Category: Society

Courts, Environment, Science, Society

Oregon County Mandates 2,000 Acre Organic Farm Sprayed With Chemical Herbicides

By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor

A 2,000 acre organic farm in central Oregon is facing what could be a be an existential threat to its operations after county weed control authorities sent notice mandating that the farm use chemical herbicides, such as Roundup, to eradicate weed growth.

The mandate would bring to an end nearly 18 years of organic farming, placing a significant loss of organic food to the public.

Azure Farms is a certified organic farm located in Moro, Sherman County, Oregon. The farm produces almost all the organic wheat, field peas, barley, Einkorn, and beef for Azure Standard.

Sherman County could issue a court order on May 22, 2017 to quarantine Azure Farms and possibly to spray the entire farm with poisonous herbicides contaminating them with Milestone, Escort, and Roundup.

Such a unilateral action on the behalf of the few individuals representing county government could set a precedent in damaging perhaps one of the few remaining healthy alternatives to mass-market agribusinesses.

Continue reading “Oregon County Mandates 2,000 Acre Organic Farm Sprayed With Chemical Herbicides” →

Bizarre, Criminal law, Lawyering, Politics, Society, Uncategorized

White House Claims “Many Legal Scholars” See No Conflict In President Asking Comey If He Is Under Investigation

Sarah-Huckabee-Sanders-2017-05-05-cropWhite House principal deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders assured the media yesterday that there was nothing inappropriate with President Donald Trump asking former FBI Director James Comey if he was a target of the ongoing investigation over Russian influence or collusion in the presidential election.  She insisted that the White House had reached out to legal experts and “several legal scholars who have weighed in on it and said there’s nothing wrong with it.”  She also said that “many legal scholars and others that have been commenting on it for the last hour.”  While I cannot speak for all legal scholars, I find it surprising that the White House could find “several” who would sign off on such an inquiry.  It was clearly improper for Trump to ask the question and it would have been equally improper for Comey to answer in this fashion.

To make matters worse, Sanders said that, by removing Comey, the White House hoped to bring the investigation to a sooner conclusion. In her defense, I took her comment as meaning that the White House has nothing to fear from the investigation and wants it to come to a conclusion: “We want this to come to its conclusion, we want it to come to its conclusion with integrity. And we think that we’ve actually, by removing Director Comey, taken steps to make that happen.” However, it was another uniquely ham-handed treatment of the controversy from a White House that continues to struggle with maintaining a single coherent message.  The overwhelming thrust of the coverage of the Comey termination was that it was meant to bring an end to the Russian investigation.  To connect the firing of Comey with the hope for a faster conclusion to the investigation is incredibly daft.

Continue reading “White House Claims “Many Legal Scholars” See No Conflict In President Asking Comey If He Is Under Investigation” →

Bizarre, Media, Politics, Society

Kellyanne Conway Accuses Anderson Cooper of Sexism After Rolling His Eyes During Interview

conway12n-2-webI was at CNN the night of the firing of James Comey.  Frankly, it was utter chaos as Washington exploded with the news.  (The green room was packed with folks waiting to go on.  I left rather than wait all night for an uncertain hit.  I was far more interested at that point in the Cubs-Rockies game).  I was in other words an “eyewitness” in the crowded green room when White House counselor Kellyanne Conway was interviewed by Anderson Cooper who noticeably rolled his eyes.  Some in the green room were thrilled by the demonstration.  One person who was not thrilled was Conway herself who leveled a charge of sexism the next morning on Fox News.  (For the record, Conway is my former student at GW Law School).  For the record, having worked with Anderson for years, I do not believe that he has a sexist bone in his body.  That does not excuse the lapse of professionalism and it will magnify criticism of the network as openly anti-Trump.

Continue reading “Kellyanne Conway Accuses Anderson Cooper of Sexism After Rolling His Eyes During Interview” →

Constitutional Law, Media, Politics, Society

Report: Rosenstein Appears To Deny That He Threatened To Resign Over False Account Regarding His Comey Memorandum [UPDATED]

Rod_Rosenstein_US_AttorneyDeputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein who wrote the memorandum firing James Comey  is back in the news today.  Various news organizations are reporting that he allegedly threatened to quit after the White House represented that Comey was fired based on his recommendation.  Both the Washington Post and ABC News are reporting that Rosenstein was sufficiently outraged by the White House statements that he was prepared to walk.  The reporting is highly disturbing on a number of levels.  The White House made a notable change in its account of the decision yesterday — admitting that Trump decided that he wanted Comey gone over a week earlier.  Of course, this does not change the fact that Rosenstein recommended the firing of Comey in the memo but it raises serious questions of the veracity of the White House. UPDATE: The White House is categorically denying that Rosenstein threatened to resign.  More importantly, Rosenstein has denied that he threatened to resign though it is not clear if he denied calling the White House to object to its portrayal of the facts leading to the termination.

