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February 2016

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on February 17, 2016 16 Comments
After a machete-wielding terrorist injured four people in his restaurant, Hany Baransi, owner of Nazareth deli in Columbus, Ohio will update his decor. The attacker asked if Initial reports indicated a small Israeli flag greeted Nazareth customers when they entered the deli along with an Arabic sign, "Ahlan Wa Sahalan" or "“You are my family, take it easy.” The little symbol of Israeli pride will be replaced for a much bigger one. Ohio restaurant, terror attack

Posted by Mike LaChance on February 17, 2016 16 Comments
Jesse Hughes is the front man for Eagles of Death Metal, the band which was performing in the Bataclan theater during the Paris terror attack. The band is returning to finish their show and Hughes gave an interview to a French TV show. When guns came up, things got interesting and emotional. Eric Scheiner of CNS News reports:
Eagles of Death Metal Frontman: 'Did Your French Gun Control' Stop Anyone From Being Killed at Bataclan in Paris? In a recent interview with French iTélé, Hughes said that French gun laws did nothing to help the victims.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on February 17, 2016 8 Comments
I don't know that this comes close to the various Obama anthems from 2008, but it's a start. There's a new video anthem for Bernie Sanders, produced by the woman who produced the viral Obama Girl video. The anthem title is "Bernie Bae" (Bae is slang for Before Anyone Else). Time Magazine (which apparently still exists) reports:
The woman who brought us the mega-viral hit “Crush On Obama” is back with another political pop song just begging to go viral. This one is about Bernie Sanders. It’s called “Bernie Bae.” The production values in this music video are much higher this time around—and we have to admit, the song is quite catchy.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on February 16, 2016 5 Comments
On Monday night, February 15, 2016, the student government council at the University of Illinois - Chicago unanimously (14-0) passed a divestment resolution proposed by Students for Justice in Palestine and a coalition of other student groups. That passage is being promoted by anti-Israel activists, including Jewish Voice for Peace, as a major victory for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campus movement. But passage of the resolution isn't the real story. The real story is that the resolution that passed did not single out Israel, and applied to any and all alleged human rights abuses anywhere in the world, specifically also mentioning the United States, China, Britain and other countries. As such, the watered-down resolution amounted to a universal statement of principles, not a condemnation of Israel. The UIC Coalition for Peace, which included pro-Israel students, can claim this as a victory for fair treatment of Israel.

Posted by Jonathan Levin on February 16, 2016 28 Comments
Media discussion of Justice Scalia's death and its implications for the public unions case Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association overstates the impact and misses the larger issue. Before Justice Scalia died, it was very likely the Court would hold that it is unconstitutional for state law to require, or even simply allow, "agency shop" agreements compelling non-union members to nevertheless contribute to the union's collective bargaining and related expenses.  Now, the Court will probably affirm the Ninth Circuit's decision upholding agency shop agreements, but without setting precedent. That is obviously a better outcome for the Union, but how long will it last?  The New York Times says "a major threat to public unions has evaporated."  Reuters writes more temperately that "a 4-4 split is a likely outcome, which would hand a win to the unions as that would leave the lower court's ruling in their favor in place."

Posted by Mike LaChance on February 16, 2016 25 Comments
Back in 2007, Chuck Schumer stated plainly that Democrats should block all U.S. Supreme Court judges nominated by then president George W. Bush. There is no other way to interpret his words: Having been confronted with this irrefutable evidence that Democrats played partisan politics on this very issue, Schumer has responded by claiming that was totally different. Sam Reisman of Mediaite:

Posted by David Gerstman on February 16, 2016 6 Comments
We hear from critics of Israel that Israel needs a two-state solution to be  legitimate. Without a Palestinian state, the argument goes, Israel will rule over millions of resentful Palestinians to whom it will have to deny their basic rights in order to maintain its Jewish nature. Or if Israel enfranchises the Palestinians, they could overwhelm the Jews with their votes and then Israel would cease to be a Jewish state. So the reasoning goes, without a separate Palestinian state, Israel will either cease being Jewish or democratic. But there was already a separation achieved in 1993, with the signing of the Oslo Accords. By the end of 1995 Israel had withdrawn from the major population areas in the West Bank, leaving over 90% of Palestinians under the political control of the Palestinian Authority. In 2005, Israel "disengaged" from Gaza ending the occupation of that territory.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on February 16, 2016 5 Comments
As Hillary tries to assure the progressive-socialist base of her party that she is not beholden to corporate or Wall Street money, super PACs supporting her campaign are purposefully wooing these same deep-pocketed donors. The Washington Post reports:
Two powerful organizations within the Democratic establishment announced steps Friday that have the potential to provide substantial financial firepower to presidential contender Hillary Clinton by drawing on the support of wealthy donors and corporate interests. . . . .  Priorities USA Action, the main super PAC supporting Clinton, unleashed a $5 million infusion of spending on her behalf, upending plans to hold its fire until the general election. The move calls attention to growing concern within the party’s leadership that her campaign may be in trouble, and it underscores how crucial several upcoming contests have become in Clinton’s battle with Sanders, a senator from Vermont.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on February 16, 2016 127 Comments
Following Trump's eye-brow raising assertions that President Bush was not only responsible for 9/11 but purposefully and intentionally lied about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, he faced a barrage of criticism from the right. Those on the right argued that he was not only wrong but that he sounded a bit too much like the "Bush lied, people died" sputterings of the fringe left (and of left-leaning "journalists" like Ron Fournier). Indeed, Dick Cheney noted on Monday that Trump's comments make him seem like a "liberal Democrat." The Blaze reports:

