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May 2015

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on May 04, 2015 24 Comments
While the official U.S. policy has long been that we don't pay ransom to terrorists who kidnap American citizens, the Obama administration is working to find a way around this long-standing and eminently sensible stance. The idea is to allow the family of hostages held by terrorists to pay ransoms to terrorists and avoid prosecution for aiding terrorist organizations.  ABC News reports:
Families of American hostages who communicate with foreign kidnappers or raise money and pay ransoms will no longer have to fear prosecution for aiding terrorist groups, a White House-ordered advisory group on U.S. hostage policy is expected to recommend, senior officials told ABC News last week. "There will be absolutely zero chance of any family member of an American held hostage overseas ever facing jail themselves, or even the threat of prosecution, for trying to free their loved ones," said one of three senior officials familiar with the hostage policy team's ongoing review.
It appears that in the matter of the families versus the government, both get their way.  The families, understandably, want to save their family members (though paying ransom is no guarantee), and this government prefers to negotiate with, rather than defeat terrorists.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on May 04, 2015 15 Comments
Hillary Clinton has finally agreed to testify before the House Select Committee on Benghazi. Today, Hillary's attorney David Kendall informed Chairman Gowdy that Mrs. Clinton will testify before Congress, but only once. In a letter released to the public on March 31, the committee officially requested Mrs. Clinton's presence for questioning. Committee Chairman Gowdy requested two interviews, a "private transcribed interview related to her email arrangement as well as her public appearance before the Committee." In his response, Mrs. Clinton's attorney David Kendall wrote there was, "no basis, logic, or precedent for such an usual request," saying Mrs. Clinton would be, "prepared to stay for the duration of the Committee's questions on the day she appears." Hillary is not willing to further disclose correspondence, nor is she willing to allow a neutral third-party to inspect her email server(s). She and her counsel maintain the State Department's records should satisfy any queries the Select Committee might have. And so the record retention ball gets lobbed back into the Department of State's court. Also relevant here is the OIG report released shortly after the revelation that Hillary had her own special private email server. As we discussed back in March:
The report also concluded that State Department employees were intentionally avoiding creating official email records, “because they do not want to make the email available in searches or fear that this availability would inhibit debate about pending decisions.”

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 04, 2015 4 Comments
We reported last week that supporters of convicted terrorist and immigration fraudster Rasmea Odeh were protesting a Justice Award to U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade, Rasmea Odeh Prosecutor to get Justice Award. For background on the case, see Rasmea Odeh rightly convicted of Israeli supermarket bombing and U.S. immigration fraud. The Justice Award was given by the Michigan-based Arab-American Civil Rights League (ACRL) among other groups, including the local NAACP chapter. Rasmea's supporters were furious, demanding that the Justice Award be revoked. They launched a social media campaign encouraging people to dall the ACRL, and issued veiled threats of retaliation. Many of the tweets were what we have come to expect in the case, a complete distortion of the reality of Rasmea's guilt: It didn't work. ACRL and the other groups gave McQuade the Justice Award Friday night, May 1, 2015, as planned. McQuade was celebrated for her work, and appeared among many area Arab-Americans to accept the award.

Posted by Amy Miller on May 04, 2015 36 Comments
Last year, the push for patent reform hit a roadblock in Congress when then-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid refused to bring the Patent Abuse Reduction Act to the floor for a vote. In the war between industry advocates and trial lawyers, Reid chose the trial lawyers, and the patent trolls were off the hook. The new Republican majority is looking to break that pattern of obstruction. A new iteration of patent reform legislation is currently making its way through the Senate. A bill introduced on Wednesday would target firms that make their money not via innovation, but by filing bogus lawsuits against the innovators under the guise of protecting intellectual property. The bill, which is a product of negotiations between both parties, would place restrictions on "demand letters" sent by firms, end the practice of using shell corporations to hide who owns (or "owns") a patent, and shift the responsibility for paying court costs if the suit is not “objectively reasonable.” Patent reform is one of those unicorn-type issues that has bipartisan support, even if its backers sometimes disagree on the specifics.

