Category: Congress

Bizarre, Congress, Constitutional Law, Criminal law, Media

Giuliani: Trump Told Me He Wanted A “Muslim Ban”

rudy_giuliani_by_gage_skidmoreThe Trump Administration has maintained that the new executive order on refugees is not a Muslim ban.  It is a compelling argument given the fact that only seven Muslim countries are singled out.  Yet, Administration lawyers will have to deal with countervailing statements from President Trump that he wants to give preference to Christians as refugees.  Now Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R), a close confidant to President Trump, may have magnified the problems with an interview where he discusses how President Trump asked him to craft “Muslim ban.” 

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Academia, Congress, Constitutional Law, Society, Uncategorized

Northwestern Transgender Student Seeks Entry To Sorority

imgres-1Northwestern University is facing an interesting controversy that captures the new reality for schools in dealing with alternative gender identifications.  A freshman at the school was born a female but now identifies as a male.  Adam Davies wants to participate in Greek life but is not ready to join a fraternity. So Davies has asked to join a sorority as a male with a female body.  He insists that his interest “transcends the gender binary” but some have objected to leaving such choices to the individual’s determination on gender.

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Congress, Environment, International, Society

Report: Solar Energy Employs More People Than All Fossil Fuel Industries Combined

fixed_tilt_solar_panel_at_canterbury_municipal_building_canterbury_new_hampshire398px-BarnettShaleDrilling-9323One of the greatest concerns with the Trump Administration remains the environment.  I share those concerns.  The United States is falling behind the rest of the world in advancing green industries and markets. A return to fossil energy could not only erase gains in the environment but push our workforce farther away from the most competitive economies.  A new report shows how important solar energy is to the workforce and the economy.  The latest report from the Department of Energy shows that solar energy in the United States employs more people than traditional coal, gas and oil combined.  At the same time, we have seen other countries slash the cost of renewable energy and radically expand the use of such energy as global leaders in the new industry.  Notably, a recent poll showed that two thirds of the public oppose the return to fossil fuels for energy as opposed to alternative fuels.

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Bizarre, Congress, Constitutional Law, Criminal law, Society

Texas Governor Moves Against Sanctuary County

440px-greg_abbott_by_gage_skidmore11056546_814772561936445_7014694705004167086_oI have been discussing the likely confrontation between the Trump Administration and various “sanctuary cities” which have pledged not to cooperate with federal authorities in the deportation of illegal immigrants. I believe that cities like New York City will face a rude awakening when they calculate just how much they received in federal grants that could be withheld by Attorney General Jeff Sessions or the Administration. Now that scenario is playing out in Texas where Gov. Greg Abbott is threatening to cut funding for Travis County after Sheriff Sally Hernandez announced the county would be scaling back its cooperation with federal immigration. Hernandez could trigger a perfect storm of having both state and federal fundings cut back in a county that is deeply dependent on such funding.

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Bizarre, Congress, Constitutional Law, Criminal law, Free Speech, Media, Politics, Society

Missouri Congressman Calls For Criminal Charges Against California Congressman In Removal Of Painting Depicting Police As Pigs

wm-_lacy_clay_official_photo_2009hshotthumbThere is an interesting controversy brewing on Capitol Hill where Missouri Rep. Lacy Clay, D-Mo., wants California Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Ca) criminally charged after Hunter took down a painting by one of Clay’s constituents that contains insulting images of police as pigs and other animals. The question is what the crime might be in such a circumstance since the painting was not damaged. It is analogous to the recent controversy at the University of Pennsylvania where students pulled down a portrait of William Shakespeare and replaced it with a portrait of a black feminist author. The painting (as in this case) was brought undamaged to the office. Of course, this is the removal of art from a Capitol building.

