Month: August 2010

By refusing to acknowledge binding Supreme Court precedent, substantial evidence produced at trial that was contrary to the holding and plain common sense, the ruling exhibits none of the requirements of a traditional decision. This opinion is arbitrary and capricious, and its alarming legal methodology and overtly policy-driven tenor are too extreme to stand.

Regardless of whether one agrees with the result, structurally sound opinions always confront binding legal precedent. Walker’s is a clear exception because the U.S. Supreme Court has spoken on whether a state’s refusal to authorize same-sex marriage violates the equal protection and due process clauses of the 14th Amendment. In 1972, Baker v. Nelson, a case over whether Minnesota violated the Constitution by issuing marriage licenses only to opposite-sex couples, was unanimously thrown out on the merits, for lack of a substantial federal question. The Supreme Court’s action establishes a binding precedent in favor of Proposition 8. But Judge Walker’s ruling doesn’t mention Baker, much less attempt to distinguish it or accept its findings.

Edwin Meese III – Prop. 8 ruling ignores precedent, evidence and common sense.

Tea Party Group Hit With Death Threats – Washington Whispers (usnews.com).

At a forum Monday, Rangel popped off over an Obama comment last month that the 80-year-old congressman should “end his career with dignity.”

The President spoke after Rangel was slapped with ethics charges. “Frankly, he has not been around long enough to determine what my dignity is,” Rangel said Monday.

“In the next few years, I will be more likely to protect his dignity.”

Rangel said last night his retort wasn’t meant as a slap but admitted, “Obviously, it didn’t go over big.” As for Powell’s argument: “I think that Obama would say that I’m one of his best friends. And certainly one of his strongest supporters — I admire him. I respect him.”

Rep. Rangel says Obama among ‘best friends’; backs off previous criticism – The Hill’s Ballot Box.

In what will rank as one of the all-time presidential PR disasters, we’re now well over half way through what the White House called “the summer of recovery.” And what a recovery it’s been.

Earlier this month, first-time claims for unemployment hit a nine-month high. The unemployment rate remains at 9.5% and 18.4% of workers are out of a job, can only get part-time work, or have given up looking for a job altogether. Sales of existing homes dropped 27% from June to July, hitting the lowest point since data were first collected in 1999. The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index fell to 50.4 in July, continuing a slide that started in February. And the stock market is down 11% from its peak in April.

All of this has helped shatter public confidence in the president.

via Karl Rove: Honey, I Shrunk My Approval Ratings – WSJ.com.

RealClearPolitics – Video – Limbaugh On Left’s “New Found Love For Religion” Over Mosque.

Citizenship not a question on the form!

This means that the census is now deliberately anti-Constitutional. If illegal aliens are counted in California, then California will be sure to get additional seats in Congress (despite the fact that many citizens have been leaving California over the past 10 years). The same is true of other states with large numbers of illegals.

savethemales.ca – US Census Counted Everyone as Citizens.

Feds moving to dismiss some deportation cases | Houston & Texas News | Chron.com – Houston Chronicle.