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Obama And the USSC

Obama And the USSC

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obama3I am disturbed, but not surprised by some of the comments made by Barrack Obama as regards the role of a Justice of the Supreme Court and thereby, what we will get in the replacement for Justice David Souter, who is retiring, next month. Those comments give us a frightening view of what we have in store from anyone Obama might nominate. There are many, including the Washington Post… hardly a bastion of liberal thought… who have counseled Obama to look for judicial restraint:
Alas, the once-dominant species of liberal proponents of judicial restraint has relatively few surviving members. Obama should find them - why not Jose Cabranes, the excellent judge whom President Clinton appointed to the 2nd Circuit? - and help revive the species.
It appears that Obama will be moving in the opposite direction, making that restraint even more of a rarity. Comments made while Obama was still just a candidate, as early as 2001, in an WBEZ interview, are exemplary:
But, the Supreme Court never ventured into the issues of redistribution of wealth, and of more basic issues such as political and economic justice in society. To that extent, as radical as I think people try to characterize the Warren Court, it wasn’t that radical. It didn’t break free from the essential constraints that were placed by the founding fathers in the Constitution, at least as its been interpreted and Warren Court interpreted in the same way, that generally the Constitution is a charter of negative liberties. Says what the states can’t do to you. Says what the [...]
Holder Voids Case Against Ted Stevens. But Why?

Holder Voids Case Against Ted Stevens. But Why?

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James Joyner at OTB, this morning brings news abot the latest action of Eric Holder’s Justice Dept:

Attorney General Eric Holder has dropped the case against Ted Stevens, NPR’s Nina Totenberg reports.
A jury convicted Stevens last fall of seven counts of lying on his Senate disclosure form in order to conceal $250,000 in gifts from an oil industry executive and other friends. Stevens was the longest-serving Republican in the Senate, however, he lost his bid for an eighth full term in office just days after he was convicted. Since then, charges of prosecutorial misconduct have delayed his sentencing and prompted defense motions for a new trial. According to Justice Department officials, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder has decided to drop the case against Stevens rather than continue to defend the conviction in the face of persistent problems stemming from the actions of prosecutors. The judge in the Stevens case has repeatedly delayed sentencing and criticized trial prosecutors for what he’s called prosecutorial misconduct. At one point, prosecutors were held in contempt. Things got so bad [...]
Holder Voids Case Against Ted Stevens. But Why?

Obama’s Optical problems

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On the morning of February 17th,I was standing in line getting coffee at the little cafeteria at my day gig. Behind me were two guys that had obviously been in heated discussion for some time. I don't know either of them. I can't vouch for the conversation being word for word, but here it is from my memory:
So, let me understand this. Obama's going to Denver, today... several days after the bill he was so much in a hurry to sign that none of Congress could actually take the time to read it, was placed on his desk. Why did he wait all that time after the vote? So he could vacation? Well, no, so he could fly out to Denver, I guess. Why Denver? So that he could sign it in a plant that makes Solar panels. He wants to be seen as a 'green' president. But what does it take to make this happen? How's he getting there? Well, he's got to fly Air Force One out to Denver. Doesn't that mean he's flying at least four planes? Air Force One, plus the military escort, PLUS a second plane for a decoy, and likely more escorts for the decoy? I guess so, why? How much fuel does that take? Oh, I heard [...]
Holder Voids Case Against Ted Stevens. But Why?

The Stimulus That Wasn’t Gets Passed

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Bruce McQuain, this morning at Q&Q:
Well there’s an agreement on the Generational Theft Act of 2009. The squishy middle has capitulated. As expected, just enough Republicans have signed on to ensure its passage. Names? Specter for one:
Specter said Friday night that action was “very necessary,” and this bill, though not perfect, is better than inaction. “I think no one could argue with the fact that the situation would be much worse without this bill,” Specter said at a news conference.
And of course, Susan Collins is the other (and Olympia Snowe is also reportedly going to vote for it). Voinavich and Martinez bailed. They’ll give this the veneer of bi-partisan legitimacy.
Which, doubtless, will be endlessly touted by the Democrats over the following two years. And, forever, for that matter, each time the amount of debt incurred by this mess turns up as a discussion point on online venues, or talking head programs. The problem is obvious; it is what Bruce describes as the “squishy middle” . I’ve been telling you people for nearly a decade now that it is the centrists among us that are going to kill us off as a nation. If this [...]
Two Weeks

Two Weeks

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Two weeks ago today, the Obama Nation was gloating. Sweeping victories in the general election, Democrats now control the White House and both houses of Congress. Well, it's been two weeks, so that means it's time for me to get out of my fetal position, stop throwing up, an assess what's transpired since then. In the last two weeks, there has been a steady stream of companies lined up at the Treasury Department's door to obtain "equity stakes" from the American taxpayer. I admit that I was one of the first (and few) to defend Treasury Secretary Paulson's and Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke's bailout/rescue/money grab in an effort to shore up a global economy on the verge of total economic collapse. This was, and is, an unpopular position, because the consensus was, and is, that stupid management decisions should not be compensated for by the American taxpayer. My argument [...]
Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State?

Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State?

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That’s what Ben Smith is reporting, yesterday morning:
Andrea Mitchell reported this evening that Obama is considering Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State, something that’s been buzzed about as a possibility for a few days. I haven’t been able to confirm it, and neither Obama nor Clinton camps would comment, though NBC apparently has confirmation that she went to Chicago today. One interesting item: Clinton aides are not knocking the report down, which they might.
Since Ben wrote that, apparently, there are confirmations are coming from a number of sources, including the Washington Post:
There’s increasing chatter in [...]
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