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September 2015

Posted by Mike LaChance on September 23, 2015 17 Comments
A Wesleyan University student named Bryan Stascavage who writes for the student paper, the Wesleyan Argus, recently penned an op-ed which was critical of the #BlackLivesMatter movement. Since then, all hell has broken loose. Here's a sample of Stascavage's column:
Why Black Lives Matter Isn’t What You Think A 20-year-old man walks into a church and massacres nine people, claiming that he was afraid that America was being taken over by Black Americans, citing American race relations as evidence. About a month later, a man wears a GoPro, tapes himself walking up to a local reporter and a cameraman, and shoots them both on camera, proclaiming racial injustice in this country as his motive. Police officers are looking over their shoulders as several cops have been targeted and gunned down. The week before classes started, seven officers were killed in the line of duty; a few were execution-style targeted killings. An officer I talked to put it succinctly: “If they want to come after me, fine. Just come at me head on. Don’t shoot me in the back of my head. I’d rather go down with a fighting chance.” Is this an atmosphere created by the police officers and racist elements in society itself? Many, including individuals in the Black Lives Matter movement, believe so.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on September 22, 2015 16 Comments
No, this is not a question from a CNN GOP presidential debate. Former Presidential Candidate Herman Cain joined Fox News' Greta Van Susteren Tuesday evening. The subject? Carly Fiorina's foreign policy speech at The Citadel. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvr8_a-FZ2U&feature=youtu.be&t=2m4s

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 22, 2015 41 Comments
There are two big stories in a Florida Atlantic University poll of Republican voters to be released tomorrow. The Orlando Sun-Sentinel reports, Poll: Marco Rubio pulls ahead of Jeb Bush in Florida; Hillary Clinton in trouble:
Marco Rubio has overtaken Jeb Bush among Florida Republicans, as he benefits from positive reviews of his performance in the most recent presidential debate. A Florida Atlantic University poll to be released Wednesday shows Rubio, the state's junior senator, is in second place in the Republican primary field in Florida. His political mentor, former Gov. Jeb Bush, is in third place. Donald Trump, the real estate investor, former reality TV show host and part-time Palm Beach resident, is in first place among Florida Republicans, as he is nationally.... On the Republican side, Trump had 31.5 percent of the Republican primary vote. Rubio was second with 19.2 percent and Bush was third with 11.3 percent.
Ben Carson came in at 10.3% and Carly Fiorina at 8.3%

Posted by Amy Miller on September 22, 2015 6 Comments
Back in 2012, Mitt Romney got raked over the coals for saying during a presidential debate that he had "binders full of women" from which he picked some of his top advisors. It was a memeworthy moment for the Romney campaign, and gave birth to a truckload of "binder" memes. Feminists immediately protested---why wasn't Romney able to immediately name smart, qualified women to his staff? Why did he need to curate names in order to diversify his male-only senior staff at Bain? It's a meme that should have died with the 2012 cycle, but alas---I must resurrect it in the name of making fun of Hillary Clinton. Clinton has made a name for herself as someone who has climbed the ladder, crashed through the glass ceiling, and created for herself a very comfortable perch. She has played the gender card more times than seems reasonable (or possible,) and frequently stumps on women's issues as a way of distinguishing herself from her opponents. So why is she having trouble answering a fluff question about women? All 5,472 Republican presidential candidates were asked in this month's CNN debate which woman they would choose to put on the ten dollar bill. Their answers ranged from prominent historical figures to their own wives, but each candidate managed to burp up a response to a question with no right answer. Clinton? Not so much. Watch, courtesy of TMZ:

