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Author: Mike LaChance

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Mike LaChance

Mike LaChance has been covering higher education and politics for Legal Insurrection since 2012. He has also written for American Lookout, Townhall, and Twitchy.

Since 2008 he has contributed work to the Daily Caller, Breitbart, Gateway Pundit, the Center for Security Policy, the Washington Free Beacon, and Ricochet.

Mike is a Generation X, New England lifer who describes his political views as conservative and libertarian.

You can find him on Twitter @MikeLaChance33

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 30, 2015 9 Comments
This seems to happen frequently. As we noted in 2013, the IRS and other workers' unions wanted an exemption from Obamacare, despite the fact that they would be trusted with enforcing it and had been avid supporters of it. Now labor leaders in Los Angeles, who pushed for a minimum wage hike, are suggesting that unions should be exempt from that very rule. From the LA Times:
L.A. labor leaders seek minimum wage exemption for firms with union workers Labor leaders, who were among the strongest supporters of the citywide minimum wage increase approved last week by the Los Angeles City Council, are advocating last-minute changes to the law that could create an exemption for companies with unionized workforces. The push to include an exception to the mandated wage increase for companies that let their employees collectively bargain was the latest unexpected detour as the city nears approval of its landmark legislation to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2020. For much of the past eight months, labor activists have argued against special considerations for business owners, such as restaurateurs, who said they would have trouble complying with the mandated pay increase.

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 30, 2015 6 Comments
Congressman John Delaney of Maryland has noticed a hard shift to the left in the Democratic Party, making him unique among his colleagues. Some Democrats are currently supporting the presidential run of a senator who openly describes himself as a socialist. You would think that's enough to support Delaney's conclusion, but he's more concerned about the blockage of Obama's trade deal. Kevin Cirilli of The Hill:
House Dem: Left has 'hijacked' party message Rep. John Delaney (Md.), a centrist House Democrat, on Friday warned that voices on the left have "hijacked" his party’s message. "With Washington already broken, the last thing we need is a left-wing version of the tea party," Delaney wrote in a Washington Post op-ed published online Thursday evening. "But I am worried about where some of the loudest voices in the room could take the Democratic Party." He said Democrats' "party microphone has been hijacked by people more interested in scoring points than in solving problems." Delaney didn't specifically mention any prominent liberals by name, but he delved into specific policy debates that have divided Democrats in recent weeks, including trade policy. Liberal Democrats including Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) have bucked the White House in opposing legislation that would grant President Obama fast-track trade authority, arguing that it would favor corporations and put U.S. workers in competition with low-wage workers in other countries.

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 29, 2015 21 Comments
If you were paying attention to American politics in 2008, you couldn't escape from the viral Obama "hope" poster created by Shepard Fairey. His simple image became a symbol of the junior senator's presidential campaign and was proudly displayed by Obama supporters on Facebook. Unfortunately for Fairey, his love of Obama was doomed to wither on the vine. Adam B. Lerner of Politico:
'Hope' poster artist Shepard Fairey says Obama let him down Shepard Fairey, the street artist behind the famous “Hope” poster that went viral during Barack Obama’s historic 2008 presidential run, said that the president has not lived up to his expectations. In an interview with Esquire, Fairey acknowledged that “Obama has had a really tough time” but said he’s “not even close” to having lived up to the “Hope” poster created for him. “I mean, drones and domestic spying are the last things I would have thought [he’d support],” Fairey added in the interview, posted Thursday. He tempered his response saying that he’s met the president a few times and that he thinks he is a “quality human being,” adding that his presidential record has been largely dictated by things out of his control. “I’m not giving him a pass for not being more courageous, but I do think the entire system needs an overhaul and taking money out of politics would be a really good first step,” Fairey said.
That's funny. I remember when Democrats touted Obama's fundraising prowess as proof of his ability to be president. Don't worry, Shepard. I'm sure Hillary Clinton will get big money out of politics. (Pun intended.)