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Congress, Courts, Media, Politics

William Tecumseh Obama: NSEERS Regulations Burned On The Approach Of The Trump Administration

300px-william-tecumseh-shermanPresObama It is not uncommon for presidents to rush through regulations and changes in their final months or even days in office. Thus, the move of President Obama to protect pristine areas from drilling is not unprecedented, particularly as the continuation of his long-standing policies on the environment. However, as I discussed yesterday on NPR, the President made a move that runs against the grain of tradition this week. Obama negated the regulations underlying the dormant National Security Entry-Exit Registration System or NSEERS program. That was not action to advance a positive policy but a purely obstructionist move targeting your successor. There was no reason to destroy the structure except to delay any effort of President-Elect Donald Trump to carry out his campaign pledges to tighten entry rules and impose greater scrutiny of people coming from Muslim countries. NSEERS would have given Trump a readily available structure and pro-immigration groups lobbied Obama to destroy the program. It was a move that was reminiscent of General William Tecumseh Sherman. General Sherman famously left a scorched earth behind his March to the Sea and Obama appears intent to leave the same charred path for his successor.

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Congress, Politics, Society

Drill Now, Drain Later? Gingrich Reports That Trump Wants To Abandon The “Drain The Swamp” Pledge [UPDATED]

220px-cypresses495px-Donald_Trump_by_Gage_SkidmoreThere is a basic rule about “talking points”: you follow them but do not quote them as talking points. That lesson seems to have escaped former House Speaker and Trump confidant Newt Gingrich who has caused a stir by revealing that President-elect Donald Trump is now disclaiming his pledge to “drain the swamp.” Instead, Trump is focusing on working with Congress to get his priorities through in rapid succession from opening up new drilling to rescinding Obamacare. Update: Donald Trump has denied Gingrich’s representation and Gingrich now says that he simply got it wrong.

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Congress, Environment, Politics, Science, Society

Cost of Solar Power Dropping Globally As “The World’s Cheapest Energy”

earth-screensaver_largeThere is a hopeful report out this week that the cost of solar energy has dropped so dramatically that it is not cheaper than wind power in emerging markets like China and India. Indeed, Popular Mechanics is now calling solar energy the “cheapest energy” option. In Chile, electricity is being produced by solar power for $29.10 per megawatt hour–half the price of power produced by coal. These countries are seeing the benefits in the investment into alternative energy sources in both cost and the environment. The pledge of the Trump Administration to expand drilling and “clean coal” use runs against the trend in other countries.

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Academia, Congress, Constitutional Law

Gallup: Support For Electoral College Surges After 2016 Presidential Election

d46bffd8-7832-4835-895e-9f89680f51aeDemocratic leaders have suddenly discovered that the Electoral College is anti-democratic and have called for its elimination.  I have long been a critic of the Electoral College, though I understand the concerns of those who fear that the loss of the institution would reduce presidential elections to the choice of states like California and New York.  However, the interesting result of this election (where Hillary Clinton won the popular) was a ground swell of calls for the elimination of the Electoral College.  The hue and cry for reform gave hope for critics (despite the obvious opportunism and hypocrisy from some quarters) but a recent Gallup poll indicates that an inverse move has also occurred as many have come to appreciate the counter-majoritarian impact of institution in this election.  The net results appears to be an increase in support for the Electoral College.

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Congress, Politics

Reid: Democratic Party Not In Trouble After Electoral Defeat

225px-harry_reid_official_portraitWe recently discussed how minority leader Nancy Pelosi fought off a challenge after the disastrous election losses for the Democrats and then promptly declared that the “people [do not] want a new direction.” The statement was widely ridiculed as evidence of how out-of-touch the leadership of the Democratic Party had become and how insulated the members are from voters. Now, retiring Senate minority leader Harry Reid has suggested the same party line that there is no need to change direction after the election.

