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Posted by Jay Caruso on July 04, 2015 3 Comments
Americans often look to the president during certain times in our country. They look for hope in the context of tragedy, as they did to Ronald Reagan following the space shuttle Challenger disaster. They look for healing in the wake of evil, as they did with Bill Clinton after the Oklahoma City bombing. They look for resoluteness and leadership as they did with Franklin D. Roosevelt following the attack on Pearl Harbor and as they did with George W. Bush after the attacks of 9/11. Often times, Americans look to presidents to inspire: to remind Americans of the greatness of our country, both past and present. In Ronald Reagan's 1986 Independence Day address, he did just that:

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Posted by William A. Jacobson on July 04, 2015 13 Comments
I have run the video below a number of times, starting on July 4, 2012. It's a video of Victory over Japan (VJ) Day, August 14, 1945. For some reason, it seems so appropriate to play on July 4. It was forwarded to me by reader TowsonLawyer, who wrote:
Just in time for the Fourth of July - Lost Film from 1945
Here's the story from Richard Sullivan:
67 Years Ago my Dad shot this film along Kalakaua Ave. in Waikiki capturing spontaneous celebrations that broke out upon first hearing news of the Japanese surrender. Kodachrome 16mm film: God Bless Kodachrome, right? I was able to find an outfit (mymovietransfer.com) to do a much superior scan of this footage to what I had previously posted, so I re-did this film and replaced the older version There are more still images from this amazing day, in color, at discoveringhawaii.com.
What it must have felt like.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on July 03, 2015 45 Comments
We have covered the slippery slope that leads to polygamist marriage many times, long before the recent Supreme Court ruling: Now there is a post-SCOTUS story about how Montana polygamist family applies for marriage license:
BILLINGS - Given the U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling that same-sex marriage is legal in all 50 states, a Lockwood family is now looking to solidify rights of its own. We first told you about the Colliers in January of 2015 when the polygamist family appeared on an episode of the TLC show, "Sister Wives."

Posted by William A. Jacobson on July 03, 2015 21 Comments
On June 30, 2015, I appeared on the Joe Thomas Show on WCHV in Charlottesville, VA, to talk about the state of the Supreme Court, and the two recent blockbuster decisions in gay marriage and Obamacare. We touched on the rulings, the reaction, and proposals to put limits on the Court, such as judicial-retention elections suggested by Ted Cruz, and proposals for term limits. The article I reference during the interview is from Roll Call, Reagan Aides Foresaw Kennedy Gay-Rights Views That Conservatives Now Lament. Bottom line: We have reached the point of absurdity when the nation waits anxiously to find out how one person -- the swing vote on the court -- will vote on issues that decide the course of the nation.
"Think how absurd it is for a nation to be waiting by the radio, or the TV, or nowadays the internet, how is the Supreme Court going to decide an issue as fundamental as the issue of marriage, and everybody knew it would come down to one vote. So we're waiting on one person to decide the future of our country, and whether you like it or not, if you like the decision, what if it had gone the other way by one vote, how would you feel? So I think we really do have a situation where so many things are decided by a single vote in the Supreme Court that we really have to wonder if that's how we want to run our lives as a nation."
Society no longer is governed by "one person, one vote," but by one person's vote. This is no way to run a country. Here's the audio below:

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Posted by New Neo on July 03, 2015 21 Comments
By now you probably know that George Takei, who played Sulu in "Star Trek" and who recently married his longtime partner in a same-sex marriage, had this to say about Clarence Thomas' declaration in his dissent in the same-sex marriage case that human dignity cannot be taken away by government, even by slavery, because it is a God-given attribute inherent in being human:
TAKEI: He is a clown in black face sitting on the Supreme Court. He gets me that angry. He doesn’t belong there. And for him to say, slaves have dignity. I mean, doesn’t he know that slaves were in chains? That they were whipped on the back. If he saw the movie 12 Years a Slave, you know, they were raped. And he says they had dignity as slaves or – My parents lost everything that they worked for, in the middle of their lives, in their 30s [he is referring here to the WWII Japanese American internment camps]. His business, my father’s business, our home, our freedom and we’re supposed to call that dignified? Marched out of our homes at gun point. I mean, this man does not belong on the Supreme Court. He is an embarrassment. He is a disgrace to America.
I'm discussing this issue not because of George Takei himself, but because what he says is emblematic of the approach of the left to argument, and to the presence of black conservatives, who are considered a special affront worthy of particular contempt. This is certainly not the first time Clarence Thomas has endured insults of a specifically racist nature. Most people have focused on the "clown in black face" remark. But that's almost a distraction from the rest. Here are some of the elements of leftist argument that Takei's attack illustrates:

