Supreme Court

An Interesting Solution To The Probable Hillary Clinton-Joe Biden Rivalry For The Presidency

After delivering a lecture this evening to a very interested audience about the Presidential and Congressional Elections of 2012, one participant came up with an excellent idea regarding the likely rivalry that will develop between Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Vice President Joe Biden for the Presidential nomination of the Democratic Party in 2016.

While certainly younger and newer faces will compete with both Clinton and Biden for the Presidency, the potential rivalry presents a real problem, not only to their friendship and admiration for each other, but also for their boss, President Obama, who owes a great deal to both of them, and would, most certainly, rather not have to pick between them, or look ungrateful to either of them.

The solution would be, as this person said, to select one of them for the first vacancy on the Supreme Court, most likely to replace Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, in 2013 or 2014.

Either one could sit on the Court and do an excellent job, but probably Hillary Clinton would be the better choice overall for the Court, a job that is highly prestigious, but far less intense than being Secretary of State or President. And she could serve for as long as she wanted, and it would be likely to please her husband, President Bill Clinton, immensely, and save her the rigors of a Presidential campaign.

It would give Joe Biden the chance to be the nominee if he can overcome younger opponents in the primaries and caucuses, but his age of 74 in 2016 would not be a plus, although he does possess immense energy.

At worst, he could become Secretary of State under another Democratic President in 2017, or be the second choice for the Supreme Court, if a second vacancy developed during the second Obama term.

The point is that both Hillary and Joe are treasures, and they could serve in other less, but prestigious positions, and continue their contributions to American government in their older years!

Voting Rights Act Under Review, As Arizona, Florida And Other States Show Evidence Of Voter Suppression

The Supreme Court has accepted a case on the validity of continuation of federal oversight of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, with the argument that states can handle their voting effectively, without discrimination.

Are such advocates getting high on drugs?

It is CLEAR CUT that Arizona, Florida and other states were working to discriminate against people of color and poor people in the recent election!

Florida was unable to handle its voting process expeditiously, and was abusive in cutting down days of voting from 14 to 8, thanks to the GOP legislature and Governor Rick Scott!

Arizona has still not counted all the votes, and Governor Jan Brewer and Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio are the worst abusers of voting rights, and both promote intimidation of Hispanics and Latinos, and act as if they are above the law!

Other states have promoted intimidation of Hispanics and Latinos, including Alabama specifically, and many states have promoted voter suppression laws.

How could a reasonable Supreme Court do anything other than uphold the need for continued monitoring of voting?

And yet this right wing majority on the Court could very well destroy one of the path mark pieces of legislation under Lyndon B. Johnson, and bring us back to the age of “Jim Crow”!

It i s hoped that Justice Anthony Kennedy (often the swing vote), and or Chief Justice John Roberts will join the four liberal members of the Court in upholding the continued enforcement of the Voting Rights Act. Roberts, having surprised everyone, with his decisive vote to uphold ObamaCare, hopefully will surprise us again with an open mind, and come through, even if Kennedy fails to do so.

To have advancements in American democracy endangered 50 years later is a true disgrace!

The Military Industrial Complex Gone Wild And Reckless! Time For Accountability For Corporate And Military Leadership!

In his Farewell Address in January 1961, President Dwight D. Eisenhower warned of the dangers of a “Military Industrial Complex” that would undermine our national security, civil liberties and basic ethical standards, as well as monopolizing the American economy.

Eisenhower was so prophetic, and it is slapping us in the face more and more every year!

Not only have big business corporations gained unheard of control over the American economy, but they have also corrupted our political system, and sadly, the Supreme Court, controlled by conservative Justices who had no concept of the true meaning of the Constitution, have hijacked our democracy through the Citizens United Case!

And the military has become corrupted too, and not just in abuses practiced in wartime, but also in the personal behavior of the top officials of our military. It is shocking that General David Petraeus and General John Allen are caught in highly inappropriate contact with women, who might have compromised these powerful men in the area of national security and the fight against terrorism.

It is not a question of morality per se, but rather of judgment, as people at the top of the military cannot afford to be reckless in their behavior, because it does not just affect their wives and families, but also all of us in this nation!

It was not acceptable with President Bill Clinton, and it is no more acceptable in the head of the Central Intelligence Agency or the head of our troops in Afghanistan!