Continue reading “Report: Rosenstein Appears To Deny That He Threatened To Resign Over False Account Regarding His Comey Memorandum [UPDATED]” →

Columns, Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Media, Politics, Society

Sally in Wonderland: The “Curiouser and Curiouser” Position of The Former Acting Attorney General

Below is my USA Today column on the testimony of Sally Yates, former acting Attorney General, on her unprecedented order to the Justice Department not to assist President Donald Trump in the defense of his immigration executive order.  While the hearing was focused on her warning with regard to former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, some of us were more interested in how she would respond to criticism over the order that led to her being fired.  Both Democratic and Republican lawyers have raised serious ethical misgivings over her decision.  The hearing however only magnified the questions over the basis for her actions. Here is the column.

Continue reading “Sally in Wonderland: The “Curiouser and Curiouser” Position of The Former Acting Attorney General” →

Bizarre, Constitutional Law, Religion, Society

Indonesian Court Unanimously Convicts Christian Governor of Jakarta Of Blasphemy

We have previously discussed how some of our closest allies like Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Egypt routinely deny both free speech and free exercise of religion to citizens through the application of Sharia law or Islamic moral codes.  The latest outrage comes from Indonesia where a court convicted Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, the Christian governor of the country’s capital, Jakarta, of blasphemy for challenging Islamic extremists.  He was sentenced to two years in prison in a disgraceful assault on basic civil liberties and principles of both religious tolerance and free speech.

Continue reading “Indonesian Court Unanimously Convicts Christian Governor of Jakarta Of Blasphemy” →

Congress, Courts, Media, Politics, Society

James Comey and Posthumous Acclaim In Art and Politics

With the firing of FBI Director James Comey, politics seems to be following art in one important fashion: your work becomes more popular after you’re dead. Jim Croce was barely known as a singer until his plane crashed and burned. Van Gogh sold only one picture in his lifetime . . . until he shot himself. Comey’s work appears to be on the same track of retrospective popularity. He is now the rage. Democratic Senators and liberal commentators who only recently denounced him as a political hack and manipulator were suddenly speaking of Comey as the second Publicus. More importantly, news outlets like CNN went into a virtual echo chamber with their experts, like Jeff Toobin, declaring that the President was lying and that there was no other explanation for firing Comey other than that fact that the Russian investigation was “getting too close” to Trump. One CNN guest historian, Douglas Brinkley,  even declared, from a purely historical perspective of course, that the firing shows that Trump acts like a “tyrant.”

Continue reading “James Comey and Posthumous Acclaim In Art and Politics” →

Columns, Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Politics, Society

The Supreme Salient: Decades Of Static Ideological Lines On The Court Could Vaporize With A Kennedy Replacement

Below is my column in the Hill Newspaper on the implications of a rumored retirement by Justice Anthony Kennedy.  If nothing else, it allowed me to discuss the anniversary of the Ypres Salient explosion in World War I — the mining of the German line with massive bombs.  While we often discuss how a nominee could change the Court on issues like Roe v. Wade, the replacement of either Kennedy or Ruth Bader Ginsburg would potentially collapse the long static lines on the Court.  Like trench warfare, the 4-4 split on the Court has moved little in areas like abortion. It could now evaporate in the flash of a confirmation (assuming that Chief Justice John Roberts does not step into the role of swing vote on the Court).

Here is the column:

Continue reading “The Supreme Salient: Decades Of Static Ideological Lines On The Court Could Vaporize With A Kennedy Replacement” →

Bizarre, Politics, Religion, Society

“I Wish They Didn’t Let You In The Country”: Video Shows Woman Allegedly Abusing Muslim In Store Line

There is a disturbing video just posted on an encounter of a Muslim woman with another woman at the Trader Joe’s in Reston, Virginia — not far from my home.  On the video below, the rude woman allegedly tells the Muslim “I wish they didn’t let you in the country” during their encounter on Saturday.  The Muslim woman is a friend of comedian Jeremy McLellan and he shared the videotape.  He said that his friend was wearing a hijab identifying her as a Muslim.  Since the woman is clearly shown, the question is whether the woman has a case if she is falsely depicted.  Conversely, we have previously discussed whether people should be disciplined by employers for conduct or statements in their private lives.

