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January 2015

Posted by Leslie Eastman on January 18, 2015 9 Comments
At the start of the New Year, I noted outbreaks of measles were being reported across the country. Unfortunately for one of America's most iconic institutions, the latest set of cases is being christened the "Disneyland Measles Outbreak"! The number of cases from the initial infections occurring at "the happiest place on earth" is now 51...and more are expected.
The measles outbreak centered in California is rapidly expanding, with officials now confirming 51 cases of the illness -- nearly double the number reported Tuesday -- and warning that more people will probably fall sick with the highly contagious virus. Officials said there was now evidence that the measles outbreak had spread beyond people who visited Disneyland between Dec. 17 and 20 and begun infecting people in the broader community. It is the beginning of a scenario experts have feared. Health officials generally hope a measles outbreak can be contained within a manageable group of people and eventually extinguished by keeping the ill at home or in a hospital room until they recover, with the outbreak eventually being stopped by the broader community of vaccinated people.
The outbreak has been so bad in the San Diego area, it shut down an urgent care facility for a short time.

Posted by Mike LaChance on January 18, 2015 12 Comments
Bill Maher has been on a free speech tear lately, and if you look back at the last few months it makes perfect sense. In December of 2014 he was booked to speak at UC-Berkeley's commencement; but liberal students who disagreed with his views on Islam and free speech tried to shut him down. Of course, Professor Jacobson predicted all of this. Maher ultimately spoke at Berkeley---and used the opportunity to bash Republicans. Even so, you have to admire Maher's recent strong defense of free speech. Here's a clip from his Friday show where he took liberals to task on political correctness over Islam. He even takes a poke at the "Stop Rush" crowd. (NSFW for language) Josh Feldman of Mediaite does a great job outlining the segment:

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on January 18, 2015 18 Comments
Have you been struggling to talk to your kids about immigration? Worried they might not understand our immigration policy? Have you been pacing back and forth at night wondering how to explain that America is a nation of immigrants; and oh god, what about this whole "melting pot" thing or is it a "salad bowl" these days? Worry no more. TIME has you covered.
News stories about the debate over the DREAM act, the tens of thousands of children who arrive unaccompanied in the U.S. each year and even the backlash against immigrants in Europe after the Charlie Hedbo killings can raise all kinds of questions and stir up all kinds of emotions for kids. This is especially true when they involve children being separated from their parents.
I distinctly remember laying in bed after an arduous day at German kindergarten, wondering how the President's immigration policy, and Euro-Arab relations would affect me. Not really, but if I had, this article would've undoubtedly improved my entire childhood. To bring clarification to the matter of immigration, children, and communication, TIME chatted with what appears to be a completely and totally unbiased, objective, and nonpartisan source, Professor of Education at Claremont Graduate University and author of Americans By Heart: Undocumented Latino Students and the Promise of Higher Education, William Perez who made the following suggestions:

Posted by Russell Berman on January 17, 2015 2 Comments
[WAJ Note: On January 10, 2015, we reported how Modern Language Assoc postpones anti-Israel boycott vote until 2017.  I asked Stanford Professor Russell Berman, a former President of MLA who attended the debate and vote, to provide us with a first-hand account and analysis.] ----------------------------------- At the recent Modern Language Association (MLA) Convention in Vancouver, proponents of the anti-Israel Boycott, Divest and Sanctions (BDS) movement made a concerted effort to score an electoral victory for their anti-Israel campaign. BDS and its supporters failed. I was present during the debate and votes at the Delegate Assembly, and the failure was clear. Nonetheless BDS supporters have rushed to claim success, asserting that straw polls taken at the Delegate Assembly supported both BDS and Professor Steven Salaita (who is in a dispute with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign). To make such claims requires misrepresentation of the facts of what happened. But facts matter, and a reasonable examination of the series of votes in Vancouver leads to the conclusion that BDS lost.

Boycott Resolution Delayed Two Years

First some background: in the run-up to the convention, two resolutions were submitted to the MLA’s Delegate Assembly Organizing Committee (DAOC). One resolution called for a boycott of Israeli universities, while the other opposed academic boycotts. Because the two resolutions were in direct conflict with each other, the DAOC requested that both proposals be withdrawn during a two-year moratorium on any resolutions concerning Israel. Instead the DAOC proposed a series of discussions about the matter in order to inform the membership. Both sides agreed, and neither resolution was brought to the floor. However, when the Delegate Assembly convened in Vancouver, the DAOC had to bring its two-year moratorium proposal before the assembly for a vote. BDS supporters attacked it bitterly because they were eager to vote against Israel, and they correctly saw the moratorium as prohibiting such a vote until 2017 at the earliest. The voting showed that they were a distinct minority: the Delegate Assembly adopted the moratorium proposal 95 to 49. This was a victory for the DAOC and a dramatic 2 to 1 loss for BDS. That first vote was important not only because it rejected the BDS effort to accelerate its anti-Israel campaign but because it took place relatively early in the afternoon when attendance was still high.

