Associate Justice Samuel Alito

Trump V Anderson Supreme Court Case Demonstrates A Bitterly Divided Court!

admin 5 Comments

The right wing Supreme Court has determined that Donald Trump cannot be barred from Presidential primary ballots, despite many conservatives, including former Circuit Court Judge J. Michael Luttig among many others, stating that his inciting of the US Capitol Insurrection of January 6, 2021 violated the 14th Amendment, Section Three.

The decision was that it is up to Congress to bar anyone from running for President, not individual state governments.

In so doing, the decision demonstrated a bitterly divided Court, as the four women on the Court, three Democrats and Justice Amy Coney Barrett, while part of an unanimous vote, made clear their discomfort with the issue of Donald Trump being able to avoid responsibility for his actions on January 6.

If Trump had been removed from the ballot in Colorado, Maine and Illinois, it would have led to further incitement by Trump on the basis that he was being denied the right to be judged by the American people.

So the understanding is that ultimately it is up to the American people and their voting to repudiate this Insurrectionist by reelecting Joe Biden in November!

The Supreme Court has lost all credibility, and its public opinion rating is an all time low, with particularly two of its members—Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito—being seen as corrupt and personally obnoxious—and the Court being the most right wing since the early 1930s.

Momentous Time For Supreme Court With Colorado Court Banning Of Trump On 2024 Election Primary Ballot!

admin 4 Comments

The moment has arrived for the US Supreme Court to face a tough decision that will affect the Presidential Election of 2024.

Should they uphold the Colorado Supreme Court and agree to the banning of Donald Trump from the 2024 Primary Ballot, due to his involvement in setting up and inciting the January 6, 2021 US Capitol Insurrection?

The Colorado Court’s decision is based on the 14th Amendment Section 3, added to the Constitution after the Civil War, and seemingly appropriate to this blogger to be employed in this present situation!

If they do, that would open up other states also employing the same strategy through lawsuits to the state Supreme Courts.

Respected conservative experts agree that this is proper, including J. Michael Luttig, a retired Appeals Court Judge, who is highly regarded, and conservative attorney George Conway!

That would, effectively, undermine, and likely prevent Donald Trump from being able to win the Presidency, and effectively saving American democracy from the threat he represents to the Constitution and rule of law!

There is no way to forecast the result, but it could be a case as significant as US V Nixon in 1974, which led to the resignation of Richard Nixon from the Presidency!

A gut feeling that the Supreme Court will vote 7-2 to uphold the action of the Colorado Supreme Court, with Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito in dissent, but with all three Trump appointees showing principle, guts, and courage, as three such Justices appointed by Richard Nixon did so in July 1974!

Supreme Court Reputation At All Time Low!

Ronald Leave a comment

The Supreme Court of the United States once was the most highly honored government institution, with a reputation of having the highest ethics, and beyond politics!

However, the Roberts Court, in place now for 18 years since 2005, has lost all credibility, as it has struck out against basic constitutional rights relating to women, race, and sexuality, and has promoted a gun culture; advocated religion (Christianity) over civil rights; and worked to limit voting rights.

The two Bush appointees—Clarence Thomas (George H. W. Bush), and Samuel Alito (George W. Bush) have become the most horrendous, narrow minded Supreme Court Justices of the past century, more so than Antonin Scalia and William Rehnquist, in their negative influence on constitutional law.

Roberts himself, who is so concerned about the negative image of the Court, has been unwilling to promote the concept of ethics reform, despite the clearcut scandals of both Thomas and Alito, but also including himself and even some by other Court members.

So Roberts, the 17th Chief Justice in American history, will not have a great historical reputation in the future, and the Court’s misbehavior will lead to a move to change the future of the Court, including, possibly, future expansion of the Court; or term limits for future Justices; and mandated ethics reforms when and if the Democrats can have solid control of the legislative agenda in some future Congress, hopefully sooner rather than later!

