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Author: Kemberlee Kaye

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Kemberlee Kaye

Kemberlee Kaye is the Senior Contributing Editor of Legal Insurrection, where she has worked since 2014 and is the Director of Operations and Editorial Development for the Legal Insurrection Foundation. She also serves as the Managing Editor for CriticalRace.org, a research project of the Legal Insurrection Foundation.

She has a background working in immigration law, and as a grassroots organizer, digital media strategist, campaign lackey, and muckraker. Over the years Kemberlee has worked with FreedomWorks, Americans for Prosperity, James O'Keefe's Project Veritas, and US Senate re-election campaigns, among others. 

Kemberlee, her daughter, and her son live a lovely taco-filled life in their native Texas.

You can reach her anytime via email at kk @ legalinsurrection.com.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 26, 2015 14 Comments
According to a breaking news report from the Associated Press, New York prison escapee, Richard Matt, was shot and killed by police. The manhunt has been underway for close to three weeks. The other escapee, David Sweat, is still at large and being pursued by law enforcement.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 26, 2015 11 Comments
Revelations of the Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) massive data breach seems to get worse by the day. Thursday we discussed that per the FBI, the number of people who's personal data was compromised is upwards of 18 million. OPM's estimates were around 4 million. In a hearing Thursday, it was revealed that OPM Director Katherine Archuleta hadn't bothered to speak with the FBI about their numeric discrepancy. Archuleta was also unwilling to answer whether or not prescription and other sensitive health-related data was accessed by hackers. The White House has also been implicated in this bottomless pit of fail. Wednesday it was disclosed the White House intentionally hid the extent of the OPM hack. Friday, Fox News reported that according to a senior U.S. official, the data breach included access to "adjudication information;" information used to determine security clearances.
...The Daily Beast, citing a senior U.S. official, reported that the hackers, believed to be based in China, gained access to so-called "adjudication information," sensitive facts compiled by U.S. investigators about government employees and contractors who apply for a security clearance. The "adjudication information" goes beyond what is required of employees filling out a routine clearance questionnaire, known as Standard Form (SF) 86. The Obama administration admitted earlier this month that information in those forms had been compromised by the hackers. If the theft of "adjudication information" is confirmed, whoever carried out the hack would have access to a list of federal employees and contractors who are likely targets for blackmail or engagement in espionage against the United States.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 25, 2015 11 Comments
Only in Washington D.C. would someone like Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Director Katherine Archuleta still have a job. In a hearing Thursday, Archueleta was questioned by an annoyed Sen. McCain over the agency's massive data breach, now believed to be much worse than originally reported. Fox News reported Thursday that the White House intentionally hid the extent of the OPM hack:
The Obama administration reportedly concealed the true amount of information compromised by a cyberattack on the federal Office of Personnel Management (OPM) for several days after the initial disclosure of the hack, according to a published report. The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that the day after the White House admitted that hackers had breached personnel files, OPM publicly denied that the security clearance forms had been compromised despite receiving information to the contrary from the FBI. The administration did not say that security clearance forms had likely been accessed by the intruders until more than a week had passed. A OPM spokeswoman denied the claims, telling the Journal the agency had been "completely consistent" in its reporting of the data breach.
Thursday, Senator McCain grilled Archuleta, attempting to get solid answer about the scope of the OPM data breach. Aruchuelta had few answers and often deferred to colleagues in other federal agencies. On the Sony hacking by China, Archuleta had no answer. On the issue of prescription and other health related data breaches, Archuleta also had no answer. It's almost like there's a theme here...