Posted by Amy Miller on January 17, 2015 18 Comments
Next week, President Obama will stand before a joint session of Congress and deliver remarks on the state of the union---and he's bringing some friends along for the ride. From the President's weekly address cum SOTU preview:
"Every day, we get thousands of letters and emails at the White House from Americans across the country, and every night, I read ten of them. They tell me about their hopes and their worries, their hardships and successes. They’re the Americans I’m working for every day, and this year, several of these letter writers will join me at the Capitol when I deliver my annual State of the Union address on Tuesday night."
Their stories sound like anything a comms shop could dream up given 30 minutes and a pot of coffee, but they're effective nonetheless. With the help of a small business loan, their business exploded, and everyone got a wage increase! Our policies made paying back their student loans easier, and they didn't default! Watch:

Posted by Mike LaChance on January 17, 2015 7 Comments
President Bill Clinton appeared on the Seth Meyers show last week and offered some common sense about the double standard of Islamic radicals who take advantage of freedom in western countries. Clinton's view is distinctly different than what we've heard from the Obama administration which is having trouble even naming America's enemies. Greg Gutfeld and the panel of The Five analyzed Clinton's comments on the air yesterday: Naturally, liberal news outlets are ignoring that part of Clinton's appearance, instead choosing to focus on another segment.

Posted by Mike LaChance on January 17, 2015 5 Comments
We recently covered the No-Go Zones of Europe. In the newest edition of Afterburner, Bill Whittle takes a close look at France and the events that led to the attack on Charlie Hebdo, particularly European multiculturalism which is anti-assimilationist. Whittle also makes an excellent analogy to American Politics, citing the identity groups that sprang up around Obama in the 2008 election. Watch it below: Speaking of Europe and multiculturalism, Sweden is at a crossroads. Although usually hailed by progressives as a standard for society, the political system in Sweden is breaking down.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on January 17, 2015 24 Comments
The U.S. failed to send any senior official to the Paris Solidarity Rally. Eric Holder even was in Paris at the time, but did Sunday morning talk shows. Instead, yesterday John Kerry brought James Taylor to France to play "You've Got A Friend" to smooth things over. http://on.aol.com/video/james-taylor-sings--youve-got-a-friend--during-kerry-visit-to-paris-town-hall-518604326?socialmd=0%7C577%7C63%7C2 We suggested that Barry McGuire's Eve of Destruction was a better choice. Using James Taylor as foreign policy political cover was embarrassing for our country. But Kerry seemed oblivious to the imagery, as he went into a dreamy trance as Taylor sang. (See Featured Image) Here are five songs the French could have, and maybe should have, played back at Kerry.

1. Bobby Vee - Go Away Little Girl

John Kerry had a near lip lock with French President Hollande (via Instapundit). http://pjmedia.com/instapundit/201070/ Which makes Bobby Vee - Go Away Little Girl (1962) my number one pick:

Posted by Leslie Eastman on January 17, 2015 11 Comments
The ink hasn't even dried on the House bill on immigration reform, and already there is a significant new challenge to address, one which seems designed to help implement Obama's new immigration status plan. The development hasn't come from the White House, but from Mexico, which has just started issuing birth certificates to its citizens at consulates throughout this country.
The Mexican government on Thursday will start issuing birth certificates to its citizens at consulates in the United States, seeking to make it easier for them to apply for US work permits, driver’s licenses and protection from deportation. Until now, Mexico has required citizens to get birth certificates at government offices in Mexico. Many of those living in the US ask friends and relatives back home to retrieve them, which can delay their applications for immigration or other programs.
The reason for the new policy? It makes it more convenient for Mexico to deal with poverty and unemployment in its own country.
Mexico is trying to help millions of immigrants living illegally in the U.S. apply for programs that would allow them to remain temporarily in the country and continue sending money to relatives across the border, despite Republicans in Congress trying to quash President Obama's immigration reform plan. "It is a huge help. It helps individuals really begin to formulate their formal identity in this country," said Angelica Salas, executive director of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles. About half of the 11 million immigrants living in the United States illegally are from Mexico, and immigration experts estimate that roughly 3 million Mexicans could be eligible to apply for work permits and protection from deportation under the administration's plan.
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Posted by Amy Miller on January 17, 2015 20 Comments
A clash of the titans? Or that sweet new car smell? That decision might be made sooner than you think. Starting in August of this year, Republican candidates for President will set out on the debate circuit; but even now, candidates are jockeying for key donors and supporters capable of helping them win the Republican nomination. This past week on Special Report, panelists discussed with Bret Baier the changing dynamics of Presidential politics, new faces, and the Romney vs. Bush throwdown: This cycle's candidates know that they'll need to bring something new to the table if they want to both energize the grassroots and expand their voter base to include people who wouldn't normally vote for a conservative Republican---which is the main reason why the Romney and Bush candidacies have bene lampooned so thoroughly by the conservative new media.

