(from http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/10/deranged-trump-letter-calls-impeachment-unconstitutional.html)
". . . (U.S. law) is premised on neutral rules, mediated by precedent and constructed with the goal of some notion of abstract fairness. . . (Donald Trump's worldview) is rooted in an entitlement to absolute domination regardless of circumstance. . . The White House letter rejecting the House impeachment inquiry is an effort to reconcile the irreconcilable. . . His every response to impeachment proves its necessity. . ."
Statement:
(from https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/impeachment-war-turns-hot-trump-sounds-partisan-rallying-cry-n1061686)
". . . "I think a really important component of prosecuting a case against House Democrats is the notion that impeachment was inevitable they were going to find a way to get to that no matter what," said Josh Holmes, a Republican strategist and former top aide to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. "The argument he (Trump, in his public diatribes on Wednesday) is making today about the inevitability of what Democrats are trying to do here is a good one with Republican lawmakers.". . . "
Translation:
Republican "Lawmakers" need not worry about breaking laws, only 'making' them.
". . . the Mulford Act, which prohibited anyone outside of law enforcement officers (and others explicitly authorized to do so) from carrying loaded firearms in public, was enacted largely in response to the militant activities of the Black Panther Party. It’s also true that the bill was written by a Republican legislator, California Assemblyman Don Mulford of Oakland, and was passed with the full backing of Republican governor Ronald Reagan and the National Rifle Association. . . The bill was introduced in April 1967, six weeks after it had been reported that an armed group of Black Panthers acting as an escort for Malcolm X’s widow, Betty Shabazz, were involved in tense, nonviolent confrontations with airport security officers and police in San Francisco. As leftist writer Sol Stern later noted in Ramparts, “Local cops were dumbfounded to discover that there was no law which prohibited the Panthers from carrying loaded weapons so long as they were unconcealed, a legal fact which the Panthers had carefully researched.”. . . "
(from https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/judge-denies-trump-bid-block-financial-records-n1007971)
". . . "It is simply not fathomable that a Constitution that grants Congress the power to remove a President for reasons including criminal behavior would deny Congress the power to investigate him for unlawful conduct—past or present—even without formally opening an impeachment inquiry," (U.S. District Judge Amit) Mehta wrote. . . "Congress plainly views itself as having sweeping authority to investigate illegal conduct of a President, before and after taking office. This court is not prepared to roll back the tide of history," he added. . ."
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". . . Barr, asked if Mueller intended for Congress, not the attorney general, to decide whether Trump obstructed justice: “Well, Special Counsel Mueller did not indicate that his purpose was to leave the decision to Congress. I hope that was not his view. ... I didn’t talk to him directly about the fact that we were making the decision, but I am told that his reaction to that was that it was my prerogative as attorney general to make that decision.”
THE FACTS: Mueller’s report actually does indicate that Congress could make that determination.
The report states that no person is above the law, including the president, and that the Constitution “does not categorically and permanently immunize a President for obstructing justice.”
VICE PRESIDENT MIKE PENCE: “Today’s release of the Special Counsel’s report confirms what the President and I have said since day one: there was no collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia and there was no obstruction of justice.”
KELLYANNE CONWAY, White House counselor: “What matters is what the Department of Justice and special counsel concluded here, which is no collusion, no obstruction, and complete exoneration, as the president says.”
THE FACTS: No. The special counsel specifically leaves open the question of whether the president obstructed justice. . . “If we had confidence after a thorough investigation of the facts that the President clearly did not commit obstruction of justice, we would so state. Based on the facts and the applicable legal standards, however, we are unable to reach that judgment,” the report states. . . The report identifies 10 instances of possible obstruction by Trump and said he might have “had a motive” to impede the investigation because of what it could find on a multitude of personal matters, such as his proposal to build a Trump Tower in Moscow. . . “The evidence does indicate that a thorough FBI investigation would uncover facts about the campaign and the President personally that the President could have understood to be crimes or that would give rise to personal and political concerns,” the report states. . . In explaining its decision, Mueller’s team said reaching a conclusion on whether Trump committed crimes would be inappropriate because of Justice Department guidelines indicating that a sitting president should not be prosecuted. It nevertheless left open at least the theoretical possibility that Trump could be charged after he leaves office, noting that its factual investigation was conducted “in order to preserve the evidence when memories were fresh and documentary material were available.”