Posted by CampusClimatologist on May 04, 2015 18 Comments
Lets Act! (LA), the far-left student political party at UCLA, was dramatically swept from power, in election results released Friday, May 1, 2015. LA, a coalition of mostly identity-based groups (e.g. Afrikan Student Union, MEChA, Queer Alliance, etc.) was defeated 8 seats to 3 (with 3 independents) by their rival, Bruins United (BU), a coalition of most everyone else (led by the Jewish community, fraternities, and sororities). https://youtu.be/qqDqmPoeJpg?t=4m3s LA and its constituent groups constituted the bulk of left-wing identity politics efforts at UCLA. LA was responsible for slew of anti-Israel actions:  Two BDS resolutions at UCLA; objecting to the Judicial Board appointment to Rachel Beyda because she is Jewish; and attempts to disqualify candidates who took trips to Israel.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 04, 2015 26 Comments
Hillary is Superwoman to Democrats. But SuperWoman has a public perception problem to those who remember her before her repackaging. The shadow government Email Server, deletion of records, and Clinton Foundation payolla, bring back the memories for us, but are new to the younger electorate. That younger electorate needs to know the real Hillary. Which is why Republicans need to establish who Hillary Clinton is before the media machine and new Clinton War Room can start going after Republican candidates with vigor. For Republicans, Job One: Teach millennials about the real Hillary America Rising PAC has produced another excellent video that helps to define Hillary - Unethical:
SECRETARY HILLARY CLINTON: “I am very proud to be the President-Elect’s nominee for Secretary of State” ANNOUNCER: “When Clinton was named Secretary of State, the White House asked the [Clinton] Foundation to shut the door on most foreign contributions to avoid any questions of ethics.

Posted by Amy Miller on May 04, 2015 21 Comments
Reports rolled out early this morning that one of the gunmen taken out during last night's shootout in Garland, Texas has been identified as Elton Simpson. Elton Simpson was shot and killed after he and an accomplice pulled up to a "Draw Mohammed" free speech event and attacked a security officer. According to ABC News, the FBI and a bomb squad began an investigation of Simpson's north Phoenix home, where he is believed to have lived with his accomplice. This isn't the first time the government has conducted investigations into Simpson's jihad-associated activities; he was convicted five years ago of lying to officials about plans to travel overseas and allegedly join a terror organization. The New York Times laid out the history of allegations against Simpson:
In 2010, federal prosecutors in Arizona charged Mr. Simpson with plotting to travel to Somalia “for the purpose of engaging in violent jihad,” and then lying to a federal agent about his plans. A judge found him guilty of lying to the agent, but said the government had not proved that his plan involved terrorism, and sentenced him to three years’ probation.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 04, 2015 11 Comments
Ben Carson, Carly Fiorina and Mike Huckabee all will be announcing that they are running for President. Carson made his announcement Sunday, perhaps with a slip of the tongue. His official announcement is today via YouTube. Fiorina also announced this morning on Good Morning America:

Posted by Amy Miller on May 04, 2015 25 Comments
Last night, two gunmen were killed after firing on a security guard outside of a "Draw Mohammed" free speech event in Garland, Texas. Bruce Joiner, the Garland ISD security officer who was shot in the attack, was hospitalized with an ankle wound but released last night. CNN has a good condensed timeline of events:
The men drove up to the Curtis Culwell Center in North Garland, got out of their car and began shooting just as the "Muhammad Art Exhibit and Cartoon Contest" inside was ending around 7 p.m. (8 p.m. ET). An unarmed security guard, Bruce Joiner, was shot in the ankle. He was later treated and released from a hospital. Garland police, who were helping with security, fired back, killing both gunmen. The exchange lasted about 15 seconds, police said.