Posted by Amy Miller on January 16, 2015 10 Comments
The dates are set for the 2016 presidential debate cycle---ARE YOU EXCITED??!! Yeah, me neither. But the cycle looms like a dark cloud on the horizon, so we might as well get ready for it. According to reports coming out of this week's Winter Meeting, the RNC is drastically changing the way these debates are planned, structured, and covered. Instead of a barrage of debates, the events will be spread out over 7 months, and no one state will be allowed to host twice. The RNC is also taking steps to help campaigns more fully prepare, and has committed to bringing in a larger conservative media presence to cover the candidates. From a press statement sent out by the RNC:
“The 2016 cycle is underway, and I can tell you it will be a landmark election for Republicans,” Chairman Priebus said. “By constructing and instituting a sound debate process, it will allow candidates to bring their ideas and vision to Americans in a timely and efficient way. This schedule ensures we will have a robust discussion among our candidates while also allowing the candidates to focus their time engaging with Republican voters. It is exciting that Republicans will have such a large bench of candidates to choose from, and the sanctioned debate process ensures voters will have a chance to gain a chance to hear from them. The American people are tired of President Obama’s policies, and I am confident the debate process will enable candidates to communicate their ideas and ultimately help us elect a Republican president in 2016 to get our country back on track.”
Here's the schedule as it stands. 9 dates have been officially sanctioned, with 3 more pending:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on January 16, 2015 7 Comments
When the Palestinian Authority submitted papers to the International Criminal Court for the purpose of seeking war crimes prosecutions of Israel, we reviewed many thoughtful and cogent analyses that based on the rules governing the court and precedent, the case may not even get off the ground. Not being an expert in the ICC, but knowing how so many supposedly neutral and objective international organizations have been corrupted by political animosity to Israel, I was skeptical:
>>>>>> Major caveat — these analyses assume that the ICC treats Israel the way it would treat any other nation, but anything that related to Israel always seems to skew international organizations, so I have my doubts. <<<<<<
And sure enough, right from the get-go, the ICC prosecutor has invented standards specifically for Israel. Law Professor and international law expert Eugene Kontorovich describes at Volokh Conspiracy what has happened, ICC’s undermines its own independence with Palestine inquiry:
The ICC’s Prosecutor announced today the opening of a “preliminary examination” into “the Situation in Palestine.” This means she will consider, on jurisdictional, evidentiary and policy grounds whether to open an investigation into crimes that may have been committed during this summer’s Gaza conflict. Opening such an investigation is a fairly standard step after receiving a declaration of acceptance of jurisdiction under Article 12(3) of the Rome Statute, and would not normally warrant much notice (other preliminary investigations also involve alleged crimes by the U.S. in Afghanistan and the U.K. in Iraq, though precious few Americans or British are aware of this). But this decision of the prosecutor is quite different, and extremely significant. The decision to open the inquiry involved the prosecutor determining that the Palestinian Authority is in fact a “state,” a necessary precondition to jurisdiction under the Rome Statute, the Court’s constitutive treaty.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on January 16, 2015 18 Comments
This, ladies and gentleman, is our Department of State. Just call out their name and you know where ever they are, they'll come running with a hashtag or cheesy publicity stunt. After the terrorist attack workplace violence incident that took place at Charlie Hebdo, our response to one of our longest standing allies and friends is... James Taylor. Nous sommes tres insultant. Taylor performed "You've Got a Friend" at a press conference held by Secretary Kerry in Paris:

Posted by Mike LaChance on January 16, 2015 13 Comments
Most Americans would be happy to hear that Obama is going on offense against ISIS, the people who carried out the attacks in Paris, or any of the other enemies of America. Unfortunately, there's only one group Obama consistently views as a threat: Republicans. Last night's headline on the Drudge Report was a story by Manu Raju of Politico. It looks like Obama is all fired up and ready to go:
Obama to Senate Dems: ‘I’m going to play offense’ President Barack Obama made clear Thursday in a closed-door session with Senate Democrats that he’s prepared to veto hostile legislation from the GOP-controlled Congress, including an Iran sanctions package on the front-burner of Capitol Hill. According to several sources at the Thursday summit in Baltimore, Obama vowed to defend his agenda against Republicans in Congress, promised to stand firm against GOP efforts to dismantle his agenda and called on his Democratic colleagues to help sustain his expected vetoes. The president also was explicit over his administration’s opposition to an Iran sanctions bill, promising to veto legislation with his administration in the midst of multilateral nuclear negotiations with the Middle Eastern regime. Even though Obama’s position on Iran sanctions differs from a number of powerful Democrats, the session, several sources said, was more of a pep rally than confrontation. Despite his lame-duck status, the president promised that he would not sit on the sidelines in the next two years. He vowed more executive actions to implement his agenda, something bound to prompt anger from Republicans who have called the president’s unilateral moves, particularly on immigration, an unconstitutional power grab.
Noah Rothman outlined Obama's current political stance in a new article for Townhall:
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