BARR: “These reports are not supposed to be made public.”
THE FACTS: He’s not going out on a limb for public disclosure. . . Justice Department regulations give Barr wide authority to release a special counsel’s report in situations it “would be in the public interest.” Barr had made clear during his Senate confirmation hearing in January that he believed in transparency with the report on Mueller’s investigation into Russian election interference during the 2016 campaign, “consistent with regulations and the law.”
BARR, saying it was “consistent with long-standing practice” for him to share a copy of the redacted report with the White House and president’s attorneys before its release: “Earlier this week, the president’s personal counsel requested and were given the opportunity to read a final version of the redacted report before it was publicly released. That request was consistent with the practice followed under the Ethics in Government Act, which permitted individuals named in a report prepared by an independent counsel the opportunity to read the report before publication.”
THE FACTS: Actually, Barr’s decision, citing the Ethics in Government Act, is inconsistent with independent counsel Ken Starr’s handling of his report into whether President Bill Clinton obstructed and lied in Starr’s probe.
(https://www.nationalreview.com/2018/07/judge-brett-kavanaughs-impeccable-record-of-constitutional-conservatism/)
". . . Judge Kavanaugh in 2010 wrote a lengthy concurrence drawing on American historical tradition and the original meaning of the Constitution to defend the invocation of God and the practice of prayer at official government ceremonies, such as the presidential inauguration and Supreme Court sittings. The Supreme Court adopted a similar approach several years later in upholding prayer before a town meeting in New York. . ."
(from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Separation_of_church_and_state_in_the_United_States)
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...". . . (and in a) letter by Thomas Jefferson, addressed to the Danbury Baptist Association in Connecticut, and published in a Massachusetts newspaper. Jefferson wrote, "I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should 'make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, thus building a wall of separation between Church & State. . . "
“Music is a moral law. It gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, a charm to sadness, and life to everything. It is the essence of order, and leads to all that is good, just, and beautiful, of which it is the invisible, but nevertheless dazzling, passionate, and eternal form.”
— attributed to Plato
". . . Article I of the US Constitution vests the power to set tariffs in Congress. The president has the power to impose tariffs at his discretion only because Congress has passed laws granting him that power. If Republicans in Congress think Trump has a bunch of dumb, destructive ideas about trade, they should pass new laws that strip him of that power. . . Trump is expected to justify his proposed metal tariffs by invoking a 1962 law that authorizes the president to impose tariffs unilaterally if doing so is necessary for "national security." Congress could pass new legislation that would require the president to seek a vote of Congress to certify his (bizarre) claim that our dependence on Canadian steel is a national security threat — and that would block his tariffs from going into effect absent such a vote. . ."
". . . Natalia Veselnitskaya, the Russian lawyer who attended the June 9, 2016, meeting at Trump Tower with Donald Trump Jr., has for years been working to overturn the Magnitsky Act, a 2012 U.S. law that barred Russian officials suspected of human rights abuses. . . is named after Sergei Magnitsky, a Russian lawyer and auditor who in 2008 untangled a dense web of tax fraud and graft involving 23 companies and a total of $230 million linked to the Kremlin and individuals close to the government. Magnitsky was the target of investigations, arrested by authorities and kept in jail without charges. He was beaten and later died under mysterious circumstances in jail just days before his possible release. . . The Magnitsky Act was signed by President Barack Obama in December 2012 as a retaliation against the human rights abuses suffered by Magnitsky. The law at first blocked 18 Russian government officials and businessmen from entering the United States, froze any assets held by U.S. banks and banned their future use of U.S. banking systems. The act was expanded in 2016, and now sanctions apply to 44 suspected human rights abusers worldwide. . ."