Roberts, himself, has already served as Chief Justice longer than most of that select group of 17, and it would be a good situation if he, with 18 years; Alito with 17 years; and Thomas with 32 years (12th longest of all Supreme Court Justices) were to retire soon, but that is very unlikely to occur anytime soon!

Away For Two Weeks, And The World Changes, Not For The Better! :(

Ronald 6 Comments

Having just returned from my vacation with my older son after watching nine baseball games at eight baseball stadiums from Washington DC to Chicago, it is clear while I have been away that the nation and the world have changed, and not for the better.

Russia under Vladimir Putin is in turmoil after a challenge to the government by a militia group, creating more international instability. And demonstrations in France have gone large after the killing of an Algerian Arab French citizen by police, making clear that racism is alive and well in not just the United States but world wide!

And then, domestically, the Supreme Court has shown once again just how extreme they are, and presenting a constitutional crisis, as the Bush I and II appointees, along with the Trump appointees, have declared war on precedent and progress, trying to bring America back to the 18th century “originalism”, which many scholars make clear is totally preposterous!

The majority Court Justices have been shown to have massive financial and ideological conflicts of interest with no means for accountability, and with Chief Justice John Roberts losing all of whatever reasonable reputation he has had over the years, with his refusal to testify on ethics violations by himself and the other Republican Justices, particularly, but not only, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito.

Between the attack on abortion rights a year ago, and now the end of affirmative action; the denial of student college debt relief; and allowing religion to interfere with the basic human rights of gays and transgenders, and arguably, other groups that any person in any business or industry could decide to refuse to interact with in daily life, is clearly the most dangerous time in constitutional history since the Civil War!

Time For Chief Justice Roberts, Associate Justices Thomas And Alito To Retire!

Ronald 2 Comments

The controversies over conflicts of interest and open corruption on the Supreme Court calls for the three Bush 1 and Bush 2 Justices to retire.

Clarence Thomas has been on the Court for nearly 32 years, 12th longest!

Samuel Alito has been on the Court for 17 years, the norm for Justices in American history!

Chief Justice Roberts has been on the Court for 18 years, the norm for the last three Chief Justices, and only three Chief Justices in the 19th century have served longer!

There is a dire need for term limits on the Court, as 18 years of service would allow each President in the future to select two Justices in a four year term, and turnover is essential, as the Justices should not be regarded with reverence as if they are deities!

Clarence Thomas, Harlan Crowe, And Leonard Leo: Massive Ethics Scandal!

Ronald Leave a comment

Supreme Court Associate Justice Clarence Thomas has become the most controversial member of the Supreme Court since Associate Justice Abe Fortas resigned from the Court in 1969, due to an ethics scandal, which by comparison to Thomas, was quite minor.

Thomas and his wife, Ginni Thomas, have been taking favors, gifts, and lots of money from billionaires Harlan Crow and Leonard Leo, the latter the head of the right wing Federalist Society, which has been dedicated, and quite successfully, to turn the US Federal Judicial system to the extreme Right.

Thomas has been controversial since he was confirmed in 1991, after charges of sexual harassment by Anita Hill, caused the closest vote of the 20th century in the US Senate.

The Court under Chief Justice John Roberts has been besmirched not only by Thomas, but by controversies surrounding the appointments of all three Trump appointees, and the two Bush appointees of Thomas and Samuel Alito.

Faith and trust in the fairness and balance of the Court has declined rapidly, but there is little that can be done to force Thomas to resign, as that would have the effect of changing the strong right wing extremism of the present Court with a Joe Biden replacement.

The rule of law and faith in the Constitution is under attack, and restored confidence in the Court is not likely anytime soon.

Supreme Court Justice Quality Way Down From Decades In The Past!

Ronald Leave a comment

Republican Party Presidents since 1953 have selected the vast majority of Supreme Court Justices!

