Don't Be Confused By the Facts
Yesterday, I was on the bus, and got into a discussion with the bus driver, and as usual, it turns to politics, so politics as usual. The bus driver, very emphatically in formed me that he was a conservative, and proud of it, as if that was all he needed to say, and all discussion of anything was off the table, implying like all of his ilk, that isn't it highly obvious, that we made a mistake in the last election, and only time had revealed that, with President Obama. I promptly informed him that it was his Republicans who had created so much grief in my life, under the (un)Patriot Act, Pres. Bush's baby, Clinton would not sign it . . . and that I found out just last week, that it was his party, who refused to vote against legislation, that made it legal to arrest someone, without a warrant, no charges, and hold them indefinitely or detain them without a hearing or trial, and I had been arrested, under exactly those elements, and had clients and family who would not give up looking for me, in a jail, all the way across the state!
I was sure that I had been picked up under the tenuous detainment statute, intended for terrorists, but, for my protection, and adiment obedience and defense of the U.S. Constitution, but after my release 9 days later, a client came a got me, I was told that law had been overturned--that was in 2012, and I just read last week in some document, that was not true and the unconstitutional detainments were still on the books! I heard the horror stories of a former CIA agent, who was likewise arrested, without charges, warrant for arrest and detained, among other female activist--amazing that being true to my oath of office as an attorney and officer of the court, would get me locked up as a homegrown terrorist! The bus driver apologized, and said, yeah, President Bush was pretty bad . . . hell, bad, he threw out the whole fucking Constitution! I would say bad!
Right Up To the Polling Booth
In 2008, I watched all news channels, from the most conservative to the most liberal and in between, every night from about August to November . . . I was worried about Palin, one heart-beat away from the presidency, but I wanted to make the right decision, having never fallen prey to voting entirely for one party or the other, nor being closely aligned with one or the other. When I was younger, I read the Republican Platform, didn't agree with all of that, likewise for the Democrats, nor did I agree entirely with the Libertarians . . . so a woman without a party, who now knows why, I basically fall, right where the U.S. Constitution falls, kind of a deep seated sense of justice, embedded in both me and the document, secularist, grounded in common sense, rational thought, and the practicalities of life.
But in my TV and newspaper reading, trying to be a smart voter, I saw one advertisement or study, done by the Office of Veterans Affairs, in which they gave a grade to Senator McCain and Senator Obama, as the time--now McCain was a POW, or Prisoner of War and a Vet; therefore, logic should tell you that he, not Obama, should get the higher score on voting for or against veterans issues. But to my surprise, Obama got a "B" and McCain, got an "F." Since, four members of my family had served in the military, covering all four branches, I decided to vote for President Obama . . .
And, this morning as I read the Judicial Watch Special Report, entitled, "Yes, Mr. President, You Will Wait" an Updated Examination into the Unprecedented and Radical Attempt by the Obama Administration to Expand Power, it struck me again, that many things that this report demonized the Obama Administration over, were long held beliefs that rang of constitutional vigor and protection, like exercising his executive powers to immediately stop enforcing minimum mandatory sentences for prisoners, or taking offense with states, who wanted to curtail or make the voting process more stringent--not for the people, but for Republican advantage! Politics, when the founding fathers, said the federal government is to ensure a Republican form or representative form of government, and protect against domestic violence . . . which I would say, states, all 19, are trying to make it harder for seniors, the poor, or others to vote . . . when the whole reason for the Boston Tea Party, talk about an oxymoron of the abuse of the name of Tea Partiers . . . was to get rid of taxation with out representation, or a voice through voting!
This past election, I happened to be at my sister's house in Cove, Utah, now she lives in Mendon, on the date of the third presidential debate, which I couldn't wait to see, and I asked my sister, if she wanted to watch the debate with me, she immediately said, No, after Sarah Palin, and campaigning for her, one day, mind you, I am done with politics! And Obama is Satan himself . . . and her son, piped up and said, and yeah, he is a Muslim! At first I considered the source, Republican, and totally uneducated, nor do they care to get educated, don't confuse them with the facts, and of course, Mitt Romney was their man, no good, card carrying Mormon, would vote for Obama over Romney . . . she doesn't know her own church . . . or state, like I do, nor Mitt Romney, like I do . . . I actually know, he took $30 million in government bail out, was shipping jobs off to China, or his former company was, right during the elections . . . and you know the rest of the story, the 47% and all, but hey, what does all that matter!
If Rachel would have known, in the last election, everyone tried to bash Obama on his choice of Christian Churches and ministers, alleged radical, Black preacher . . . President Obama's dad, was Muslim, but he and Michelle, have always been Christian, attending the same Church for 20 years! Again, don't confuse them with the facts! It was interesting, here is another shocker, for the black and white thinkers among you . . . a Christian University, forgot which on, actually rated, President Obama and Governor Romney, on their Christianity, and if my quick glance at the tally, from the flash on TV, was, the President actually scored higher than the alleged, righteous, Mormon, Mitt, being a former Mormon Stake President! I mentioned that to someone the other day, and he said, yeah, I don't think Mitt Romney is quit the choir boy he makes out to be . . . none of them are!