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 25, 2015 43 Comments
And the derpfest rages on. Apple has joined other retailers in boycotting the Confederate flag by removing Civil War games from the App Store. Apple’s Tim Cook spearheaded the move. "In a tweet, Cook called to honor the lives of the victims in last week’s tragic South Carolina shooting by “eradicating racism & removing the symbols & words that feed it.” An Alabama native like myself, Cook has been a strong proponent for equality during his tenure as CEO, often speaking out against the South’s tarnished history and the changes we still need to address," writes 9 to 5 Mac. According to Touch Arcade, "the reasoning Apple is sending developers is "...because it includes images of the confederate flag used in offensive and mean-spirited ways." Right, because all history should be polite, unoffensive, and politically correct. Nevermind the fact that in each of these scenarios the Confederacy is ultimately defeated... Some of the games in exile look super offensivey, don't they? Ultimate General: Gettysburg AAA American Civil War Cannon Shooter Civil War: Hidden Mysteries Civil War The Battle Game Civil War Defense Civil War Battle Defense 1861 A Civil War Rebellion Civil War: 1862 Civil War: 1863

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 25, 2015 31 Comments
History has a way of bastardizing politically expedient talking points. For example, the Republican party's long-standing though not widely reported history of standing athwart the institution of slavery. As it turns out in 1987, then Governor Clinton boasted that the blue star on the Arkansas State flag was an homage to the Confederacy. Oops. Guess the New York Times forgot about that. Mark Steyn joined Sean Hannity Wednesday to discuss the Confederate flag issue. "The idea that Republicans can have the Confederate flag hung around their necks is ridiculous, it's a Democrat flag. The states that seceded during the Civil War were all Democrat states. That's their flag." "The slave states were democrat states, the racist states until the 1960s were Democrat states. The Democratic party was the largest and most powerful institution supporting slavery in the English speaking world, and it is the only one that has survived to the twenty-first century."

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 24, 2015 29 Comments
The arbitrary deadline to come to a nuclear agreement is less than a week away. Yet again, Iran's Supreme leader took to Twitter to make his demands -- demands not congruent with previous agreements. The New York Times reported Tuesday:
In a speech broadcast live on Iran state television, the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, demanded that most sanctions be lifted before Tehran has dismantled part of its nuclear infrastructure and before international inspectors verify that the country is beginning to meet its commitments. He also ruled out any freeze on Iran’s sensitive nuclear enrichment for as long as a decade, as a preliminary understanding announced in April stipulates, and he repeated his refusal to allow inspections of Iranian military sites. American officials said they would not be baited into a public debate with the ayatollah, who has the final word on nuclear matters. But with Western foreign ministers already hinting that the negotiations may go past the June 30 deadline, both American and European officials have said in recent weeks that they are increasingly concerned about the possible effects of the ayatollah’s statements.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 24, 2015 32 Comments
Ah yes, the media and gun control. Senator Cruz joined PBS host Tavis Smiley Tuesday. Smiley seized the opportunity to peg Sen. Cruz on gun control. "To me and to others who've seen this, it seemed in bad taste, but maybe that's my assessment," Smiley said. "We all know what happened in Charleston the other day, and you were on the campaign trail after this happened, here's what you said on the campaign trail." Smiley then showed Sen. Cruz a clip bearing a HuffPo watermark, dated June 19 when Cruz was addressing a crowd in Iowa. "We need a second amendment, the right to keep and bear arms. You know the great thing about the state of Iowa, I'm pretty sure y'all define 'gun control' the same way we do in Texas -- hittin' what you aim at," Cruz explained as the audience chuckled. "Gun control is hitting what you aim at. Those comments were made after this tragedy the other day in South Carolina the other day, was that in bad taste?" Smiley asked.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 23, 2015 15 Comments
Despite gender fluidity's fifteen minutes of progressive fame, men and women still hold differing opinions on what is "morally acceptable" in the confines of a romantic relationship. Polling released by Gallup Monday showed that the spectrum of "morally acceptable" behaviors has grown, but a crevasse splits men and women on issues like pornography, divorce, polygamy, extramarital affairs, and oddly, having children out of wedlock. Women are more accepting of having children outside of marriage and divorce. Women too, are less likely to find homosexuality morally unacceptable. Gallup Polling Men and Women