But this is due to the fact that we tend to worship both powerful, wealthy businessmen, and powerful military leaders, both of whom are considered heroes, which builds up their egos in both the business and military worlds, and allows them to think they are unaccountable for their actions and behavior!

There is a need for a major house cleaning in the military, but also full prosecution of those businessmen who have abused their power and caused the economic downturn of the past four years.

Men and women of power MUST be held accountable, and this is the time to do it, in a second term of a President no longer facing reelection, and therefore able to be “free” of political considerations!

Plutocracy Vs Representative Government: 1896 And 2012 Presidential Elections

In the last election of the 19th century, the Presidential Election Of 1896, the corporate plutocrats of the time period—John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, J P Morgan—gave financial support to the Republican Presidential nominee, William McKinley, to defeat Democratic nominee William Jennings Bryan, and threatened their workers with lost jobs and closed down industries if Bryan won. They succeeded in electing McKinley, but fortunately within five years, with the assassination of McKinley in 1901, they met their match in the new President, Theodore Roosevelt, who ushered in the Progressive Era, setting the standard for progressives and the later evolution of liberalism among members of Congress and numerous Presidents of both parties, who would work to copy TR’s vision of leadership for the people against the special interests, the powerful corporations. TR also made sure that corporations were unable, ever again, to wield the spending power in campaigns as they had done in 1896.

116 years later, the corporate plutocrats of 2012—including the Koch Brothers, Sheldon Adelson, Donald Trump and a small group of others led by Karl Rove—emboldened by a Supreme Court decision (Citizens United Case) allowing corporations unchecked power to do what was done in 1896, unlimited spending in political campaigns, set out to buy an election, as had occurred in 1896.

So corporate leaders threatened to lay off people if Barack Obama won, and they fully supported the ultimate plutocrat, Mitt Romney, a man who made his fortune destroying jobs and companies, a true Robber Baron, who did not contribute anything to American economic growth, but only his own economic growth!

And despite their massive spending and intrusion into the political process, these plutocrats FAILED MISERABLY!

Democracy won out with the second term victory of Barack Obama, who by winning a second majority popular vote victory, insured the legacy of what he had done on national health care, as well as all of the ideas and visions of TR and every progressive President and program ever since the time of TR, including the New Deal and Great Society.

So TR, belatedly, a century ago, and particularly in 1912, as well as Barack Obama in 2012, reaffirmed the massive victory of progressive ideas and programs, and sent a warning to the corporate plutocrats—YOUR DAYS OF ABSOLUTE CONTROL AND LAWLESSNESS ARE OVER! More government regulation and oversight is on the horizon! The people have won over special interests!

1912–Triumph Of Progressivism! 2012–Triumph Of Progressivism!

A century apart, America veered to the left, and we had a triumph of progressivism both in 1912 and 2012!

In 1912, Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Eugene Debs, and even, to some extent, William Howard Taft, promoted an agenda that would set the standard for the future New Deal and Great Society and ObamaCare.

Now, in 2012, we have institutionalized the New Deal, Great Society, and ObamaCare for the future; and we have seen more women elected to the House and Senate than ever before; we have seen openly gay candidates win in the Senate and House and in local races; we have seen the first Buddhist Senator and Hindu House member from Hawaii elected; we have seen labor help elect a whole group of progressive Democratic Senators across the nation; we have seen Hispanics and Latinos play a major role in politics; we have seen a more progressive House and Senate emerge; we have seen Barack Obama given political capital to bring about greater change in his second term; we have seen the Supreme Court preserved as a balanced body for the long term; we have seen the progressive vision of TR, Wilson, FDR, Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, even Nixon and Ford, Carter, and Clinton preserved and enhanced; and we have seen a repudiation of an interventionist foreign policy , as under the neoconservative influence during the Presidency of George W. Bush.

America is moving forward into the 21st century, just as in 1912, we moved forward into the 20th century. We have repudiated, in 1912 and 2012, returning to the 19th century!

Barack Obama’s Historical Reputation Is Now Guaranteed, As Speaker John Boehner Concedes ObamaCare Is Here To Stay, And No Attempt To Repeal Will Be Made!

Today is a momentous day, as the certainty of the survival of ObamaCare has just been declared by Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner!

After working for more than two years to repeal it, the Republicans are throwing in the towel on trying to repeal it.

