Chief Justice John Roberts felt that Obama's unpredented, in-your-face, flawed critique of the Supreme Court Citizens United v FEC decision, whereby the Supreme Court ruled that bans on for-profit corporate political ads constituted an unconstitutional violation of free speech, and the surrounding Democrats' raucous approving response created an intimidating atmosphere. [In particular, Obama disingenuously claimed this opened the door for foreign manipulation of elections, deliberately ignoring the fact that the Supreme Court did not set aside separate restrictions on foreign corporations. Justice Sam Alito had mouthed disagreement in response to Obama's false foreign corporation charge, which drew wide criticism for violating expected protocol.] In Roberts' opinion, the State of the Union address, particularly under Obama, has deteriorated into little more than a partisan pep rally. He also noted that confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominees had deteriorated into grandstanding events, with judges being knowingly asked questions which they can't answer by judicial ethics.
Some lawyers, including Fox News' libertarian legal analyst, former New Jersey Superior Court Judge Andrew Napolitano, have been critical, not necessarily regarding the validity of the Chief Justice's opinions, but the decision to speak out, which violates the spirit of independence of the judiciary from the mundane, unseemly world of politics. I'm not a lawyer, but I disagree with these criticisms. Barack Obama's lack of professionalism, due diligence and civility has largely been given a pass, with almost all attention devoted to Alito's reaction, which in fact drew criticism. I think if anyone had a responsibility and motive to speak out on behalf of his fellow judges after this unprecedented, unprovoked attack on SCOTUS by the head of the Executive Branch, it was Chief Justice Roberts. The comments came in a question-and-answer separate from the address and took place several weeks after the address. As Justice Roberts pointed out, it wasn't so much Obama disagreed with the ruling, but the time, place, and nature of Obama's irresponsible firebrand rhetoric.
Chief Justice John Roberts is an outstanding jurist, and his competence, integrity, and professionalism stand in marked contrast to the Three Stooges of Progressivism (Pelosi, Reid, and Obama). I am empathetic with Charles Krauthammer's suggestion that the Supreme Court justices rebuke Obama's disgraceful behavior by boycotting the remaining State of the Union addresses for the remainder of Obama's Presidency.
The Curious Self-Destruction of Eric Massa (NY-D)
I have to admit there's something amusing about watching a Democratic Party food fight between Eric "Tickle Monster" Massa, a freshman Congressman whom took over a Republican-leaning district during the 2008 election, and White House Chief of Staff Rahm "Dead Fish" Emanuel. I have no doubt that Emanuel had tried to pressure Massa into voting in favor of Obama's preferences on bills. At the same time, Massa's bizarre sequence of retiring from his seat because of health issues (a recurrence of cancer) to resigning his seat, claiming the White House was trying to destroy him because his one vote against the health care bill would kill reconciliation and delivering an over-the-top personal attack of Emanuel on a radio show:
Let's put it this way: if he felt his "no" vote made the difference in whether the Democratic Party Health Care Bill and he really wanted to exact revenge on Emanuel, his best way would be to cast his vote as his district prefers instead of leaving them without a vote in the aftermath of his resignation. There's really only one convincing reason why Massa resigned when he did Monday: to stop the House ethics investigation, which in fact happened today. He wanted to preempt possibly damaging testimony from staffers regarding sexual harassment allegations.Rahm Emanuel is son of the devil’s spawn. He is an individual who would sell his mother to get a vote. He would strap his children to the front end of a steam locomotive.
I do realize that conservatives may want to lionize him because of his stated opposition to the reconciliation process, but let's remember this discussion from several months back:
MASSA: I will vote for the single payer bill.
PARTICIPANT: Even if it meant you were being voted out of office?
MASSA: I will vote adamantly against the interests of my district if I actually think what I am doing is going to be helpful.
PARTICIPANT: You'd vote against their interests, or their opinion?
MASSA: I will vote against their opinion if I actually believe it will help them.
Barbie Sales and Political Correctness
It's something most grocery shoppers know from experience: a new product doesn't sell well, and the supermarket discontinues the product, marking down remaining stock to clear the shelves. Well, when sales of the black Ballerina Teresa dolls proved disappointing in a Louisiana WalMart, the store put the dolls on clearance for nearly 50% off. Unfortunately, the political correctness police think the idea of selling a black doll at a better price than a comparable white doll isn't seen as a way of encouraging shoppers to purchase black dolls but implicitly sends a message that white dolls are intrinsically superior to black dolls. Progressives think that retailers should maintain pricing parity, despite the fact that the white dolls are selling better than the black dolls. I'm not going to second-guess WalMart's strategy; there could be a variety of legitimate reasons for wanting to clear the merchandise, say for instance that Mattel was getting ready to introduce a new, improved Ballerina Teresa with more realistic African-American facial features. This is one of those cases where progressives need to choose their battles more carefully.
Political Cartoon
Lisa Benson points out that in giving over 30 speeches on the Democratic Party Health Care Bill in the past year, Barack Obama has said all that he can think of to try to delude the American people into believing that the internal squabbles between Democrats over the past year constitute a full and fair hearing of health care and health care solutions. In fact, we've seen only trillion-dollar megalomaniac, government-heavy "solutions", not of existing entitlement solvency issues, but on behalf of "controlling costs" and trying to force up to 15% of the population to pay for their health care through insurance plans.
Quote of the Day
To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others; to leave the world a little better; whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is the meaning of success.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Musical Interlude: Alone Songs
Gilbert O'Sullivan, "Alone Again Naturally"
Bee Gees, "Alone"
Tommy James and the Shondelles, "I Think We're Alone Now"
Heart, "Alone" (one of the greatest rock songs ever)