(from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Browder)
". . . William Felix Browder (author of Red Notice: A True Story of High Finance, Murder, and One Man's Fight for Justice)is an American-English financier, the Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of the investment fund Hermitage Capital Management, an investment firm that at one time was the largest foreign portfolio investor in Russia. . . After the death in prison in 2009 of Sergei Magnitsky, a Russian lawyer and auditor who had represented his company and conducted an investigation into massive tax fraud related to it, Browder lobbied for Congress to pass the "Magnitsky Act", a law to punish Russian human rights violators. . ."
Definition of righteous
1: acting in accord with divine or moral law : free from guilt or sin
2a : morally right or justifiable a righteous decision
b : arising from an outraged sense of justice or morality righteous indignation
3 slang : genuine, excellent
righteously adverb
righteousness noun
See righteous defined for English-language learners
See righteous defined for kids
Righteously
inspired by OHO's (Jay Graboski, David Reeve & Ray Jozwiak)
Ring in the Rightness (2017)
T - the number of police officers killed in the line of duty has risen by almost 50 percent in one year
Fact - the number of law enforcement officers killed on the job has increased 8 percent, compared to this point in 2015.
T - homicides last year increased by 17 percent in America's 50 largest cities. That's the largest increase in 25 years. In our nation's capital, killings have risen by 50 percent. They are up nearly 60 percent in nearby Baltimore."
Fact - the percentage increase was large because the number of homicides in 2014 was relatively small. Meanwhile, homicide trends have been split in the major cities so far this year: Out of 63 agencies reporting to the Major Cities Chiefs Association, 32 cities saw a decrease in homicides in the first quarter of 2016, and 31 cities saw an increase.
T - Nearly 180,000 illegal immigrants with criminal records, ordered deported from our country, are tonight roaming free to threaten peaceful citizens.
Fact - in fiscal 2015, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement deported nearly 140,000 convicted criminals, but ICE has estimated that nearly 1 million noncitizens with final deportation orders remain in the United States. Crimes committed by this group are not documented. A significant percentage of their crimes involve immigration violations and nonviolent offenses, according to historical records.
T - The number of new illegal immigrant families who have crossed the border so far this year already exceeds the entire total from 2015. They are being released by the tens of thousands into our communities with no regard for the impact on public safety or resources.
Fact - From October to June, just over 50,000 families were apprehended at the southwestern border, up from about 40,000 in all of the previous fiscal year, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection. But overall apprehensions, including of unaccompanied minors, are running only slightly higher than in 2015 and remain far less than in 2014, 2013 and 2012.
T - Decades of record immigration have produced lower wages and higher unemployment for our citizens, especially for African -American and Latino workers.
Fact - Distinction must be made between legal and illegal immigration. The flow of legal immigrants has increased over the past four decades, stabilizing at roughly 1 million people obtaining lawful permanent resident status every year since 2001. The unauthorized immigrant population increased from about 4 million in 1990 to about 12 million in 2007. But researchers estimate that the number of illegal immigrants has been essentially stable since then because of the large number of unauthorized immigrants who left the country during and after the Great Recession.
T - 2 million more Latinos are in poverty today than when the president took his oath of office."
Fact - From March 2009 to March 2014, the most recent year for which statistics are available, the number of Latinos in poverty increased by 750,000 people, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. But the overall number of the Latinos grew by nearly 7 million. So the percent of Latinos living in poverty declined from 25.3 percent to 23.6 percent.
T - Household incomes are down more than $4,000 since the year 2000 - 16 years ago.
Fact - Median annual household income was $57,206 in June, down slightly from January 2000, when it was $57,826 in 2016 dollars. So household income is essentially flat, not down $4,000.
T - Forty-three million Americans are on food stamps.
Fact - This is the lowest number of people receiving food stamps since the program reached its peak in 2013, a sign that the economy is finally improving enough to help the desperately poor families who depend on it.