The Supreme Court, with Chief Justice John Roberts in the majority with four liberals, upheld the law in June, but the GOP still pledged to kill it.

But with the victory of Barack Obama on Tuesday, and with Democrats gaining seats in the US Senate and in the House of Representatives, the battle has come to an end.

This is a major event, worth celebrating, and it insures the historical legacy of Barack Obama, who will always be remembered first for this accomplishment, just as Franklin D. Roosevelt is remembered for Social Security, and Lyndon B. Johnson for Medicare!

What Barack Obama’s Election To A Second Term As President Means

The second term victory of Barack Obama has many meanings, including:

ObamaCare is here to stay, although there will be tinkering and fine tuning of the program. Who would have thought that Chief Justice John Roberts would save it, and that the ability of the Republican Party to smash it would be a total failure?

The Supreme Court is safe from a right wing tilt, as it is now Barack Obama and a stronger Democratic Senate who will have control over future Court appointments, and lower court nominees as well, and therefore, Obama’s effect on constitutional law will be massive.

The advance of gay rights and gay marriage is now guaranteed, and expect that the Supreme Court will rule on it soon, very likely favorably, and that never again will any state or any religious group be able to deny a basic human right to anyone, the right to marry a person you love.

The environment will be advanced greatly, and likely, often by executive order. Expect that Barack Obama will accomplish enough reform, that he will rank with Theodore Roosevelt, Richard Nixon, and Jimmy Carter as an environmentalist.

The labor movement, in deep trouble for a long time, will now have a champion who will help to revive it, and gain the respect of the American people for the importance of unions.

There will be attempts to deal with the problem of poverty, and expect that Obama will attempt to do what Al Gore planned, had he been inaugurated as President in 2001— a War on Poverty.

Wall Street knows it will have a President who intends to fight them on the subject of regulation, as the voters made clear they wanted government oversight of the financial industry in the public interest.

The right of women to control their reproductive lives, and to have equal pay and respect, will be championed by Barack Obama. No more disrespect for women will become part of the agenda.

The ability to help Latinos and Hispanics achieve advancement in America will be promoted, as they made a dramatic difference in this election, and a plan for immigration reform will move forward, as even sane people in the Republican Party, such as former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, know it is essential for political survival, as well as being what is moral and ethical.

Taxes will go up to make up for past irresponsibility on paying for two wars, and is essential to make budget cuts less onerous, and the rich will go back to paying the rates they paid under Bill Clinton and Richard Nixon and Dwight D. Eisenhower, and they will simply have to understand we are all going to have to sacrifice for the good of the nation and its future.

The possibility of engagement in foreign wars, including against Iran, will be lessened dramatically, although there can never be a certainty that America can avoid foreign conflict, but at least we have a President who will make every effort to avert it.

America will have a President who does not dismiss any percentage of the population, but instead a President who is sincere, genuine, caring, decent, and will work as hard as he can for our advancement. And if he makes mistakes, he will be accountable for them, and will always come across as someone who dedicates every waking moment to our success as a nation.

Barack Obama will have our back, and we will come to appreciate him in the long run of history!

2012 Presidential Campaign Proved That Billionaires Could NOT Control Result!

The Koch Brothers, Sheldon Adelson, and other billionaires spent tens of millions of dollars in 2012 to make our country a plutocracy, and failed.

Linda McMahon spent $100 million to “buy” a Senate seat in Connecticut and failed.

Carly Fiorina and Meg Whitman spent $100 million each to “buy” the Senate seat and Governor’s chair in California in 2010 and failed.

So the Citizens United Case in 2010 failed to change our system as much as we feared, and the Court looks horrible, and it is time for them to accept a case and reverse themselves IMMEDIATELY!

Theodore Roosevelt was right 100 years ago—the powerful plutocracy should NOT control our political system!

The REAL Issues Of 2012 That Are Being Ignored In The Presidential Campaign

If one follows the Presidential campaign of 2012, one would think that ONLY the economy matters.

YES, the economy matters, but the newest jobs report demonstrates that this nation is on the mend, and that over the next Presidential term, the economy will recover, with some experts saying that up to 12 million jobs will be created, whether Barack Obama or Mitt Romney wins the White House on Tuesday.

Others would say the danger of Iran is the major issue, but even on that, it is clear that both Obama and Romney would react similarly to an actual Iranian attack on Israel or any other part of the Middle East.