Posted by Leslie Eastman on February 16, 2016 23 Comments
There are moments I always recall with great clarity. Learning about the death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia will be one of those events. As I have been closely following this news, I have noticed that there is a lot of chatter about the circumstances of his death and the disposition of his body. For example, reading The Drudge Report headlines, I could almost believe this story might soon be featured on Forensic Files. While dialoging with fans of Legal Insurrection's cartoonist, Antonio F. Branco, I noticed many comments I had also read elsewhere. For example, suspicious were shared about the pillow found over his head. Many Americans are expressing worries about the lack of an autopsy that would have confirmed the ruling of "natural death". I wanted to share some perspectives, which I thought might be helpful, based on my own experiences.

Posted by Vijeta Uniyal on February 16, 2016 0 Comments
British Prime Minister David Cameron’s government has proposed new directives to combat anti-Israel boycott in the United Kingdom. Under the proposed regulations, universities, city councils, state-run health services and other government-funded public organisation will be not be allowed to discriminate against products made in Israel. The announcement comes on the heels of a bill introduced in the US congress to combat anti-Israel boycott campaign. “The Combating BDS Act of 2016" wants to give more power to the states to act against businesses that boycot or divest from Israel. According to the reports in British media, Cabinet Office Minister Matthew Hancock is expected to announce the details during his trip to Israel in coming days, citing concerns that such campaigns directed towards Israel fuel antisemitism. The London-based newspaper The Indepedent reports:

Posted by Mike LaChance on February 16, 2016 21 Comments
At a campaign appearance in Nevada yesterday, Hillary Clinton told a story about an old campaign ad that featured a barking dog and then... proceeded to bark like a dog. CNN reported:
Hillary Clinton barks like a dog to slam Republicans Clinton was in the middle of a riff about how, in her view, Republicans say things that are not true, when she remembered a radio ad that she said ran in rural Arkansas while her husband, Bill Clinton, was running for office. "(Republicans) actually, with a straight face, say that the great recession was caused by too much regulation on Wall Street. They actually say that," Clinton said.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on February 15, 2016 17 Comments
Vassar College has been rocked by a series of anti-Israel, anti-Semitic events. Apparently the President of Vassar, Catharine Hill, has received numerous alumni complaints and concerns, because she issued a statement to alumni seeking to allay their concerns. But in the process, the President sought to shift the responsibility by blaming "online publications" and "social media" for the controversy. I don't know if the President included Legal Insurrection in her criticism, but please scroll through our Vassar College Tag so you can see how thoroughly we have documented all our reporting. As background, anti-Israel activism has led to anti-Semitic incidents in 2014 and 2016. Among other things, in 2014 Jewish students who stood up at a campus-wide forumwere mocked and jeered by a raucous crowd of students and faculty, a class was picketed and a professor forced to cross a picket line of ululating students because the course involved a trip to Israel (and the West Bank), Students for Justice in Palestine posted a Nazi cartoon on social media, and pro-Israel displays were vandalized.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on February 15, 2016 2 Comments
Bernie Sanders is Jewish and worked on a kibbutz in Israel in the 1960s. Bernie supports Israel's right to exist, though he's decidedly more into the "balanced" approach compared to other candidates, and has questionable Middle East advisors. Bernie doesn't wear either his Judaism or Zionism on his sleeve, unlike his socialism. To the contrary, when given the perfect opportunity at the last Democratic PBS debate Thursday night, February, 2016. Gwen Ifill asked Bernie if his candidacy would "thwart" history by denying the opportunity for Hillary to become the first female president. It was a perfect opportunity for Bernie to make the point that he also would be a first -- the first Jewish president. But Bernie didn't go there, instead he danced around the issue and said that it would be historic for "someone of my background and views" to be president:

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on February 15, 2016 20 Comments
Justice Scalia's untimely passing has the entire political arena stressed. Senate Republicans refuse to confirm another justice until the next president is elected, but President Obama insists he will move forward with a nominee. NBC News has the breakdown:
While the president said Saturday was "a time to remember Justice Scalia's legacy," he did announce his intention to nominate a successor. The Republican Senate majority leader and chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee called for the decision to be delayed and left to the next president.
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