kanesrealm

No matter how many times well funded lobbyists and political organizations say it and no matter how gravely wrong the U.S. Supreme Court got it, money is not free speech. The Citizens United case brought the subject directly to the highest court and the majority, including Antonin Scalia got it wrong. They essentially took a position that says money in and of itself is an expression of free speech, irrespective of how much of it is dumped into an issue or political candidate and no matter how fact free the message is. It says that free speech isn't free, it's for sale to the highest bidder and that those who have no money to combat those messages are equal because you can still stand on the corner, in your legally designated space, and see if you can get someone to listen. Hillary Clinton has said that she would fight for a Constitutional Amendment to overturn Citizens United but that is highly unlikely to happen and it isn't necessary. Congress can take legislative actio...

I continue to be stunned by the lack of basic civics knowledge in my country. Today Donald Trump once again dropped his pants and took a dump in the public square. He was droning on about Hillary Clinton wanting to eliminate Second Amendment rights and if she's elected she'll take your guns. This is an old chestnut used by Republicans against many Democrats and it's total hogwash. Trump went further and suggested that hardcore folks might take action. No one with a sound mind is confused, his intent was to incite violence and potential assassination. The fact is Hillary Clinton is pro gun ownership. That is her record and nothing she has said suggests otherwise. The point here is the profound ignorance of millions of Americans, including Donald Trump. There are very basic things about our Republic that people should know. No President can remove a Constitutional right. That can only occur through the amendment process which requires all fifty states to participate. Let m...

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg aka Notorious RBG has criticized Donald Trump as a faker and she has concerns about him being President. Trump has of course lost his mind over it and is engaging in his normal sandbox retaliation. That's fine, she criticized and he's punching back. He is as usual wrong on the facts. That would also be fine because that's Trump. Unfortunately there is a whole bunch of people who are commenting on Ginsburg's statements, including politicians and the media. They are all incorrect in their framing of the issue and all are in need of a history refresher. I wasn't going to write about this kerfluffle until Speaker Paul Ryan said this, "political appointees should not be commenting on elections." Appointees Mr. Speaker? You are smarter than that. The United States Supreme Court is not a collection of appointees. Those nine Justices are a co-equal branch of government. They are nominated by the President, confirmed by the Senate and o...

As everyone knows (I'm being generous) there is a vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court because of the death of Antonin Scalia. There is a lot discord being sown as to what should happen but it is quite simple, we have a Constitution which guides. President Obama must nominate someone to fill this vacancy because it is his legally charged responsibility to do so. Equally the U.S. Senate must fulfill their Constitutional duty, which is to provide advice and consent. The Senate under a Republican Majority is advising the President not to make a nomination. That advice is incorrect, however, they are under no Constitutional directive to hold hearings or move forward on a nomination if they choose not to. I believe they would be making a mistake not to but on the other hand I am not the Majority Leader of the Senate. Rancor and personal attacks on either side of the aisle is neither helpful nor warranted. If the decision of the Majority is to stay the course they have indicated then so b...

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died suddenly yesterday, he was 79. For almost thirty years he was one of the loudest and most colorful voices on the court. A staunch conservative and self described originalist, Scalia's ability to turn a phrase and intimidate lawyers appearing before the court was legendary. I disagree vehemently with many of Scalia's views but I liked and respected him. As he himself said of those he fought with, be they his fellow Justices or anyone else, just because I disagree with you doesn't mean I hate you. Naturally there are those who are already disgracing his memory and they're all Republicans. His death had barely been announced when the press releases started flying, not to express profound sympathy for the Scalia family but to send a loud message to President Obama that he shouldn't bother nominating anyone because it's an election year. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says the Senate won't take up the issue. Th...

There are some folks that are plum riled up over most of the Supreme Court's rulings last week. I can't indict them all because the post would be too long. My readers want a tasty snack, not a heavy meal. Ted Cruz wants to change the Supremes into elected officials. Bobby Jindal wants to eliminate the court altogether and Mike Huckabee wants not just civil disobedience, but for government officials to violate the law and not grant marriage licenses to gay people. None of them liked the upholding of the Affordable Care Act but it's really the gay thing that has them breathing fire. It's amazing how much they admire the court when it rules their way and despise it's mean activist ways when it doesn't. Judicial activism is the most overworked phrase in politics. While the Supreme Court does decide what cases it will hear there has to be a case to begin with. Congress writes the laws but it generally makes them so complex there's room for interpretation. It do...

On June 28th, 1969 at a gay bar in New York City, called Stonewall Inn, the patrons that night had reached the breaking point of being raided and abused by the N.Y.P.D. simply for existing. They fought back and riots began. The police beat them back but by the next morning word had spread throughout the gay community and over 1,000 people took to the streets around Stonewall and the riots began again and so did the birth of the Gay Rights Movement. Today in 2015 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of equality of marriage for all. It was a 5 to 4 vote, it should have been unanimous. No where in the U.S. Constitution does it state that marriage is for heterosexuals only, given that, the Justices that voted against the right of equality have no justification beyond personal prejudice. Although Chief Justice Roberts dissent is conciliatory, he is wrong. To those who continue to believe that this issue should only have been decided at the state level, you also are wrong. This issue was ...

All of the 2016 Presidential Election talk reminds me once again that our British friends have it right by restricting electioneering to a few weeks before the General. Let's face it the 2016 campaign began immediately after the 2012 election was over. We have been bombarded with it for over a year. To hear some talking heads Hillary Clinton should have announced her candidacy the day she stepped down as Secretary of State. We have created a system that requires candidates to raise huge sums of money. Where do you think that money comes from? A lot of small donations from the general public can add up to significant sums but  nothing compared to what gets dumped in by major special interests and extremely wealthy individuals. This has boomed since the Citizens United case was decided, not our Supreme Court's finest hour. We are subjected to ads financed by forces we know nothing about and they can easily smear a candidate with enough repetition. True election reform has three...

The Alabama Supreme Court under the direction of Chief Justice Roy Moore has directed all state judges to violate a federal judges orders to issue marriage licenses to gay couples. This is a finger in the eye of the U.S. Supreme Court which has already upheld you can't do that. Now with a  recent contradictory order from another federal judge saying you can the U.S. Supreme Court will finally address this issue in a definitive manner with a decision due in June. It would be easy to make jokes about Alabama but one hesitates to insult the good folk who mean no harm. C.J. Moore is clearly an obstructionist and a self justified bigot but he will soon be served notice from SCOTUS that he's wrong. Will he continue to defy the law of the land? I'm betting yes and he will then face federal enforcement of the law. The right for gay marriage is long overdue as is all gay rights. Gay rights are civil rights and it is time for those afraid of this to get over themselves. You do not ...