Dwight D. Eisenhower 5
Richard Nixon 4
Gerald Ford 1
Ronald Reagan 4
George H. W. Bush 2
George W. Bush 2
Donald Trump 3
Total 21 with William Rehnquist listed twice under Nixon and Reagan

in 40 years of Republican Presidents

Democratic Party Presidents have had far fewer appointments!

John F. Kennedy 2
Lyndon B. Johnson 2
Jimmy Carter 0
Bill Clinton 2
Barack Obama 2
Joe Biden 1
Total 9

in 32 years of Democratic Presidents

So twice as many Repubican appointments as Democrats!

Eisenhower had Chief Justice Earl Warren, Associate Justice Potter Stewart, and Associate Justice William Brennan stand out!

Nixon had Chief Justice Warren Burger and Associate Justice Harry Blackmun stand out!

Ford had Associate Justice John Paul Stevens stand out!

Reagan had Associate Justice Sandra Day O’Connor and Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy stand out!

H W Bush had Associate Justice David Souter stand out!

On the Democratic side:

Kennedy had Associate Justice Byron White stand out!

Johnson had Associate Justice Thurgood Marshall stand out!

Clinton had Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Associate Justice Stephen Breyer stand out!

Obama had Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor and Associate Justice Elena Kagan stand out!

Biden had Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson stand out!

So 9 Republican appointments and 7 Democratic appointments have stood out!

Now, sadly, we have a group of appointments by Republican Presidents (the two Bushes and Donald Trump) that have been extremist and involved in conflicts of interest, and are not interested in being in the moderate center of constitutional law!

These include Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Brett Kavanaugh, Neil Gorsuch, and sadly, Chief Justice John Roberts!

Supreme Court Ethical Violations Are Totally Out Of Control!

Ronald Leave a comment

The Supreme Court, already outrageously extremist right wing, due to the three Donald Trump appointees added to the arrogant, nasty Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, the appointees of the two Bush Presidencies, is now even further in violation of ethics!

It turns out that Chief Justice John Roberts has judged in cases that involve financial matters affecting his wife!

This blogger has always tried to give slack to Roberts, but at this point, he is the head of a Court out of control, and refuses to testify before a Senate committee on Judicial ethics, of which the Court, clearly, has ZERO!

Roberts has been on the Court for 18 years, Thomas 32 years and Alito 17 years, and it is time for these unethical Justices to retire!

Of course, they will NOT do so, but that is the argument for expansion of the Court, as this is very different than the controversial so called “Court Packing Plan” of Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1937, which was defeated!

That Court in 1937 had declared several New Deal laws unconstitutional, but the Court in the present is way beyond any earlier abuses, and longevity of Court members is out of control as compared to history!

There is a need for term limits on the Court, and for now, to balance the Court and make for fair constitutional law, new members need to be added!

Until that occurs, which is of course unlikely, the Court will have further rapidly declining prestige and support of public opinion, which does matter in a democracy!

Supreme Court Corruption Is Massive: Time For Reform!

Ronald Leave a comment

The latest revelation about Supreme Court Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch selling property to a law firm that has argued before the Court adds to the similar actions of Clarence Thomas selling property to a right wing billionaire, and makes clear the reality of ethical violations by members of the Court, who seem to think they are beyond reproach!

Add the nasty, arrogant manner of Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas; the ethical issues around Thomas and Brett Kavanaugh that have never been truly addressed; and the abuse promoted by Kentucky Senator and Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in promoting a quick replacement for Ruth Bader Ginsburg by Amy Coney Barrett just weeks before the Presidential Election of 2020, while blocking the appointment of Merrick Garland to replace Antonin Scalia nine months before the Presidential Election of 2016.

One could argue that except for Barrett and Chief Justice John Roberts, that all of the other Republican appointments to the Court are, at the least, ethically challenged, and screams for Supreme Court reform.

The Court is more extreme right wing than it has been since the 1920s, so there is now a strong argument to add members to the Court to right the balance, and to set term limits for future Court Justices.