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 03, 2015 60 Comments
A vital debate is taking place in New York City right now. According to Seth Barron of City Journal, the City Council is considering the decriminalization of minor crimes:
Who Needs Quality of Life, Anyway? Last week, the New York City Council announced that it was preparing legislation to reduce the penalties for a host of “minor crimes.” Open urination, drinking alcohol in public, riding bikes on the sidewalk, and other public-order infractions like subway fare-beating would no longer be considered criminal violations but rather civil offenses, akin to parking near a crosswalk. Instead of receiving a summons to appear in court, violators could pay a fine through the mail. Proponents offer a simple explanation for why the changes are necessary: the negative effect that interaction with the criminal justice system has on those who receive summonses. Council Member Jumaane Williams has separately bemoaned the arrest of people for “minor infractions” in the subway on the grounds that “an arrest can cause significant stress” for the arrestee, as well as imposing “financial hardship.”
The public urination proposal is turning into something of a pissing contest among politicians:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 03, 2015 28 Comments
When I was drafting my post about the attack on two French Jews by a boycott movement gang, I saw on the Dashboard that we had reached our 15,000th published post.  That would be Aleister's post, Clinton War Room Targets “Cash” Author. Why do we do it? We do it for the Honor and the Glory. For the Honor of things like having a student get arrested for reading a Legal Insurrection blog post out loud during a protest. (The charges later were dropped, because this is still America, F-yeah!) Seriously, how many other blogs, magazines or newspapers can say that someone was arrested for reading their writing out loud? https://youtu.be/YnYel6Ro5F0?t=41s There have been many other honors, mostly meeting or interacting with the readers, authors, bloggers and others I have met along the way. More than once I've crossed the cyber-real world divide, and will again when I meet the families of Edward Joffe and Leon Kanner during my upcoming trip to Israel.  (My wife thinks we should organize a Legal Insurrection trip to Israel next year - what do you think?)

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 03, 2015 2 Comments
We have documented many times the role in the spread of anti-Semitic violence in Europe played by the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement. The gross demonization and dehumanization of Israeli Jews by BDS contributes both directly and indirectly to acts of anti-Semitism. We have seen it on the streets of Copenhagen, Malmo, Frankfurt, Berlin, Paris, The Hague, London and elsewhere. It's why Walking While Jewish is dangerous in many cities in Europe.  In Paris, Reporting While Jewish is risky as well. While in theory anti-Zionism can be distinct from anti-Semitism, in reality on the streets of Europe they have merged. Now there is yet another example, via Algemeiner, 40 Person Mob Assaults 2 Jews on Paris’ Boulevard Voltaire:

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 03, 2015 16 Comments
You can tell 'Clinton Cash' author Peter Schweizer has touched a nerve by the amount of push back he's getting from the media. U.S. News & World Report wonders if the book is just a hatchet job, while Newsweek has written an "Everything you need to know" piece on the book. Schweizer appeared on the FOX News program Media Buzz this morning, and Howard Kurtz grilled him about assertions made in the book. Towards the end of the interview, Kurtz makes an issue out of Schweizer's political affiliations as evidence of his inability to be objective. That never seems to be an issue on the other side, even though the Obama administration has been a virtual revolving door for members of the media. Watch the entire exchange below:

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on May 03, 2015 30 Comments
When Al Sharpton called for the nationalization of America's police forces earlier this month, many were quick to dismiss him as reactionary or even radical.  However, it may be worth revisiting this point in light of the news that the DOJ is going to be spending $20 million in body cams for police.  As Ed Morrissey notes:
This is another step in the de facto nationalization of police forces under the aegis of the DoJ. Milwaukee’s Sheriff David Clarke warned about that earlier in the week, and this is another soft step in that direction. The $20 million pilot program will almost certainly have to expand significantly in order to have an impact, and the DoJ will end up imposing it as a standard through the enforcement of their Civil Rights Division. That erodes the kind of local control that keeps police forces responsive to their own communities, much the same way that the avalanche of mandates from the Department of Education has done to school boards around the country. This is a decision that should be left to states and local communities.
When any entity takes money or resources from the federal government, it automatically becomes subject to regulations, restrictions, mandates, and oversight by the feds.  We see this in education both at the K-12 and the university level, in health care, even in senior centers where residents have been told they cannot pray before meals because their senior center receives federal funding. It is worrying, then, when the federal government decides to step in and provide body cams for local and state police.  The issue is not whether the cameras are a good idea; people on both sides of the aisle tend to agree that the cams will help resolve questions about police activities quickly, before incidents become inflamed.  The problem is the role of the federal government in local and state policing.  Do we really want a nationalized police force?

