Did Obamacare Die Today?

Probably not but the individual mandate--a crucial part of the bill--sure sounds like it did:



Hat tip: AP @ Hot Air

Justice Kennedy is the key vote as Roberts, Alito, Scalia and Thomas will probably strike it down.

This is the single-most important issue SCOTUS will hear in the last 25-years and one that will reverberate for decades. The only thing that could surpass this would be re-hearing Roe v. Wade.

I'm no lawyer but when one of the most liberal legal media members today says it was a bad day for Obamacare, I tend to listen.

Is There a More Useless POS Than Gloria Allred?

Really?

Gloria Allred has sent a letter to Denise Nieman, the County Prosecutor in West Palm Beach, Florida, on behalf of the Women’s Equal Rights Legal Defense and Education Fund, asking for an investigation into whether Rush Limbaugh violated Florida defamation law when he called Sandra Fluke a "slut" and a "prostitute." Allred cites Section 836.04 of Florida Statute, which says that "whoever speaks of and concerning any woman, married or unmarried, falsely and maliciously imputing to her a want of chastity, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree."

"Mr. Limbaugh has publicly acknowledged that his reference to Ms. Fluke as a 'slut' and 'prostitute' were baseless and false," Allred writes. "In view of the fact that Mr. Limbaugh resides in your county and allegedly made the false statements concerning Ms. Fluke in your county as well, this letter is directed to your office."

Now I'm no lawyer and don't even play one on this blog but isn't Rush covered by something called the 1st Amendment? And if not, wouldn't a similar case be justified against Bill Maher or the myriad other lefties who defamed Michelle Malkin and sarah Palin? While I would like to see Maher and his less funny and less talented buddy Olbermann be forced to pick up trash on the side of the highway and/or shovel out enough cash to put Willow Palin and Malkin's kids through college, I can't bring myself to just erase a constitutionally-protected right.

Is Gloria Allred the biggest attention whore ever (or should I call her a prostitute)? Every single case that comes up involved a woman in some way she's the bitch who is ambulance-chasing and tracking them down to appear with her. Has she ever won these women anything or help them in any way?

She's got to change her name since "allred" is what happens when you are shameful and this idiot has absolutely no shame.

Bush Officials Cleared on Turture Charges By Justice Dept.

Vindication:

For weeks, the right has heckled Attorney General Eric Holder Jr. for his plans to try the alleged 9/11 conspirators in New York City and his handling of the Christmas bombing plot suspect. Now the left is going to be upset: an upcoming Justice Department report from its ethics-watchdog unit, the Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR), clears the Bush administration lawyers who authored the “torture” memos of professional-misconduct allegations.

While the probe is sharply critical of the legal reasoning used to justify waterboarding and other “enhanced” interrogation techniques, NEWSWEEK has learned that a senior Justice official who did the final review of the report softened an earlier OPR finding. Previously, the report concluded that two key authors—Jay Bybee, now a federal appellate court judge, and John Yoo, now a law professor—violated their professional obligations as lawyers when they crafted a crucial 2002 memo approving the use of harsh tactics, say two Justice sources who asked for anonymity discussing an internal matter. But the reviewer, career veteran David Margolis, downgraded that assessment to say they showed “poor judgment,” say the sources. (Under department rules, poor judgment does not constitute professional misconduct.) The shift is significant: the original finding would have triggered a referral to state bar associations for potential disciplinary action—which, in Bybee’s case, could have led to an impeachment inquiry.

Of course they had to give a wrist slap but Obama officials, including AG holder know full-well that if they face a situation as Bush did or even one worse--possibly involving nukes or other WMD--they want precedent and have some latitude to get information quickly. I guarantee if the crotch bomber hadn't attempted to blow up a plane with 300 aboard, it may have turned out different.

Either way, George W. bush, John Yoo and Jay Bybee have been vindicated.

Terrorists Read Miranda Rights Now

Al-Zawahiri must be chuckling from his safe house:

If Tenet is right, it’s a good thing KSM was captured before Barack Obama became president. For, the Obama Justice Department has quietly ordered FBI agents to read Miranda rights to high value detainees captured and held at U.S. detention facilities in Afghanistan, according a senior Republican on the House Intelligence Committee. “The administration has decided to change the focus to law enforcement. Here’s the problem. You have foreign fighters who are targeting US troops today – foreign fighters who go to another country to kill Americans. We capture them…and they’re reading them their rights – Mirandizing these foreign fighters,” says Representative Mike Rogers, who recently met with military, intelligence and law enforcement officials on a fact-finding trip to Afghanistan.

Rogers, a former FBI special agent and U.S. Army officer, says the Obama administration has not briefed Congress on the new policy. “I was a little surprised to find it taking place when I showed up because we hadn’t been briefed on it, I didn’t know about it. We’re still trying to get to the bottom of it, but it is clearly a part of this new global justice initiative.”

Caught in Afghanistan committing acts of war against us and they are afforded the same rights as criminals in the US. The only hope I'm feeling is that our military can liquidate enough of them on the field and the only change I see is the change in our vigilance against terrorism. Heaven help us.