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 28, 2015 20 Comments
America's foreign policy in the Middle East is falling apart and health insurance premiums are skyrocketing under Obamacare, but the liberal media feels your pain, America. As usual, it's all about Obama. Amber Phillips of the Washington Post:
President Obama’s legacy is increasingly in legal jeopardy President Obama's second-term agenda, it seems, is in the hands of the courts. Same-sex marriage. Obamacare. Climate change. And now immigration. And in many cases, there is significant doubt about whether his signature initiatives will stand legal scrutiny. The latest blow to Obama's second-term plans came Tuesday when a federal appeals court in New Orleans denied the administration's request to move forward with implementing his expanded executive action on immigration to defer deportation for millions of undocumented immigrants.
That's funny. He didn't run on gay marriage. In fact, Obama said in a 2008 interview with pastor Rick Warren that he believed marriage was between a man and a woman.

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 27, 2015 12 Comments
An explosive new report from David Sirota and Andrew Perez of the International Business Times suggests that preferential treatment in weapon sales was given to Clinton Foundation donors while Hillary Clinton was serving in the state department:
Clinton Foundation Donors Got Weapons Deals From Hillary Clinton's State Department In the years before Hillary Clinton became secretary of state, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia contributed at least $10 million to the Clinton Foundation, the philanthropic enterprise she has overseen with her husband, former president Bill Clinton. Just two months before the deal was finalized, Boeing -- the defense contractor that manufactures one of the fighter jets the Saudis were especially keen to acquire, the F-15 -- contributed $900,000 to the Clinton Foundation, according to a company press release. The Saudi deal was one of dozens of arms sales approved by Hillary Clinton’s State Department that placed weapons in the hands of governments that had also donated money to the Clinton family philanthropic empire, an International Business Times investigation has found.

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 26, 2015 14 Comments
Rand Paul inhabits a unique position in the Republican Party. While he's conservative on some issues, his Libertarian views on others put him at odds with the establishment. His recent filibuster on the Patriot Act is a prime example. Bill Kristol of the Weekly Standard voiced his thoughts on the issue in an appearance on ABC News Sunday. I'm not sure this is a fair line of attack. Evan McMurry of Mediaite has the story:
Kristol: Liberal Democrats Had Rand Paul’s Policies Before He Did A This Week panel noted that Representative Keith Ellison (D-MN) #standswithRand (sigh) over the NSA’s bulk collection of communications data and criminal justice reform, causing Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol to call for a point of clarification. “That’s not fair to Keith,” Kristol said. “Rand stands with Keith. Seriously. They had these positions first. Rand Paul has decided that he wants to be a liberal Democrat, undercut necessary intelligence collection and weaken law enforcement services, and Rand Paul thinks that’s going to sell in the Republican primary.
Here's the video:

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 24, 2015 22 Comments
Department of Justice official Vanita Gupta has come under fire for suggesting the riots in Baltimore and Ferguson should be blamed in part on slavery and Jim Crow laws. J. Christian Adams of PJ Media recently wrote:
DOJ Official: Slavery to Blame for Riots in Ferguson and Baltimore Vanita Gupta, head of the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, has told a lawyers group in Colorado that slavery and Jim Crow helped fuel the Ferguson and Baltimore riots. The last few days have seen a number of fanciful stories with the Obama administration seemingly questioning the authority of local police. I’ve long maintained that the administration is nakedly seeking to federalize policing standards — but get rid of local police? No way, that sounds like something broadcast from a shortwave station in Austin, Texas. But then up steps Vanita Gupta to lend some credibility to the idea that some want to disband local police and replace police powers with the federal government. Speaking to a group of left-wing lawyers in Colorado, Gupta had this to say:
The conversation in these rooms, however, is not about whether to have police or not but about what kind of policing communities want and deserve. There is no question that we need police in our communities.
The conversation? What conversation is Gupta hearing that needs to be corrected? Who brought up the idea we might not need police? Nobody sane, for sure.
Megyn Kelly recently discussed the subject with conservative author Michelle Malkin, who analyzed the issue in a political context.