Justices are on the Court for too long, with Thomas now at almost 32 years, and the all time record being 36, and with Alito at 17 years and Roberts at 18 years, which sounds like what the proper term in the future should be 18 years, with the idea that every President in the future, would have two appointments in a four year term, and there would be constant turnover over four plus Presidential terms.

The Ten Greatest Political Villains Of 2022! And An Addendum!

Ronald 3 Comments

Yesterday, I published a post on the ten greatest Political Heroes of 2022.

So now, it is time to indicate who I believe are the ten greatest Political Villains of 2022!

In no special order, I would list the following:

Republican House Minority Leader, possibly Speaker of the House (hopefully not), Kevin McCarthy of California, who time again and again showed he had no spine, being a supplicant to Donald Trump, and demonstrating no principle or ethics in his crazed desire to be Speaker, two heartbeats away from the Presidency. The thought of him being that close in the line of succession is horrifying, not that there are very good alternatives!

Election Denier, and symbol with clenched fist, Republican Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri, who promoted sedition and treason! He faces reelection in 2024 and should be soundly defeated!

Election Denier and most obnoxious Senator (with other competitors), Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, who this author and blogger thought in 2016 was the most dangerous Republican running for President, even more than Donald Trump! He faces reelection in 2024 and should be soundly defeated!

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a man who once had some intelligence, but after Arizona Senator John McCain died, has become a total Donald Trump sycophant!

Republican Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, a very unstable and unpricipled excuse for a human being, who, somehow, was able to defeat one of the best US Senators of modern times, Russ Feingold, in 2010 and 2016, and then a very talented Lieutenant Governor, African American Mandela Barnes in 2022. Johnson is one of the worst figures in Senate history!

Republican Congressman Jim Jordan of Ohio, an obnoxious and unprincipled man who, sadly, is likely to become House Judiciary Committee Chairman in the 118th Congress in 2023!

Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott, who won his third term as Governor in 2022, despite his horrendous policies and lack of compassion, and is likely to pursue a Presidential candidacy for 2024!

Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis, who won a vast reelection victory in 2022, and is seen as the front runner for the Republican Presidential nomination in 2024, despite his intolerant and authoritarian bent, and his high level of arrogance and cockiness, on a multitude of issues. These include the COVID 19 Pandemic; Gay and Transgender Rights; Racial and Religious Minorities; interference in the teaching of History and Literature, and Manipulating School Boards and Libraries; and extreme Gerrymandering of Congressional Districts, which took away two African American seats, and gave the Republicans the control of the House of Representatives in the 118th Congress!

Arizona Republican Gubernatorial nominee Kari Lake, who used the same tactic as Donald Trump, promoting the “Big Lie” about her defeat in the recent elections in her state. She has just been repudiated in court in her attempt to reverse a clearcut victory by her opponent, Secretary of State Katie Hobbs. Good riddance to the most obnoxious woman imaginable!

Finally, on this list, former President Donald Trump, the most dangerous and worst US President in American history, twice impeached, and a close ally of totalitarian dictators around the world, willing to overthrow the US Constitution, rule of law, and American democracy. He needs to be prevented from running again for President, and indictment and conviction on the four charges brought against him by the January 6 House Committee is essential, to prevent any future tyrant from taking the kind of actions that this most evil man took! He harmed so many Americans during his term, as well as having the responsibility for the deaths, destruction and violence, in the worst attack on the US Capitol since the War of 1812!

And now an Addendum:

The Supreme Court has become a disgraceful, power hungry, extremist right wing organization!

Chief Justice John Roberts has lost his desired reputation as the leader of his Court, and in particular, Clarence Thomas (appointed by George H. W. Bush) and Samuel Alito (appointed by George W. Bush) have been totally out of control, and both will go down as two of the very worst Supreme Court Justices in American history! The names and reputations of both Bush Presidencies are permanently besmirched as a result!