It's On: Souter to Retire

Associate Justice David Souter is retiring from the Supreme Court:

President Obama's to-do list just got a bit longer. Supreme Court justice David Souter has told the White House he wants to retire.

The former New Hampshire Attorney General was appointed to the court in 1990 by the first President Bush.

"He recognizes the proper role of judges in upholding the democratic choices of the people through their elected representatives with constitutional constraints," President George H.W. Bush said on July 23, 1990.

He was appointed by a Republican, but David Souter was a moderate and sided with more liberal justices on a number of cases, including the "Bush vs Gore" election recount dispute in 2000.

He was a reliable liberal vote in spite of the fact that George H.W. Bush nominated him when he had the opportunity to appoint another Scalia-type.

So now Obama has the chance to remake the court and with Justices Ginsburg and Stevens probably ready to retire soon, his choices will indeed shape the direction of the court for the foreseeable future. While conservative stalwarts Roberts, Scalia, Thomas and Alito will be there (hopefully) for years, it may well come down to replacing the liberals unless Obama can win another term than all bets are off.

Who will Obama pick?

Possible nominees who have been mentioned as being on a theoretical short list include Elena Kagan, the current solicitor general who represents the government before the Supreme Court; Sonia Sotomayor, a Hispanic judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit; and Diane Wood, a federal judge in Chicago who taught at the University of Chicago at the same time future President Barack Obama was teaching constitutional law there.

I'm guessing they would all be Ginsburg clones.

Dem Judges Sentenced in Horrific Case

Two judges in Luzerne County, PA were recently convicted and sentenced for a kick-back scheme in which they sent young kids to a children's prison camp for even the most minor of violations. They then received a payment from the operator of the camp.

the Inquirer has the goods:

In what authorities are calling one of the worst judicial scandals in Pennsylvania history, Ciavarella and another Luzerne County judge, Michael T. Conahan, pleaded guilty last month to sentencing youths - Charlie among them - to secure detention facilities from which they received $2.6 million in kickbacks.

After their guilty pleas, the Juvenile Law Center in Philadelphia filed a civil lawsuit on behalf of 70 families, including the Balasavages, alleging that Ciavarella and Conahan violated the rights of young offenders in ways that went beyond the kickback scheme.

What they don't tell you is that the judges were prominent Democrats:

The appointment sparked a heated rivalry between Musto and Conahan and led to a brutal primary campaign, which included mutual charges of nepotism and campaign finance violations.

Conahan accused Democratic Party leaders of attempting to “strong arm” him out of the race, suggested he acquiesce to Musto and wait until 1995 to run for the seat that was being vacated by the retiring Judge Gifford S. Cappellini — a position that eventually went to Ciavarella.

Emphasis mine.

Now take a sec to imagine if it had been GOP judges who pissed on the Constitutional rights of children all for greed. It would have been plastered all over every newspaper in America.

Greedy US Airways Passsengers Look to Cash In

A few weeks ago, when Capt. Sullenberger heroically guided a stricken airliner into the Hudson River with no deaths, the natural reaction by everyone was to be relieved. For those on the flight, that relief must have been enormous.

Now, removed from the drama a bit, some passengers are looking to cash in:

Many US Airways (LCC) passengers who endured a crash landing in the Hudson River 12 days ago say they appreciate the $5,000 that the airline has offered — but some say it's not enough.

Joe Hart, a salesman from Charlotte who suffered a bloody nose and bruises, says he "would like to be made whole for the incident."

What the hell does that mean, "made whole"? The dude broke his nose and suffered a contusion or two. Your nose healed, the bruises faded so now you are whole, end of story.

"We're grateful everyone survived, and the captain on the plane was so marvelous," says Gail Dunham, the group's executive director. "But passengers lost luggage, briefcases, cellphones, BlackBerrys and business documents, and went through a terrific ordeal."

Sure, they lost a few belongings, but nothing exceeding $5,000 I'd suspect. More importantly, they still have their lives. Just as in a house fire, you may lose pictures and belongings but if you're alive, it a net positive.

Still, two idiot passengers are whining like pussies because they say they had more than $5,000 worth of belongings on the plane--yet admit that US Airways has treated them very well. If you had more than $5,000 worth of equipment while flying, you're an idiot.

This litigious BS is the sole reason we are in trouble with health care costs, consumer goods price increases and it affects every facet of daily life. US Airways properly trained the pilot, offered recompense in excess of that required and ensured that everyone made it to their destination. The accident was caused by a flock of birds that the government will not allow the airlines to properly deal with and was not their fault. In short, US Airways is not to blame and these two morons should be told to go pound sand and given only the required $3,300 instead of the generous $5,000.

Some people have their priorities straight, however:

Amber Wells of Charlotte says she's so thankful to have survived and to be with her 9-month-old daughter, Rayley, that she hasn't had time to think about her belongings.

She says she lost $2,000 of nursing equipment and a laptop computer, as well as a checked bag and a carry-on bag.

"Everything that's gone can be replaced," says Wells, 34, a senior manager for NASCAR. "My life cannot be replaced."

Amen Ms. Well, Amen.