T - Fifty-eight percent of African American youth are not employed.
Fact - According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate among blacks 16 to 19 years old was 31.2 percent in June. This official unemployment rate refers to people who are actively looking for work, as a percentage of the total available workforce.
T - Another 14 million people have left the workforce entirely.
Fact - Half of the decline in the labor participation rate since 1999 is due to the retirement of the baby boomers. Economists estimate just 15 percent of the drop in the labor force involves people who want a job and are of prime working age (25 to 54).
T - America has lost nearly one-third of its manufacturing jobs since 1997, following the enactment of disastrous trade deals (by previous administrations)
Fact - The economy has added nearly 1 million manufacturing jobs since 2010, the low point after the Great Recession.
It is simplistic to pin blame for the decline in manufacturing jobs on trade agreements. Increased efficiency and technological advancement have also played a major role.
(thanks to http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/politics/ct-donald-trump-convention-speech-fact-check-20160721-story.html)
My latest solo offering, No Frills, is now available at - No Frills
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(https://informedvote2016.wordpress.com/2016/03/18/do-i-really-need-to-worry-about-hillarys-emails-yes-she-will-be-indicted-full-form/)
". . . Hillary Clinton and her aides not only violated numerous federal criminal statutes, but may have conducted a cover up to hide incriminating evidence – the likes of which forced Richard Nixon to resign as President. This article was intended to be a quick, digestable piece to help everyone get caught up on the scandal, but I really had no idea how complex this issue was. Here is the takeaway – I believe the FBI will refer Hillary Clinton for indictment for a violation of Section 1924 and Section 793 of Title 18 US Criminal Code dealing with deletion, retention and transmission of classified documents. If prosecuted and convicted, the punishment would be some combination of a fine, a year in prison or 10 years in prison. The implications for the Presidential race will be discussed. . ."
My latest solo offering, Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak, featuring original, instrumental piano music is now available at - Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak
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(thanks to http://gmwatch.org/index.php/news/archive/2015-articles/16183-monsanto-wants-to-move-to-switzerland-why-is-obama-doing-it-favours from May 2015)
A public interest attorney and author has challenged Monsanto to find any inaccuracies in his new book on the risks of GM (genetically modified) foods and the deceit used in marketing them to world markets. If they don't, the logical conclusion is that their products risky and should be banned. The book (by Steven Druker) is titled “Altered Genes, Twisted Truth: How the Venture to Genetically Engineer Our Food Has Subverted Science, Corrupted Government, and Systematically Deceived the Public”.
(thanks to http://www.globalresearch.ca/altered-genes-twisted-truth-monsantos-silence-is-deafening/5469745)
And the response Steven Druker received from Monsanto was . . . Silence! Maybe Monsanto hopes that by ignoring Druker, he and his book will quickly fade from public memory. They have, however or late, been quite busy fighting lawsuits, trying to influence legislation by pouring money into campaigns, attacking critics, infiltrating public bodies, pouring more money into its PR spin machine, funding ‘travel expenses’ for pro-GM scientists, lobbying the EU to try to get GMOs into Europe, mounting a campaign against WHO-associated scientists, fighting a rear-guard action in Argentina, managing its profits courtesy of the massive subsidies given to US farmers, working with the Gates Foundation to uproot indigenous agriculture in Africa or cementing its grip in Ukraine on the back of the US-led coup there.
(and thanks to http://action.fooddemocracynow.org/sign/obama_signs_monsanto_protection_ act_time_to_label_gmos/) Remember,t President Barack Obama signed H.R. 933, which contained the Monsanto Protection Act, into law. The President knowingly signed the act over the urgent pleas from over 250,000 Americans who asked that he veto it. But alas, he failed to live up to his oath to protect the American people and our constitution . . . and very few Obama fans, or critics for that matter (who find it more compelling to question his place of birth) now seem to remember. . .
My latest solo offering, Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak, featuring original, instrumental piano music is now available at - Just More Music by Ray Jozwiak
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