitted as much in an interview, explaining that, “sometimes during campaigns rhetoric gets overheated and amplified.”
- Gay Marriage: Obama has claimed that he opposes gay marriage while his wife was simultaneously reassuring gay groups that her husband would repeal DOMA and opposed any federal measures to “discriminate” against gay relationships. Barack has since made clear that he supports the California Supreme Court’s decision, opposes citizen efforts to overturn it, and has come out in favor of full federal recognition of all legally recognized relationships.
- Second Amendment: This year Obama praises the Supreme Court’s decision declaring the Washington DC gun ban unconstitutional: last year his campaign assured Democrat voters the Senator believed the ban was entirely constitutional. Just a few months ago he disparaged voters who “cling” to their guns.
- Wiretaps: Obama previously assured his deranged base that he would support any filibuster of attempts to protect telephone companies from lawsuits over their cooperation with the government’s warantless wiretaps. Now Obama defends the law congress just passed which does precisely that.
- Iran: Obama was widely criticized as naïve for his declaration that America should meet unconditionally with the leaders of Iran, including by Hillary Clinton and other members of his own party. Unsurprizingly, this is another position he has also “refined.” Indeed, the man whose judgment John Kerry extolls can’t even seem to make up his mind whether Iran poses a threat or not.
- Patriotism: Again pandering to his America-loathing base, Obama once refused to wear a flag pin on his lapel and disparaged those who did, claiming it was a “substitute for… true patriotism.” Now, not only is Obama not to be seen without his own “substitute” for patriotism prominently displayed on his chest, but routinely wraps himself in up to 40 American flags at once among other purportedly “patriotic” symbols of his own invention.
- His Reverend, mentor and spiritual adviser Jeremiah Wright: The Reverend and church he could no more denounce than he could denounce the black community? Obama denounced them.
- Special Interests: Obama often criticized both Hillary and John Edwards for taking money from unions which he described as “special interests.” But now that he is accepting union endorsements, and money, “He now refers respectfully to unions as the representatives of ‘working people’ and says he is ‘thrilled’ by their support.“
- Cuba: Told Democrat voters in 2004 that it was time to end the Cuba embargo, but assured Cuban-Americans in Florida last August that he would not, “take off the embargo” because it is “an important inducement for change.”
- Illegal Immigration: Obama, I’m sure you are by now unfazed to hear, has said both that he would and would not “crack down” on employers who hire illegal immigrants.
- Marijuana: The candidate for “change” has also changed his position on the criminalization of marijuana, telling college students he would support decriminalizing pot, and opposing the decriminalization of pot when confronted in a Democrat primary debate.
- Abortion: Contradicting his own 100% rating from NARAL, and his vote against the ban on partial birth abortion, Obama has softened, if only slightly, his position on abortion, declaring that “mental distress” shouldn’t count as an exception that would allow partial birth abortion. Well, I suppose he can always favor an exception for “severe mental distress,” since it is clear his campaign has become all about weasel words.
It’s becoming clear what Obama means when he promises “change”, its not political change — he is merely promising to change his position depending on what is most politically expedient for Barack Obama.
All this before the primary campaign has even officially begun! It’s no wonder Obama has Kerry out touting his “judgment”, he’s probably one of the few people on planet Earth that could do it with a straight, albeit very long, face.
American Elephants 