https://www.townhall.com/Columnists/HoraceCooper/2007/09/22/executive_decision

President Bush’s announcement of the name of the person who would replace Attorney General Alberto Gonzales was eagerly anticipated by many in Washington. Gonzales, caricatured as inept and bumbling by critics of the President, had decided in August that he wouldn’t continue in his designated role as Washington’s whipping boy du jour. In the end the President’s choice of Judge Michael Mukasey wasn’t a surprise as much as it was a stinging acknowledgement of the complete political breakdown that has taken place in Washington – a breakdown that increasingly is trampling all over the executive’s appointment power. If after 2008 the Democrats win […]

The supposedly anti-war organization, A.N.S.W.E.R., has just filed suit against the District of Columbia for fines imposed on the organization for defacing public property with its rally signs. Anyone who has traveled at all in D.C. is aware of the A.N.S.W.E.R signs, since they are plastered on light boxes and light poles, especially in the downtown area. The D.C. Department of Public Works has imposed fines in excess of $10,000.

The organization claims that its signs are posted with “a water-soluble glue that is easily removed.” The fact that some of this group’s signs from rallies years ago are still tenaciously clinging to […]

A recent article in The Sunday Paper – “What is an American? Immigration debate reveals patriotism-and nationalism” – has been brought to my attention. In this article, my essay on what it means to be an American, first published at National Review Online in the days following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on our country, was cited. I thought this was a good time to republish that essay here:

What Is An American? A Primer

You probably missed it in the rush of news last week, but there was actually a report that someone in Pakistan had published in a newspaper there […]

In Sunday’s paper, the Washington Post has an article with the title, “Fewer See Balance in Court Decisions.” The article is based on a poll conducted by the Post and ABC News. Its findings were that “about half the public thinks the Supreme Court is generally balanced in its opinions.” But since that isn’t the point the paper wants to make, it highlights the fact that the number of citizens who think the Court is “too conservative” has increased to 31%.

Both the writers of this article and the editors who put it in print have no clue why the Supreme Court […]

Dear Senator Specter,

I am writing to you as the Ranking Republican on the Judiciary Committee. It’s useless to write to Chairman Patrick Leahy, because his views are the same as a minority of the Supreme Court Justices — whatever outcome in any case benefits the Democratic Party is fine with him, regardless of what that does to or with the US Constitution.

You, at least, say that you are interested in accurate analysis of the constitutional issues presented. I’ve read a couple of your books and I must say that your scholarship, except in the area of Scottish law, leaves a great deal to be desired.

But, […]