In the aftermath of the New York Times admitting that the Hunter Biden laptop was authentic all along, the Biden White House has gone into radio silence — and few reporters are pressing the President for an answer. White House press secretary Jen Psaki previously spread the false claim that the laptop was Russian disinformation (as did President Biden). She is now saying that it would be inappropriate for her to address her prior comments on the scandal. Thankfully, there has been no run to the local ice cream store but this cone of silence is occurring as reports come out of additional evidence acquired on Hunter Biden in the ongoing criminal investigation.
It is often said that “the first casualty of War is Truth.” It is a powerful but slightly inaccurate statement. The first casualty before truth is free speech. Lies only triumph when unchallenged. That is why one of the most consistent responses to war, including in the United States, has been an attack on the free speech of dissenters. This anti-free speech impulse rests like a dormant virus in the body politic and it has emerged, once again, like a fever during the Ukrainian War. From Congress to the arts, critics of the war are being labeled “traitors” and “agents of Russia.”
Continue reading “The War on Free Speech: Politicians and Commentators Label War Critics “Traitors””
Under the leadership of Randi Weingarten, the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) has long been criticized by conservatives for its support of far left policies and support for Democratic candidates. Nevertheless, as a union, it is entitled to be political and most unions favor the Democrats due to their pro-union policies. However, the concern over the AFT’s agenda become far greater when it announced that it would team up with NewsGuard to start to flag news sources deemed “misinformation.” NewsGuard is co-founded by Steve Brill who has been accused of bias against Republicans and conservatives. Conservative sites have previously tagged NewGuard as “heavily skewed” in favor of the left. The “misinformation” label has been used extensively by liberal media to kill stories like the Hunter Biden laptop stories as unreliable. Indeed, Brill is under fire for being one of the voices falsely claiming that the Hunter Biden laptop was likely false Russian disinformation. His company will now put “traffic lights” on information for children on what sources they rely upon.
There are some things that are just painful to watch. For some of us, the Bears offensive line in the last couple of years would force us to look the other way for four quick downs. For others, it is cringeworthy dancing and singing of politicians to appeal to younger voters. However, there is nothing more painful than watching the media forced to recognize long-buried scandals related to the Biden family.
We have been discussing how academics and students now define blocking speech or shouting down speakers to be an exercise of free speech. It is the very denial of free speech but also violates the rules of many universities. Yet, administrators are either supportive of such cancelling efforts or fearful in being tagged the next racist or reactionary by a mob. So we have scenes like the one at Yale Law School where students disrupted a conservative speaker and required the intervention of campus police to safely remove the speakers. It is particularly distressing to see such scenes unfold at law schools where free speech was once taught as a defining right in our system. As shown recently at Georgetown Law School, free speech is often portrayed today more as a threat rather than a guarantee in our system. Indeed, Yale students later complained that the police presence at the event created an unsafe space for students as they disrupted the event. Police were needed to escort the speakers safely out of the event.
Happy St. Patrick’s Day to all of the leprechauns of the blog from the Turley Clan. The leprechauns came to bring treats and tricks to the Turley house this morning. While our kids are older, we still enjoy our traditions.
Today is the birthday of our greatest Framer and the genius behind our Constitution: James Madison. He would have been 271 years old. We will be celebrating tonight with a traditional Virginia dinner (with the required Virginia ham), a three-layer cake (for the tripartite system), and Madison’s favorite dessert . . .
We have regularly discussed the rising attacks on free speech on college campuses, including Northwestern University. Protesters at Northwestern have blocked speakers while maintaining that there is “no free speech for overtly racist white dudes.” They have stopped classes from discussing ICE policies. However, the student government has now added an attack on the free press by voting to block media from meetings to protect students from criticism over their advocacy. Even the dean of the school’s prestigious journalism school called out the action as inimical to the free press.
Continue reading “Northwestern Student Government Bars The Press from Some Meetings”
Twenty years ago, I testified in Congress on the Presidential Records Act and the need for reforms to preserve these records for history. This morning I will testify again on this subject before the Senate Committee on Homeland and Governmental Affairs in a hearing entitled “Correcting the Public Record: Reforming Federal and Presidential Records Management.”
Continue reading “Turley to Testify before the Senate on Presidential Records”
Below is my column in the Hill on the limits of international law in face of a “war of aggression” by Russia. Indeed, it will likely be international economics rather than international law that will drive the outcome of this conflict.
Here is the column:
We previously discussed the shooting of Ma’Khia Bryant, 16, in Columbus, Ohio. I wrote earlier that I believed that the shooting was justified under departmental rules and legal precedent. Nevertheless, the shooting of the teenager was decried as murder in the media. “The View” co-host Joy Behar insisted that, when the officer saw Bryant moving to stab another girl, he should have shot in the air. The grand jury clearly disagreed and refused to indict Officer Nicholas Reardon. Continue reading “Grand Jury Rejects Charges in Ma’Khia Bryant Shooting Despite Media Outcry”
Bridgewater State University is the subject of a novel lawsuit after it asked Donna Johnston, a white applicant for one of three open positions in the School of Social Work, to, according to the Boston Globe, “defend her whiteness” in a job interview. The university said that she “missed the target” in answering how she could overcome her “white privilege.”
In World War II, Winston Churchill famously declared that “Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.” It appears that there may be even fewer to count on if a recent poll out this weekend is accurate. The Quinnipiac University poll asked Americans “what would you do if you were in the same position as Ukrainians are now, stay and fight or leave the country?” Only 55 percent said that they would stay and fight for this country. That included only 40 percent of Democrats. Overall 38 percent of Americans said that they would flee. It appears that this country is facing an existential crisis of faith and we should have a frank discussion about why so comparably few Americans are now willing to pledge their lives in defense of this country. Continue reading “Poll: Almost Forty Percent of Americans Say That They Would Rather Flee Than Defend the United States”
The world has watched in utter disgust at the wanton destruction of Ukraine by Russia. However, in the very midst of the ruins left in the wake of this invasion, the indomitable spirit and beauty of humanity has broken through in the actions of brave Ukrainians. The video below is one of the most beautiful and inspiring moments that I have seen. It is overwhelming and I wanted to share it with anyone who has not seen it. It shows 94 violinists in 29 countries joining young Ukrainian violinist Illia Bondarenko as he plays in a bunker with the Russian onslaught attacking Kyiv above him.
Continue reading “A Sound of Transcendent Beauty and Defiance from the Bomb Shelters of Ukraine”