Transparency in Government
The Judicial Watch was screaming about all the executive order the President has used to circumvent Congress, with his Can't Wait campaign . . . with a Congress, who only cares about getting elected or re-elected, who just got back in session, and the newspaper said, they had no intention of getting anything done, just keeping the status quo, and doing nothing, until after the fall mid-term elections, with a less than 6 percent approval rating, less than Parliament had, shortly before the Declaration of Independence was sent to Britain, who can blame President Obama, who is actually trying to take care of business! Congress sure as hell isn't . . . they probably would rather discuss Benghazi for the next 5 months, rather than take care of business! The Nation can't wait! You should be fired!
In speech after speech, the President is announcing, exactly what his intends to do, agree or disagree, he tells you . . . there have been, I have heard, about 119 executive orders, done at the stoke of a pen, by President Obama . . . hell, during the lame duck session, after President Obama won the 2008 elections, in November, early November, at January 20th, 2009, while no one was watching . . . President Bush, signed something like 1200 executive orders! Timing is everything, what Bush signed by executive order, President Obama inherited, along with the group carrying out those orders, unbeknown to the public, that he has had to contend with!
Check Rachel Maddow, MSNBC, who was watching what President Bush was up to during those day, and I was still hooked on the news, going through withdrawal symptoms, soaking every drop of news, until it started to dwindle in notoriety, which is always does . . . you would be shocked at what your past, Republican President signed into law, with a single stroke of the law, what the Patriot Act didn't do, through Congress, Bush mopped up the details in executive orders, like making it legal for local and state cops to search your house, while you are not home . . . very consistent with the rest of the bull shit, in that act, signed, I heard, one minute after midnight, 9/12, but wasn't announced to the nation, until just short of a month after the suspiciously tragic day . . . due to the pre-prepared act, that President Clinton, would not sign!
Constitutional Law is as Complicated as You Can Get
In a perfect world, between the three branches of government, you have the Legislative Branch, or Congress, who is suppose to make the laws; the Executive Branch to enforce those laws, and the Judicial Branch, that is to interpret the laws, or actions enforcing the law, and determine if they are, in fact, constitutional . . . there is a rule in the Federal Rules of Civil Procedures, that actually gives attorneys, the right to challenge the constitutionality of an act of Congress . . . but, the division of powers, rights and duties, are not always so clearly distinguished, and 238 years of case law, has shaped, filled in the gaps in the actual word of the Constitution, and often the lines are blurred . . .
Tip for law students, past, present and future, grappling with the complications, juxtapositions, anomalies, and complexities of this federalist, state and federal government, plus Republican form, with a balance of power between the branches of government, there is cross-over duties, that even muddy the waters further. My constitutional law professor, told us we could make an outline of a con law book that was about 4 inches thick, to bring into this open book test. The night before the test, I decided, perhaps, I should prepare something easy to take into class to help me with the test.
So being the former graphic artist I am, and very much into the kiss idea of life, keep it simple stupid, or Henry David Thurough's mantra, simplicity, simplicity, simplicity . . . I took a single piece of paper, a tea cup, and drew three circles, basically, separate, but equal, however, with a bit of overlap between each and every branch with the other two branches, for the exceptions, like executive orders and the like . . . as small as I could write, I penned all the rights, duties, powers, and prohibitions for each branch, in the main part of the circle, then going through my notes, I covered the case law, that made the whole thing much more complicated, as the U.S. Supreme Court, the final say on matters of competition for powers, and there are many, created this overlap, that is the battle ground.
Just recently, I was shocked to read, that my disdain for the modern Court's, ruling on Citizens United, the case that gave corporations the right of free speech, giving them the right to unlimited spending, actually had some precedence, back in the late 1800s, or at least 100 year old ruling, making corporations, legal fictions, or persons, for business ease . . . so, we can't be so sure, there is not some precendence for what we now hate that, eve the U.S. Supreme Court is stuck with, historically.
Project Vote Smart
Leave social issues alone, that have been decided by the U.S. Supreme Court to be constitutional, like abortion and now, Obamacare, they have been ruled on, decided, and revisited, Congress has tried to rescind the law they voted for, 40 times, and have not been successful, the law is the law, is the law, like it or not. You hear politicians, running on the ignorance campaign as did Sarah Palin, she was going to personally overturn, Roe v. Wade . . . really. More states are on board with Obamacare, the typical whipping boy, for the time, than were when it was voted in back 3 years ago.
After the 2008, trouncing, I remember, Michael Steele, the new director the NCR, or National Republican Committee, and he and others, decided, rather than to broaden the base of voters, actually came up with a 20 point check list, that if political hopefuls didn't match up on all 20 points, they would not consider supporting them . . . enter the Tea Party, and the civil war in the party right now! Remember, that back in the days of the signing of the U.S. Constitution, there were actually, 12 political parties, maybe indicative of the factions, within each party now, there is good, better, and best candidates and ideas.
Remember that money doesn't make a viable candidate . . . Karl Rove, had $300 million to spend, and not one of his candidates, he vetted, got elected, which was a relief, and a statement against the law case, Citizens United . . . the voters, still made the elections, not money! You may personally agree with 2/3 of a candidates positions, so don't let that 1/3 deter you from voting for them . . . reasonable people agree to disagree! Hell, spouses, don't agree, why should politicians! Be open, be flexible, and look for people who have the basics, based on traditional principles, concepts and values, taking into consideration, we live in a diverse nation, the melting pot, with competing interests and groups, and we all have to live together and get along!
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