Posted by Amy Miller on September 22, 2015 12 Comments
Back in 2013, the conservative media engaged in a frantic effort to force mainstream outlets to cover the Kermit Gosnell trials. News of Gosnell's crimes first surfaced in 2010, when the FBI partnered with local authorities and raided his Philadelphia offices. Gosnell was a "well-respected" late term abortion provider---bad enough by definition---but what investigators found absolutely defied any existing narrative:
The doctor was suspected of selling prescription drugs illegally. However, what investigators discovered upon entering the clinic was unthinkable. Blood stained floors. A feral cat roaming the hallways and examination rooms. Fetal remains in the staff food freezers. A row of jars containing severed feet. As investigators began interviewing employees, they learned that Dr. Gosnell employed a tactic that he called “snipping.” Women who came in for late-term abortions would be induced, live babies would be born, and then Dr. Gosnell would kill the babies by severing their spinal chords with scissors.
Gosnell was sentenced to life in prison for his actions; soon after, filmmakers David Altrogge, Jennifer Brown, and Michael J. Hartnett made a short film, "3801 Lancaster," about what happened in Gosnell's clinic. A year later, they received a message from Gosnell that prompted their new project, a full-length documentary featuring interviews with Gosnell himself. The trailer for 3801 Lancaster: American Tragedy has been released, and it will give you chills:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 22, 2015 23 Comments
Wisconsin radio talk show host Charlie Sykes interviewed Scott Walker confidante John Hiller on Walker's decision to end the campaign, and on Walker's future. The money quote emphasized at Syke's website, RightWisconsin, was that Walker "Was At Peace With the Whole Thing":
John Hiller, a closer confidant of Scott Walker, told Charlie Sykes that the governor was at peace after making his decision to leave the presidential race. "He was at peace with the whole thing. He probably handled it better than anyone at the table," said Hiller. Hiller, along with Walker's wife Tonette, was in the room with a handful of close friends and advisors when Walker made his decision. Hiller said that Donald Trump, the 24 hour news cycle, the inability to raise money, and some missteps were the reasons Walker believed he no longer had a path to victory. "This is a very similar scenario to 2006," said Hiller. "When you don't have a clear path to victory, it's in everybody's best interest to get out."
But the line which jumped out at me, coming at the end of the interview and which Sykes also quoted, was:

Posted by Vijeta Uniyal on September 22, 2015 25 Comments
German Chancellor Angela Merkel's grandstanding might have secured her accolades from the German left or bolstered her chances for the Nobel Peace Prize, but her moves have also mobilized millions of migrants from Middle East and North Africa towards Europe that now not only threaten European Union's integrity, but could also destabilize the Balkan countries by reigniting old border conflicts. According to Hungary's foreign minister Peter Szijjártó, 35 million migrants are now on their way to Europe. In his opinion, it is not a migrant crisis but “a massive migration of nations.” The minister defended his country’s decision to start the work on a second fence to deter migrants from entering its borders through the Balkans. Historically, the Balkans in south-eastern Europe has been the most volatile area in Europe; stretching back to the Balkan wars of 1912 and 1913 that eventually led to the WWI, and recently erupting into Yugoslavia Wars lasting over 10 year from 1991-2001.

Posted by Amy Miller on September 22, 2015 5 Comments
Debbie Wasserman-Schultz is not having a good time this cycle. Charges over the DNC's "rigged" debate schedule have gained traction, and activists and prominent Democrats from presidential candidate Martin O'Malley to congressional leader Nancy Pelosi have taken to national media outlets to question DWS's decision to limit the number of official debates her candidates are allowed to participate in. On Saturday, that frustration boiled over. Spectators at the New Hampshire Democratic Party convention drowned out DWS's speech with cries of "we want debates! We want debates!" further embarrassing the party and giving stronger legs to efforts meant to push the DNC toward a more substantial debate schedule. MSNBC caught on to the controversy this week. Not only did they call DWS out for limiting the number of debates, they directly accused the party of playing flack for Hillary Clinton's campaign. Ouch. Courtesy of the Washington Free Beacon:

Posted by Mike LaChance on September 22, 2015 41 Comments
Marco Rubio did a pretty good job in the Republican debate last week. He didn't hurt himself in any way and when he had a chance to speak, he sounded strong and got applause. Since then, two liberals have expressed fear of Rubio as a candidate and it seems real, not the type of fear liberals express for a weak candidate they secretly want to get the nomination. First up is MSNBC's Chris Matthews who claims that Rubio "terrifies" him. Here's what he says in the video below:
I'm sorry, I see this race going to Marco Rubio and it terrifies me. He's the biggest hawk running, he's a beautiful speaker, a very attractive young candidate who really knows how to spellbind. He's the young new breath, he's an Obama!
Watch:

Posted by Leslie Eastman on September 22, 2015 4 Comments
As the United States is preparing for the visit of Pope Francis, security efforts are focused on a potential terror plot:
On the eve of Pope Francis' historic first visit to the United States, law enforcement officials are concerned terrorists could disguise themselves as police officers, firefighters and emergency medical technicians to carry out attacks, according to a report from NBC News Monday. A memo titled "First Responder Impersonators: The New Terrorist Threat," from the Pennsylvania State Police's Criminal Intelligence Center and sent to law enforcement, warned that terrorists could falsely identify themselves as first responders to enter secure areas and carry out attacks. "The impersonators' main goals are to further their attack plan and do harm to unsuspecting citizens as well as members of the emergency services community," the memo read, according to NBC News.
This contrasts to a security incident that occurred in 2013, during the papal visit to Brazil:

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on September 21, 2015 8 Comments
Ohio Governor John Kasich was caught on camera showing off his dance moves on Mackinac Island, Michigan Saturday night. Or at least we're told this is supposed to count as dancing: The video was posted by American Bridge, a progressive SuperPAC.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on September 21, 2015 2 Comments
Monday Judicial Watch released 50 new pages of emails from top Hillary Clinton aide, Huma Abedin. Released as a result a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit instigated by Judicial Watch, the emails are from the clintonemail.com server and were penned during Former Secretary Clinton's tenure at the Department of State. To be clear, the emails are not part of the FBI's investigation into Hillary Clinton's home-brewed email server. They were found in the Department of State's records, but contain an address on the clintonemail.com domain. Judicial Watch asserts the State Department is intentionally delaying release of emails recently submitted by Abedin. As Judicial Watch notes, the emails show Clinton was not the only one using her non-secured server.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 21, 2015 84 Comments
Scott Walker has a 6 p.m. Eastern press conference, at which he is expected to drop out of the race according to numerous news reports, such as this from the NY Times. His speech: https://twitter.com/billhobbs/status/646085643269984256 https://twitter.com/LegInsurrection/status/646086497033191424 https://twitter.com/verumserum/status/646083195927064576

Posted by Amy Miller on September 21, 2015 3 Comments
Last week I had the privilege of attending the Cato Institute's Constitution Day event covering the October 2014 and 2015 Supreme Court terms. It was a wonkishly good time, and afforded me the opportunity to both soak in some new insight on the Court, and kick off analysis and prediction posts for the upcoming Supreme Court term. Overall, the presenters and panelists don't expect the upcoming term to bring us as many "blockbuster" cases. Last term was defined by the shadow of Obergefell and the question of gay marriage; we knew it was coming all term, and its prominence in the hearts and minds of the American people shunted to the side even the important rulings concerning Obamacare and the Fair Housing Act. Still, this term still has the potential to inspire some scorching takes from both wings of the media on the Clean Water Act, wiretapping laws, religious freedom, and abortion laws. We still have a ways to go before we get to examine a full docket, so stay tuned. Cato did a great job of making their presentation accessible to both attorneys and non-attorneys, which (from my experience) is rare for events held by true think tanks. The presentations on Executive power, civil rights, and the state vs. the individual were all 100% relevant with regards to the legal philosophy discussed, and its application to the situations we see and experience every day.

Posted by Amy Miller on September 21, 2015 54 Comments
Last week's CNN debate stirred the pot in what has been a roller coaster of an early primary season. A post-debate CNN poll showed Carly Fiorina surging into second place behind Donald Trump (a 12% jump since early September,) followed closely by Ben Carson. Right now, it's an outsider's race---but how long can it last? The tendency to wax and wane has been a hallmark of the GOP's "outsider" candidates. Their bumps and slides have had less to do with their budding policy plans, and more to do with how they've handled themselves under the extreme pressure of the national spotlight. Trump (for all his faults and foibles,) Fiorina, and Carson have all found their niche in the conversation, and if that was all it takes to become president, we could vote tomorrow and eliminate the primary state middlemen. Alas. As time wears on, primary voters (who are on the whole completely different animals compared to general election voters) will increasingly demand more and more substance from these candidates, and some pundits cite this as the reason the "outsiders" will become supplanted by more politically experienced candidates.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 21, 2015 17 Comments
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani confirmed what we all, ahem, knew, that when hundreds of thousands of Iranians led by the Iranian leadership chant "Death to America," they don't really mean it. He didn't say "I’d really like to visit Disneyland," but he did downplay the significance. What they mean is, well, here's the explanation, on 60 Minutes:
Steve Kroft: I'm sure you realize that it is difficult for many Americans to get past the fact that President Obama has signed an agreement with a country that says, "Death to America, Death to Israel." How do you explain this? What are they to make of it? Are they to take it literally? Is this for domestic, internal Iranian political consumption? What are Americans to make of it, the language? President Rouhani: This slogan that is chanted is not a slogan against the American people. Our people respect the American people. The Iranian people are not looking for war with any country. But at the same time the policies of the United States have been against the national interests of Iranian people. It's understandable that people will demonstrate sensitivity to this issue. When the people rose up against the shah, the United States aggressively supported the shah until the last moments. In the eight-year war with Iraq, the Americans supported Saddam. People will not forget these things. We cannot forget the past, but at the same time our gaze must be towards the future.
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