COMMENTARY AND OP-EDS
John Armor: Get-Out-of-Jail Free Card for Terrorists
When the ACLU loses on a security issue, America wins. And vice versa. On Monday, the ACLU lost when the Supreme Court overturned the Second Circuit's order to release photos of alleged detainee abuse. The ACLU had sued to get the photos despite concerns that they could be used by our enemies to endanger American soldiers.
Ken Blackwell: Dismiss General Casey
We don't yet know how bad the Ft. Hood shooter's case was. We do not know--and we must find out--how it was possible for an Army medical officer to openly express treasonous statements and not be court martialed. We do not know if the shooter or his family members were under surveillance by the FBI or other federal law enforcement agencies. We must soon find out.
Ken Blackwell: Politicizing Medicine, Medicalizing Politics
I'm not a doctor. I don't even play one on TV. Nor is Steve Pearlstein a doctor. Pearlstein is the respected business columnist of the Washington Post. His weekly column scorched President Obama's Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius for her decision to override an impartial expert panel's advice on mammograms.
Robert Knight: An Unhealthy Government Track Record
The U.S. Senate is now trying to speed-read the 2,074 pages of the health care takeover bill after 60 senators voted to proceed on Nov. 21. It only took an insertion of $300 million to buy wavering Sen. Mary Landrieu's vote in what some call the second "Louisiana Purchase."
Jan LaRue: The Obama/Holder Bushwhack
This column originally appeared on the American Thinker website on November 21, 2009.The Obama administration's absurd, unnecessary, and dangerous decision to prosecute 9/11 terrorists in a civilian court is plumbing the depths of what Charles Krauthammer has labeled "Bush Derangement Syndrome" (BDS): the acute onset of paranoia in otherwise normal [...]
Ken Klukowski: Six Arguments I'd Make If I Were Defending KSM
If I were asked to defend 9/11 terror suspect Khalid Sheik Mohammed here's what I'd tell him. Attorney General Eric Holder announced on Nov. 13 that the Obama administration would be transferring handpicked terrorists to New York City for a civilian trial, giving them every constitutional right enjoyed by Americans. This creates a legal nightmare, endangering our national security and jeopardizing our war effort. And President Obama may end up as a political casualty, having abdicated his constitutional responsibility on this issue to his subordinate.
Ken Klukowski: Now Obama Wants to put an ACORN Fund-Raiser on the Federal Bench
On Nov. 10, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid acted to bring to the Senate floor the nomination of Judge David Hamilton to be a federal appeals judge. Presidents have a constitutional right to nominate judges.
Jan LaRue: Twisted and Nuts
Listening to government leaders and media avoid any connection between Islamist terrorism and the murderous attack at Ft. Hood is, to use their terminology, about as "twisted" and "nuts" as it gets.
Ken Klukowski: Court Should Uphold Life Without Parole for Minors
On Nov. 9, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in two cases on whether it violates the Eighth Amendment for a minor (under age 18) to be sentenced to life in prison without parole where there's no homicide involved. The answer to that question should be "no," but it's not clear which way the Court will go.
Ken Klukowski: Defending Chief Justice Roberts
In recent months, at least three major newspapers have carried columns attempting to push Chief Justice John Roberts into voting to uphold a grossly unconstitutional federal law. But their cheap distortions and Chicken Little yammering will fail. The chief justice will do his job, and the country will be better off for it.
Robert Knight: ObamaCare's Scary October Surprise
Stung by a rising tide of resistance and a closing window of opportunity, House Democrats have unleashed a new version of ObamaCare, weighing in at 1,990 pages and with a $1 trillion price tag. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi promises to ram it through quickly, exhibiting a disdain for her countrymen that makes Marie Antoinette look like a populist.
Ken Klukowski: An Open Letter to Nancy Pelosi and Robert Gibbs
Dear Speaker Pelosi and Mr. Gibbs: On Oct. 20, Politico published my column in which I explained how the individual mandate in the health care bill is unconstitutional, since there is no constitutional provision authorizing such legislation and it falls outside the scope of the Constitution's Commerce Clause.
Robert Knight: Dearborn Shoot-Out Opens a Window into Homegrown Terror
Luqman Ameen Abdullah, who was the Imam of the Masjid Al-Haqq mosque in Detroit, died in a shoot-out on Oct. 28 after firing on FBI agents during a raid in Dearborn, Michigan. Another seven Muslims were apprehended, and various weapons seized.
Ken Klukowski: Obamacare Still Unconstitutional
My Oct. 20 column in POLITICO ("Making Individuals Buy Insurance Is Unconstitutional") explained why Obamacare's individual mandate is unconstitutional. Erwin Chemerinsky then wrote a rebuttal Oct. 23 ("Health Care Reform Is Constitutional"), claiming to explain how I was wrong.
Robert Knight: How to Encourage Failure
If your company was in a financial fix, would you (a) try to attract top talent or (b) cut salaries so low that top talent wouldn't return your calls?
Robert Knight: Play It Again, Uncle Sam!
At last. For years, I thought I had no redress for hours of pain and excruciating discomfort that occurred in numerous settings. From the aisles of Safeway to malls, drug stores, gas stations, restaurants, department stores and even in doctors' offices, I and countless others have endured what no one should.
Ken Klukowski: Doctor's Stir, Half-Asleep
Doctors are waking up to the reality that Obamacare would end their profession as they know it. But many are still half asleep to the consequences and must learn the truth before it's too late for all of us.
Jan LaRue: Obama Manipulates Media to Expel Fox
Whether the White House's "war" against Fox News is a ruse to divert attention from President Barack Obama's plummeting poll numbers and unfavorable policies, or an all-out attack to exclude Fox News from the White House press pool, the self-proclaimed government "watch dogs" are virtually AWOL or turncoats.
Ken Klukowski: Sorry, You Have to Be a Voter to Vote
In 2008, the Supreme Court decided a major voting-rights case, making it clear that laws requiring voters to show identification are constitutional if certain safeguards are in place. Now, it's not so clear anymore. An Indiana appeals court has now struck down that same law and the Indiana Supreme Court must override that decision.
Ken Klukowski: Individual Mandate is Unconstitutional
The Senate Finance Committee-passed health care bill includes an "individual mandate" that Americans must buy an insurance policy or pay a fine, an approach that tracks President Barack Obama's health care proposals. But if enacted into law, this mandate would be glaringly unconstitutional.