So the REAL issues are not the economy or Iran!

Instead, they are the following, although ignored in campaign rhetoric:

Climate Change or Global Warming—the reality of it, as demonstrated yet again by Hurricane Sandy, and the need to take the lead in moving away from oil and coal as the major energy resources. But, of course, Republicans and conservatives deny the reality of this threat, and the oil and coal industries do everything they can to protect themselves at the expense of the nation in the long run.

Gun Violence—as demonstrated by what happened so many times in the past few years, including Tucson, Arizona in 2011 to Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords; the mass murders in the Aurora, Colorado movie complex in 2012; the constant murders in cities such as Chicago, often ignored because the victims are African Americans; and so many other cases. And again, the Republicans and conservatives fight any type of gun control, and allow the National Rifle Association to hold America hostage.

Education—the dire need to promote more people attending and graduating four year colleges and universities. Many would say that having a four year degree does not guarantee that one gets the job he wants or needs. While that is true, the unemployment figures make clear that those with a four year degree or more have an unemployment rate under FOUR percent, while those with less education or dropping out of school have an unemployment rate of TWELVE percent! Is there any evidence other than this to convince parents and children of the urgency of getting an education through a four year degree? And besides, there are intangibles other than just getting a degree for a job, such as improving one’s basic skills of reading, writing, and speaking, and improving one’s mind and knowledge; making one a better person in social situations and parent situations; and raising people up from ignorance, conspiracy theory beliefs, and over reliance on religious doctrine, which unfortunately makes many people unwilling to reason for themselves, and just accept gospel as absolute fact. And of course, Republicans and conservatives argue against extra funding and assistance for education, and would prefer to lean on organized religion to “control” the masses, keep them ignorant, and willing, therefore, to accept ideas without questioning or challenge!

The Supreme Court—not understood by many for the important role it plays, and will continue to play, and the urgency of having a President who will select nominees who wish to look to the future, and not the past, and prevent regression politically, socially, and economically back to the Gilded Age and the 1920s. The Republicans and conservatives and Mitt Romney want more Antonin Scalias, Clarence Thomases, and Samuel Alitos, to insure that we go backward for the next 30 years! So the election of Barack Obama is urgent for the future of constitutional law and the preservation of the advancements of the Earl Warren and Warren Burger Supreme Courts.

These issues mentioned above SHOULD be understood before people, who have not voted before Tuesday, vote for our next President, and the best decision for any sane individual is to vote for the candidate who represents a willingness to deal with the future, President Barack Obama!

Major Florida Factor Often Not Considered: The Puerto Rican, And Other Non Cuban Hispanic Vote

As the battle for Florida’s electoral votes goes on, many observers are failing to realize the possible influence of the massively increased Puerto Rican population, particularly in the major area of significance, Central Florida.

Often, many people assume that the Hispanic vote is mostly Cuban, and that they, of course, traditionally vote Republican because of the failure of John F. Kennedy to eliminate Fidel Castro at the Bay of Pigs in 1961.

But in recent years, the Puerto Rican population in the state of Florida, and particularly, in Central Florida, has ballooned to nearly match or surpass the Cuban population found mostly in South Florida.

There are nearly a million Puerto Ricans in Florida, a state that is always rapidly changing, and becoming more non Cuban Hispanic by the month.

The Puerto Ricans of Florida, with smaller numbers in the past, supported the election and reelection of Governor Jeb Bush, but they went to Barack Obama for President in 2008, and are seen as likely, by large percentages, to vote for him again. The key, as always, will be voter turnout.

Additionally, there are a growing number of Hispanics from other nations in the Western Hemisphere, and the tendency of many would be to support Obama, although the very religious element, against abortion and gay marriage, might not, but the point being made here is that to assume, because of some polls at the moment, that Mitt Romney has Florida locked up, with its 29 electoral votes, is a massive mistake, as Florida will be in play, and may well decide who is the next President. And realize that younger Cuban Americans, in many cases, are abandoning the Republican beliefs of their parents and grandparents, and some will vote for Barack Obama!

And remember, with the biggest prize of the “swing” states, 29 electoral votes, Florida may select Barack Obama for a second term, and without the intervention of the Supreme Court for George W. Bush, as in the Presidential Election of 2000!