Posted by David Gerstman on July 03, 2015 4 Comments
Two recent articles document the multiple American capitulations to Iran in pursuit of a nuclear deal. One is Friday's column by Charles Krauthammer, which showed the numerous retreats the administration has taken from ensuring that Iran will stick to an agreement. Another is by Lee Smith, who earlier this week covered a number of retreats the administration took in allowing Iran to maintain its nuclear infrastructure. The administration's goal seems not to be preventing Iran from making a nuclear weapon but to making a deal. Iranian TV is talking tough: Krauthammer summarizes how the administration backed down from inspections, Iran's having to account for its past illicit nuclear research, as well as its generous application of sanctions relief. The matter of past nuclear work is necessary (and it's something that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei refuses discuss) in order to know the full extent of Iran's nuclear program. Here's what happened:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on July 03, 2015 11 Comments
The Obama administration has received sharp rebukes from federal trial and appeals courts for his post-election plan to grant DREAM Act-like status through administrative rules.   That plan, which would have granted de facto amnesty to approximately 5 million people, now is on hold until further argument this month in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. But under the radar, Obama has been accomplishing a more sweeping de facto amnesty through deliberate non-enforcement of the deportation laws.   This has not receive a lot of attention, as the nation went from one social crisis to another over the past few months. Baltimore - Charleston - Confederate Flag - Gay Marriage - Obamacare. All those and more have dominated the media and political attention for months. The Washington Post just published a report on the major policy shift deliberately, Obama administration scales back deportations in policy shift:

Posted by Mike LaChance on July 03, 2015 12 Comments
In the newest edition of Afterburner, Bill Whittle sets the historic record straight on the difference between Democrats and Republicans when it comes to racism. The Republican Party was founded to end slavery while Democrats sought secession to preserve the practice. The Confederate flag, which is a big problem all of a sudden, was created by Democrats. Walk up to any person in the street and ask them which of the two major parties created the KKK. The correct answer is the Democratic Party but sadly, I'd bet against the public answering that question correctly every time. Have you ever been told the progressive myth that the parties "switched" at some point? Whittle gets into all of this and walks you through history right up to the present day.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on July 03, 2015 4 Comments
The United Church of Christ recently passed a resolution adopting part of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) platform. The resolution purported to demand divestment from the "occupation," but in fact a late amendment broadened it substantially to include virtually every Israeli company, as I explained in my prior analysis. (Another resolution, declaring Israeli guilty of the Crime of Apartheid, had a split vote short of the 2/3 needed for passage.) Throughout the committee-level and annual meeting debate and presentations about divestment, aligning UCC with BDS was repeatedly stressed as part of a peaceful process of ending the conflict. The anti-Israel Jewish Voice for Peace played a central role in Jew-washing the nature of the BDS movement, allowing BDS supporters at UCC to say - hey, look, there are Jews who support what we are doing. [caption id="attachment_132637" align="alignnone" width="600"][Speaker in support of divestment says "Stand with Jewish Voice for Peace"] [Speaker in support of divestment says "Stand with Jewish Voice for Peace"][/caption]If UCC's delegates and leadership thought aligning UCC with BDS was a move towards peace, it was severely duped. Here's a perfect example of how BDS is against peaceful reconciliation. The YaLa Young Leaders conference attempts to bring Israeli youth together with Arab youth from around the world. We first wrote about the conference in 2014. Since then, it has grown to even greater success:

Posted by Amy Miller on July 03, 2015 13 Comments
Greece is in trouble, and it's going to take a lot more than a short-term fix to repair what anti-austerity measures broke. The IMF released new numbers this week showing that it will take Greece three years and 50 billion euros just to stabilize its volatile and quickly failing economy. The organization also downgraded Greece's projected economic growth from 2.5% to 0%, and renewed its call for Greece to agree to an extended debt repayment plan coupled with lower interest rates. From the BBC:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on July 02, 2015 20 Comments
We previously covered Cynthia Archer, Wisconsin Dems used battering rams against Scott Walker supporters – literally Archer was a woman whose home was raised by paramilitary-style commandos working at the behest of Milwaukee County Prosecutor John Chishom as part of "John Doe No. 2." Archer's only alleged crime was being a former aide to Scott Walker, and being conservative. That flimsy pretense was enough enough to make her a target in the second (hence, John Doe No. 2) secret investigation of Walker, based on the allegation that there was illegal campaign coordination among conservative groups and the Walker campaign during the Recall election. We have covered the legal proceedings extensively. The federal and state courts have rejected the prosecution's theory in the face of lawsuits alleging, among other things, that the laws on campaign coordination and the investigations violated freedom of speech. The key case as to the investigation now is on appeal in the state court system, and the John Doe No. 2 investigation is on hold. Our John Doe (WI) Tag traces the history of the cases. But lost in this legal wrangling is the damage done to real people, such as Archer. She explained what happened to her to David French in National Review:

Posted by Amy Miller on July 02, 2015 14 Comments
When the Supreme Court handed down its ruling in Texas Department of Housing v. Inclusive Communities Project last week, social justice activists claimed a major victory in the battle against segregated housing. The decision endorsed a "disparate impact" analysis as applied to a Texas program that plaintiffs claimed distributes federal low income housing credits disproportionately, awarding too many credits to inner-city, predominately black neighborhoods and too few to suburban, predominately white neighborhoods. The Inclusive Communities Project, plaintiffs to the case, said that the government had actually caused continued racial segregation in the Dallas area via its credit allocation program, and sued to force the State of Texas to alter their selection criteria to encourage the construction of low income housing in suburban communities. The playing field changed mid-posture when the HUD secretary issued a regulation interpreting the Fair Housing Act to encompass disparate impact liability and instituted a burden-shifting framework that would make it easier for plaintiffs trying to prove instances of subtle discrimination. Regulatory tango aside, ICP's argument won at the Supreme Court in a 5-4 decision authored by Justice Kennedy and joined by the usual, left-leaning suspects. Back in January, Tulane Law prof Stacy E. Seicshnaydre and Inclusive Communities Project board member laid out better than I could the social justice argument that the plaintiffs brought to the Court:

Posted by Amy Miller on July 02, 2015 4 Comments
He may only be polling at 2% in preliminary polls, but Jim Webb has come out swinging against Hillary Clinton. The former Virginia Senator and Reagan-era secretary of the navy announced today that he's throwing his hat in for the Democratic nomination for president with a statement that punches up both at Clinton's controversial run as Secretary of State, but the underdeveloped foreign policy chops of the other Democratic candidates. Via Time:
“I understand the odds, particularly in today’s political climate where fair debate is so often drowned out by huge sums of money,” Webb said. “I know that more than one candidate in this process intends to raise at least a billion dollars—some estimates run as high as two billion dollars—in direct and indirect financial support.” ... Webb said in his statement that he is running to offer both “a fresh approach” and “experienced leadership.” As president, he said, he would reinforce alliances with NATO and in the Middle East, as well as challenge China in the South China Sea. Webb is the only Democratic candidate to strongly emphasize foreign policy in his platform. “There is no greater responsibility for our President than the vital role of Commander in Chief,” said Webb. “I have spent my entire life in and around the American military.”
The odds are stacked against him, but I wouldn't count him out. Webb is tough, and has a resume that does more than establish progressive talking point credibility.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on July 02, 2015 41 Comments
Why, Mr. Sulu? WHY? George Takei of Star Trek fame made a wild accusation in an interview with Phoenix-based Fox affiliate. The televised portion of the interview went as you'd expect: long-time gay rights advocate is thrilled with advances in gay rights. "We're overjoyed, we're proud, and we feel fully American," said Takei. George discussed having to stay in the closet so he could have a career in Hollywood and the disappointment he felt when Governor Schwarzenegger vetoed California's gay marriage legislation. "We're doing this for the straight couples of today because they're going to having the gay babies of tomorrow and they won't have to have those discussions." The televised interview:
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