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 23, 2015 13 Comments
According to a new report from Jeremy W. Peters of the New York Times, there's one Republican candidate that Democrats fear in a 2016 match-up with Hillary Clinton:
A Hillary Clinton Match-Up With Marco Rubio Is a Scary Thought for Democrats WASHINGTON — They use words like “historic” and “charismatic,” phrases like “great potential” and “million-dollar smile.” They notice audience members moved to tears by an American-dream-come-true success story. When they look at the cold, hard political math, they get uneasy. An incipient sense of anxiety is tugging at some Democrats — a feeling tersely captured in four words from a blog post written recently by a seasoned party strategist in Florida: “Marco Rubio scares me.” What is so unnerving to them at this early phase of the 2016 presidential campaign still seems, at worst, a distant danger: the prospect of a head-to-head general-election contest between Mr. Rubio, the Republican senator from Florida, and Hillary Rodham Clinton.
The KOS kids don't seem as concerned:
I think it has some merit. I personally am not "scared" of Hillary facing Rubio in the general, but I do think that he would far and away be the Republicans strongest candidate. That does not mean that I find him impressive in any way - I do not. But I do believe that he could put a dent in the Hispanic advantage that the Democratic part has, and I also think that he could win Florida. Yes, I know, I know - his immigration stance will probably hurt him with both the Hispanic voting block and the RWNJ voting block - but I do believe that Democrats - and the Clinton campaign - should take Rubio very seriously.
Rubio represents the younger, new crop of Republicans who came up in the mid term elections of 2010 and 2014. Whether he represents a danger to Clinton in 2016 or not, he's certainly a reminder of a big problem Democrats currently face.

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 23, 2015 3 Comments
The Obama administration's recent claim that their strategy against ISIS is working is being met with skepticism. On Special Report Thursday night, Charles Krauthammer pointed out the farce of their position. Transcript via Real Clear Politics:
The administration is sounding like Baghdad Bob during the invasion of Iraq. They're losing. Everybody understands that. ISIS, it wasn't only that they took over in Iraq, but it took over the town of -- the city of Amara in Syria which gives them control of half of Syria and later in the day today, they took over a crucial crossing point between Syria and Iraq, essentially erasing the frontier and making it easier to resupply Ramadi. These are huge strategic gains. They're not tactical defeats. And what Obama says, well, it's not because it's the guys trained by us who were in Ramadi, this is nuts. The idea is if you're going to have success, you have to have training and you have to have will. The idea that what the Iraqis are lacking is training is ridiculous. We've been training them for 15 years. If the troops haven't got their heart in the battle, it will not succeed. And that's what happened in Mosul when they ran away and that's what happened in Ramadi when they ran away.
Here's the video via Newsbusters: Krauthammer isn't alone in this view.

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 22, 2015 29 Comments
As Professor Jacobson pointed out yesterday, Hillary's email problems keep getting worse. But what would happen to Hillary if she wasn't a powerful and connected politician? What if she was an average citizen or more importantly, a member of our armed forces? An American soldier named Chad Longell recently made that point at IJ Review:
I Am A Soldier. Here’s What Would Happen If I Used Email Like Hillary Clinton Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s personal emails are in the news again, and members of the U.S. military and intelligence community sense that there’s a dangerous double standard developing regarding the handling of classified information. I know this because I currently serve. The New York Times revealed Monday that Clinton regularly discussed and circulated emails from close family associate Sidney Blumenthal as a source for Libyan intelligence prior to the Benghazi attacks on September 11, 2012.