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 03, 2015 35 Comments
I think we have the 2015 Phrase of the Year: Trigger Warning. But now they've gone too far. Ovid's Metamorphoses, which is part of the core curriculum at Columbia College (Columbia University) is described as follows:
The Metamorphoses (Latin: Metamorphōseōn librī: "Books of Transformations") is a Latin narrative poem by the Roman poet Ovid, considered his magnum opus. Comprising fifteen books and over 250 myths, the poem chronicles the history of the world from its creation to the deification of Julius Caesar within a loose mythico-historical framework. Although meeting the criteria for an epic, the poem defies simple genre classification by its use of varying themes and tones. Ovid took inspiration from the genre of metamorphosis poetry, and some of the Metamorphoses derives from earlier treatment of the same myths; however, he diverged significantly from all of his models. One of the most influential works in Western culture, the Metamorphoses has inspired such authors as Dante, Boccaccio, Chaucer, and Shakespeare. Numerous episodes from the poem have been depicted in acclaimed works of sculpture and painting by artists such as Titian. Although interest in Ovid faded after the Renaissance, towards the end of the twentieth century there was a resurgence of attention to his work; today, the Metamorphoses continues to inspire and be retold through various media. The work has been the subject of numerous translations into English, the first by William Caxton in 1480.
Not all is well with The Metamorphoses at Columbia University.

Posted by Miriam Elman on May 03, 2015 6 Comments
It’s only been a few weeks since the last scandal and already UCLA is embroiled in yet another controversy over its alleged anti-Jewish and anti-Zionist campus climate. Back in February, in an incident that generated media headlines and a tidal wave of condemnations, several student government leaders questioned sophomore Rachel Beyda’s eligibility for a seat on a council judicial board because of her Jewishness. Legal Insurrection broke the story and had the good wisdom to cache the videotaped meeting. LI later provided the incriminating evidence to the media. Now some faculty and community members are up in arms over a conference honoring the late Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel (1907-1972), one of the preeminent Jewish theologians, public intellectuals, and civil rights activists of our time. The conference, titled “Moral Grandeur and Spiritual Audacity,” will take place on the UCLA campus on May 3 and 4. Sponsored by UCLA’s Alan D. Leve Center for Jewish Studies and co-sponsored by Hillel, the Ralph J. Bunche Center for African American Studies, the Center for the Study of Religion, and the Departments of History and English, the two-day conference brings 24 top-flight scholars to the UCLA campus. It’s obvious that this is going to be a serious academic event, with a rigorous scholarly program and a star-studded guest speaker and panelist lineup. Except that one of these academic superstars—Cornel West, a Professor of Philosophy and Christian Practice at Union Theological Seminary and Professor Emeritus, Princeton University—is also a notorious intellectual hero of the BDS movement and an outspoken critic of Israel. And he’s been invited to give the keynote address.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on May 03, 2015 24 Comments
The past few days have been difficult for American law enforcement. First, the Baltimore officers involved in the arrest and subsequent death of new civil rights icon, Freddie Gray, have had the legal book thrown at them. Now, protests in several of country's deepest blue and most "tolerant" areas have devolved into hostilities against police.
Crowds clashed with police during May Day marches in several U.S. West Coast cities late on Friday, as officers responded with stun grenades and pepper spray, police and media said. Anti-capitalist protesters hurled wrenches and rocks at officers in Seattle, police said. Demonstrators in Oakland, California, and several other cities, rallied against a series of police killings of unarmed black men, local media reported. Footage on social media showed protesters smashing shop windows in Seattle and crowds scattering as police in riot gear threw in "flashbang" grenades. Demonstrators set fire to garbage and damaged at least two dozen vehicles, police said.
The city's top law enforcement officer shared this:
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