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Bizarre, Congress, Politics, Society

Pelosi: “I Don’t Think People Want A New Direction”

220px-nancy_pelosiWe recently discussed how Democrats seeking the removal of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi were called “sexist” for merely seeking change after the disastrous 2016 election. Democratic leaders engineered the primary selection of Hillary Clinton despite polls showing that voters did not want an establishment figure and had deep seated misgivings about Clinton’s honestly and integrity. One of those leaders who has been most criticized over the years has been Nancy Pelosi. However, democratic members overwhelmingly elected Pelosi again as minority leader in what was seen as a slap in the face of those who want to see serious change in the party. Within a couple days of her reelection, Pelosi went on the air to declare that everyone is wrong and people really do not want a new direction. They want the same leadership like her to pursue the very same course that has led to historic losses under her leadership in the House. It was the same dismissive logic applied by the Democratic National Committee and Democratic leadership (including Pelosi) in engineering the nomination of Hillary Clinton, the ultimate establishment figure when polls showed an overriding preference for an outsider and record low favorability numbers for Clinton (particularly on issues of honesty). The question is whether the obvious anger inside and outside the party will galvanize into continued opposition. The establishment seems to be betting on people forgetting about serious reforms or wanting other options than the current duopoly of power held by the Republicans and Democrats. Retaining the very same leadership in both parties may be just what reformers had hoped: a clear signal that any changes in Washington will require the continuation of the popular movement seen in the last election.

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Bizarre, Congress, Military, Politics

Pentagon Study Shows $125 Billion In Waste That Can Be Cut . . . Pentagon Promptly Buries Study

300px-The_Pentagon_January_2008On this blog, we have often discussed and lamented how billions are wasted in the government, particularly in Iraq and Afghanistan, without the slightest accountability of officials or serious reforms. The problem is especially prominent in the military. Now, the Washington Post has acquired an internal study that found $125 billion in waste from bloated staff to needless redundancies. The response of the Defense Department in the Obama Administration was swift and firm . . . it buried the report so neither Congress nor the media would see it. It is good to see that our bureaucrats can still move aggressively when called to action.

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Congress, Constitutional Law, Media, Politics, Society

A Bill Comes Due For Democrats: The Use of the “Nuclear Option” Will Now Curtail The Powers Of The Democrats In The Senate

gen_james_n_mattisIn 2010, I (and others) criticized the Democratic leadership (including then Majority Leader Harry Reid and many of the continuing Democratic senators) for their use of the “nuclear option” in curtailing the power of the filibuster. I was equally critical of Republican leaders who previously suggested such a course of action. It was remarkably short-sighted and, like so many moves during this period, impulsive. The Democrats acted with little concern that they might ever be in the minority and need this critical power. They muscled through the Affordable Care Act on a marginal vote that cost various members their seats and passed a highly flawed bill that was plagued by problems of bad drafting and poor planning. Moreover, they secured relatively few confirmations to federal office. Now, however, the bill will come due for the Democrats as they long for the minority rights that they so blithely threw away. The first such cost will likely occur in the waiver that will be given to Gen. James N. Mattis who has not satisfied the requisite seven years to pass since retirement in order to become Secretary of Defense.
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Congress, Courts, Lawyering, Politics, Supreme Court

The Scalia Vacancy and the Supreme Court

Supreme CourtToday I have the honor to serving as the keynote speaker for the Federal Bar Association Orlando Chapter’s conference. I will be speaking at noon at the U.S Courthouse on the Supreme Court’s history and current controversies. This will obviously include the long standing vacancy of the seat once held by Associate Justice Antonin Scalia.

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Congress, Constitutional Law, Lawyering, Politics, Society

Trump Is Legally Correct: Ethics Rules Do Not Apply To Him

495px-Donald_Trump_by_Gage_SkidmoreDonald Trump is under fire for saying this week that he is not legally bound to avoid conflicts of interest because such ethical standards do not apply to him. Various commentators objected but Trump insisted “The law’s totally on my side, the president can’t have a conflict of interest.” Trump is legally correct. There is a public disclosure rule that applies but not a binding conflict of interest law. The federal law exempts not just the President but also the Vice President.

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