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 21, 2015 12 Comments
MSNBC's Morning Joe recently asked a panel of Iowa Democrats to cite something, anything, that Hillary Clinton accomplished in her role as secretary of state. The silence was deafening. Daniel Halper of the Weekly Standard:
Iowa Dems Can’t Name an Accomplishment Secretary of State Hillary Clinton In a video played this morning on MSNBC, Iowa Democrats were not able to name an accomplishment of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the presumptive Democratic presidential frontrunner... "I really can't name anything off the top of my head," one voter says after letting out a long sigh. Another asks the interviewer, "Want to give me a minute? Give me two minutes."
Watch the video below:

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 20, 2015 9 Comments
The American people are learning that Hillary Clinton doesn't like to answer questions and a new ad from American Crossroads focuses like a laser on the issue:
New American Crossroads Ad Calls Out Hillary Clinton for Dodging Tough Questions WASHINGTON – Today, American Crossroads released a new web ad calling out Hillary Clinton for continuing to dodge tough questions and provide non-answers to the few inquiries to which she has been forced to respond. “Despite being a candidate for president, Hillary Clinton is determined to dodge important questions about her positions and provide non-answers to inquiries about her ethical troubles,” said Ian Prior, Communications Director for American Crossroads. “Whether the issue is trade, the Keystone Pipeline, or the influence of foreign donors, Americans deserve better than transparent spin and crickets from Hillary Clinton.”
Watch the ad: As long as we're on Hillary ads, there's another one I'd like to share with you.

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 19, 2015 9 Comments
You may have noticed that our unbiased media is asking Republicans lots of questions about the Iraq War. Hillary Clinton is the only 2016 candidate who voted for the Iraq War as a senator; she was also directly involved with the war in her role at the State Department. Perhaps she deserves a few similar questions---when she finally decides to take one. Last night, Bill O'Reilly opened his show by discussing new initiatives America is taking to deal with ISIS, but as Charles Krauthammer pointed out, there are many questions Hillary Clinton still has to answer on this subject. As a senator, she opposed the surge in Iraq and implied that David Petraeus was lying during his congressional testimony. Does she still agree? Clinton was the secretary of state when we pulled out of Iraq in 2011. Was that a mistake?

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 17, 2015 5 Comments
President George W. Bush gave the commencement speech at Southern Methodist University this weekend. His speech was humorous at times but drew a major amount of applause when Bush touched on the subject of religious liberty. David McCabe of The Hill:
George W. Bush defends religious liberty Former President George W. Bush offered a defense of religious liberty and faith more broadly while speaking at Southern Methodist University’s (SMU) commencement ceremony Saturday. He spent some of his speech talking about why graduates should be hopeful as they move on from their college years. Towards the end, he offered one more. “And finally, you can be hopeful because there is a loving god,” he said. “Whether you agree with that statement is your choice, it is not your government’s choice.” “It is essential to this nation’s future that we remember that the freedom to worship who we want, and how we want — or not to worship at all — is a core belief of our founding.”
This video has that segment of the speech:

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 17, 2015 14 Comments
California Democrat Loretta Sanchez has come under fire for using a stereotypical and cartoonish gesture to describe Native Americans. From the Los Angeles Daily News:
Senate candidate Loretta Sanchez apologizes for Indian whooping-cry caricature U.S. Senate candidate Loretta Sanchez has apologized after a videotape surfaced showing her making a whooping cry in reference to Native Americans during an apparent joke. Speaking to delegates at a state Democratic convention Sunday, the 10-term congresswoman said she said something offensive “and for that I sincerely apologize.” The video, which was shared on social media, shows Sanchez tapping her hand over her open mouth and making a whooping sound while speaking to a group of delegates Saturday. Her chief rival in the Senate race, Attorney General Kamala Harris, called the gesture shocking. Sanchez said everyone makes mistakes and defended her record on civil rights, human rights and Native American rights. Sanchez said American Indians have “a great presence in our country and many of them are supporting our election.” Harris, whose mother was an immigrant from India, said, “There is no place for that in our public discourse.”
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