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 22, 2015 20 Comments
Last week, we discussed the Treasury Department's ill-conceived decision to boot Alexander Hamilton off the $10 bill in exchange for a yet-to-be-determined gal. Monday, the former Federal Reserve chairman wrote he was "appalled" by the Treasury Department's latest announcement. And because it's 2015, Bernanke blogged his disgust:
I must admit I was appalled to hear of Treasury Secretary Jack Lew's decision last week to demote Alexander Hamilton from his featured position on the ten dollar bill... Hamilton, the first Secretary of the Treasury, would qualify as among the greatest of our founders for his contributions to achieving American independence and creating the Constitution alone. In addition to those accomplishments, however, Hamilton was without doubt the best and most foresighted economic policymaker in U.S. history. As detailed in Ron Chernow's excellent biography, as Treasury Secretary Hamilton put in place the institutional basis for the modern U.S. economy. Critically, he helped put U.S. government finances on a sound footing, consolidating the debts of the states and setting up a strong federal fiscal system. The importance of Hamilton's achievement can be judged by the problems that the combination of uncoordinated national fiscal policies and a single currency has caused the Eurozone in recent years. Reflecting on those parallels, as Fed chairman I recommended Chernow's biography to Mario Draghi, the president of the European Central Bank. Mario told me that he read it with great interest.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 22, 2015 14 Comments
Of everything I've witnessed from the pro-abortion crowd this ad quickly took its place among the most disturbing. It's not disturbing because it's gruesome or gory or because it mocks pro-lifers -- it doesn't. "The End of Pretending" is uniquely disturbing because it seeks to make the senseless murder of an unborn child the solution to a less than perfect life. "Let's pretend that life is perfect and everything happens exactly as you plan," the ad begins says. It goes on to paint what I suppose is a "dream" scenario of a perfect life. But because we all know that life isn't perfect, you'll probably need an abortion, suggests the ad. In an interesting departure from the "reproductive rights" mantra, UltraViolet chose to call abortion a "productive" right; which makes sense if you view children as disposable glob of cells impeding the road to your dream job. Take a look:

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 22, 2015 17 Comments
IranTruth.org hopes to expose the dangers of the Obama administration's dealings with Iran. As part of the site launch, IranTruth released a new video chronicling the devolution of President Obama's Iran stance, beginning with Senator Obama's campaign promises:

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 21, 2015 7 Comments
Think tanks, policy wonks, legislative staffers, and politijunkies are eagerly awaiting the Supreme Court's ruling on King v. Burwell. As for the rest of the country, most have clue why this case is so crucial. John David Danielson of The Federalist addressed this issue Thursday:
According to a new poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation, 7 in 10 Americans have heard little or nothing about King v. Burwell, the U.S. Supreme Court case that will, any day now, decide the fate of Obamacare’s health insurance subsidies for millions of Americans. Yet 63 percent of those surveyed also say that if the court rules against the government, Congress should act to keep those subsidies in place. Got that? The vast majority of Americans know almost nothing about this case, but 63 percent have an opinion about what Congress should do in response to a ruling that carries certain policy implications.
Thanks for nothing, Media. But what about those enrolled in Obamacare? The Foundation for Government Accountability surveyed voters enrolled in a federal exchange heath care plan. Obamacare customers do think Congress should act to change the law, but not for the same reasons as the general respondents surveyed in the Kaiser Family Foundation poll.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 19, 2015 15 Comments
Through the course of conversation, I found many of my freedom-loving friends had never heard of Juneteenth. Being a native Texan living right up the road from Galveston, maybe I've taken for granted that the 19th of June has always been a day of significance and celebration. President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863 two years into the Civil War, but the proclamation's issuance didn't trigger nationwide freedom for the enslaved. While the Civil War came to a welcome end on June 2, 1865, it wasn't until June 19th that the last slaves learned they were free. It was on Juneteenth that Union General Granger read "General Order No. 3" on the balcony of Galveston's Ashton Villa.
The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor. The freedmen are advised to remain quietly at their present homes and work for wages. They are informed that they will not be allowed to collect at military posts and that they will not be supported in idleness either there or elsewhere.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 19, 2015 13 Comments
The progressive opposition research machine/PAC thing, American Bridge, is wetting their britches over what might be the absolutely lamest "gotcha" video I've ever seen. American Bridge describes itself as a, "progressive research and communications organization committed to holding Republicans accountable for their words and actions and helping you ascertain when Republican candidates are pretending to be something they’re not." They send trackers to all kinds of meetings in the hopes of catching a Republican candidate or politician spilling their deepest, darkest, Koch-funded secrets. The super secret Jeb video was described as follows:
Only a day into his official campaign for president, Jeb Bush fielded a town hall question about Social Security. And it didn’t take him long to slam the critical seniors’ program. Then he started talking about his brother — the brother who, as president, notoriously went all-in trying to make partial Social Security privatization happen. And not to leave any question lingering, Jeb made sure to note that “the next president” would have to try what his brother did again. This, from the guy who’s running to be the next president. We caught it on video. You need to watch it for yourself and share this with your friends.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 19, 2015 21 Comments
Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich moonlights as a tech reporter for Mashable. Friday, Mashable published Gingrich's first tech review -- the Apple Watch. Gingrich has been field testing the Apple Watch this month and decided to test it's usability at a TSA checkpoint:

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 18, 2015 20 Comments
Sid Blumenthal's testimony before the House Select Committee on Benghazi created even more questions about former Secretary Clinton's private email usage. Blumenthal provided the committee with 60 new emails; emails the committee says the State Department did not provide. The State Department kicked the can back to Mrs. Clinton saying they didn't turn over the Blumenthal emails because Mrs. Clinton never passed them on to the State Department. This revelation only confirms suspicions that emails relevant to the Benghazi investigation exist, but have not been handed over to either the State Department or the House Select Committee. Fox News reports:

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 18, 2015 59 Comments
Up until Wednesday night, I figured the push to have a woman's mug gracing American currency was nothing more than internet fun. Apparently, this is a thing that's actually happening. Late Wednesday evening, Benny Johnson and Justin Green of IJ Review reported the new $10 could be available as soon as 2020:
The Treasury Department is preparing to announce that they are putting a woman on the $10 bill, as a source has confirmed what appears to be a premature tweet. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew will announce Thursday that the Bureau of Engraving and Printing will put a woman on the bill as soon as 2020.
The Treasury attempted to be female friendly in 1978 when they printed $1 coins featuring Susan B. Anthony's face. Only 1/3 of the coins were circulated though. Despite the convenience of the $1 coin, the fad never really caught on. When it comes to having a woman's face on the cash I use to buy shoes, books, and americanos, I'm indifferent. It all spends the same. If anything, I loathe the idea that because I'm a woman I'm supposed to applaud or champion all women firsts a la "it's time a woman _____!" Being a woman and doing something a man did years before is not in itself an accomplishment. Likewise, slapping a woman's face on a $10 bill isn't a cause to celebrate.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 17, 2015 22 Comments
Don't ever change, Internet. Otherwise how else would we be able to enjoy the simple pleasures in life, like this hillbilly banjo band hilariously heckling marathon runners? From a local Fox News affiliate in Franklin, TN:
Marathon runners in Leiper’s Fork were greeted with an unexpected surprise along their route in Franklin Half Marathon a few weeks ago. Runners usually expect to see friends and family as they run, but it’s not often that they see a hillbilly band parked along the side of the path to heckle them.
Serenading runners with "Dueling Banjos", the hillbilly band set up on the back of a truck, under the cover of a patio umbrella. Hollering things like, "where ya going?" "where y'all running from?" "what's your hurry?" and "slow down young man!" one gentleman beat a trash can lid on the side of a water trough and another bare-chested, overall-clad man danced a jig and chased runners around. Yet another man, who was lounging atop a five gallon paint drum in cut off cammo pants, joined his overalled companion in dancing a jig while brandishing an ax. It's a perfect slice of internet heaven:
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