Continue reading ““I Wish They Didn’t Let You In The Country”: Video Shows Woman Allegedly Abusing Muslim In Store Line” →

Constitutional Law, Criminal law, Free Speech, Politics, Society

Calling Out Foul Fans: It Is Time For An Unsportsmanlike Conduct Rule For Fans

The Red Sox management is moving aggressively in the wake of the allegation by Baltimore Orioles outfielder Adam Jones of racist taunts at Fenway Park , including the banning for life of a fan who made a racist comment to another fan during a recent game.  Boston police are also looking into any possible criminal conduct, including the throwing of peanuts at Jones and others.  Below is my column in The Hill Newspaper on the proposal for a new federal crime for prosecuting racist fans.  Putting aside the serious constitutional issues, it is entirely unnecessary. The problem with both rowdy and racist fans is the inaction of ballparks, not the insufficiency of criminal laws.

Continue reading “Calling Out Foul Fans: It Is Time For An Unsportsmanlike Conduct Rule For Fans” →

Bizarre, Criminal law, Religion, Society

Tennessee Police Shut Down Scientology Facilities After Reportedly Finding People Held Against Their Will

488px-scientology_symbolsvgThe Church of Scientology is facing renewed allegations of abusive and cult-like conditions of followers.  A string of psychiatric facilities run by the Church of Scientology in Cannon County, Tenn. have been closed after police reportedly found that patients there were being held against their will in crude trailers and cabins in the woods.  Former Scientologists have accused the Church of holding people against their will and adopting bizarre remedies for mental illnesses due to their founder’s opposition to psychiatry.  Marc Vallieres, the operator of the facilities, was charged with two felony counts of facilitation of kidnapping and two other men working at the facility pled guilty to misdemeanors.

Continue reading “Tennessee Police Shut Down Scientology Facilities After Reportedly Finding People Held Against Their Will” →

Bizarre, Society

Cattle Car Carriers: American Airlines To Slash Legroom For Passengers

250px-american_airlines_logosvg600px-Unloading_a_stock_car_revAmerican Airlines  has decided to dispense with any semblance of being a quality airline and will slash another two inches from economy class seats despite rising complaints of the already painfully cramped conditions.  The airline is effectively boasting to investors that it will stuff more seats on its planes while charging passengers in economy to buy the necessary leg room to be remotely comfortable.  United is also planning to join the cattle call and reduce legroom, though it might make dragging passengers from planes a bit more difficult.  The reduction at American will put it close to the infamous Spirit Airline in terms of cramped, uncomfortable conditions.

Continue reading “Cattle Car Carriers: American Airlines To Slash Legroom For Passengers” →

Bizarre, Constitutional Law, Free Speech, International, Politics, Religion, Society, Uncategorized

Indian Muslim Village Bans Women Using Cell Phones In Public

Muslim elders in an Indian village have banned women from using mobile phones in public because they might use the phones to speak with men.  Any woman found using a cell phone faces a fine of $325, a huge amount for most villagers.

Continue reading “Indian Muslim Village Bans Women Using Cell Phones In Public” →

Politics, Society

The Clinton Factor: New York Times Study Suggests That It Was Not Voter Turnout That Determined Election

Hillary_Clinton_Testimony_to_House_Select_Committee_on_BenghaziHillary Clinton has been speaking publicly about her electoral defeat and offering a long list of reasons for the loss except one: Hillary Clinton herself.  A new study by the New York Times however concludes that there was not a failure of Democratic turnout, as often suggested by Clinton supporters spinning the election.  Rather, voters simply rejected Clinton herself.  While Clinton has offered the perfunctory statement that she takes responsibility for the loss, she has been blaming everyone else except herself from the Russians to the FBI Director to self-hating women.  Yesterday, she sat through an interview with Christaine Amanpour at the Women for Women event in New York and proclaimed that, if it weren’t for FBI Director James Comey’s letter to Congress, and “[i]f the election had been on October 27, I would be your president.” Update: President Donald Trump has fired back at Clinton saying that he simply ran a great campaign.  That assertion is equally debatable since Trump remained equally unpopular with most voters who simply felt that they had no choice (again) offered by the two parties.  As discussed below, I think that the election turned on the manifest demand of the voters for someone outside of the establishment.

Continue reading “The Clinton Factor: New York Times Study Suggests That It Was Not Voter Turnout That Determined Election” →

Columns, Courts, Media, Politics, Society

Breaking Up Is Hard To Do: The Timing and Rationales For Splitting The Ninth Circuit Are Dubious

ninth-circuit-logoBreaking-up-is-hard-to-do-neil-sedakaThe call by President Donald Trump to break up the United States Court of Appeals for the  Ninth Circuit have been echoed by members of Congress, including most recently Sen. Ted Cruz (R., TX).  Below is my column in The Hill Newspaper on the controversy.

 

 

Continue reading “Breaking Up Is Hard To Do: The Timing and Rationales For Splitting The Ninth Circuit Are Dubious” →