ACORN in San Diego
James O’Keefe and Hannah Giles took their investigation of ACORN to San Diego where they found an ACORN lawyer willing to help them smuggle their underage prostitutes.
John Armor: Anchor Babies, Away
The Constitution is simple, short and easy to read. There is no excuse for any reporter to write about it, without reading it. The latest example is an article about anchor babies in the Orlando Sentinel today (29 September) by Jim Stratton.
The article concerns a comment about anchor babies by Fred Thompson, Republican candidate for President. If you haven’t followed the illegal immigration debate, anchor babies are children born on US soil of illegal immigrant parents. The babies get citizenship. Then, the provisions for “reuniting families” kick in, and the baby assists the parents in becoming legal.
It is […]
John Armor: Judging the Judges, and the Reporters
On 24 September, the New York Times published an article on the decision of the Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago, which approved the Indiana voter ID law in January, in a divided decision. The losing plaintiffs asked the whole circuit to rehear the case, which it just rejected, so the decision stands.
Both dissenting Judge Terence T. Evans in the 2-1 decision, and reporter Adam Liptak, the reporter on the story, demonstrated a profound misunderstanding of the role of judges in the American political system. But first, the article denigrates the well-respected Judge Richard A. Posner, who wrote the majority decision.
Judge […]
Time To Block Grant Medicaid, SCHIP
Here’s my latest article at Forbes:
The promises made by our current Federal entitlement programs would require Federal taxes and spending to double by 2040 as a percent of gross domestic product. The Democrat response: Add new entitlements. Congressional Democrats are moving to double Federal spending on the State Children’s Health Insurance program (SCHIP), quite explicitly on their way to the biggest mega-entitlement of all, national health insurance.
Republicans need to go on offense with positive entitlement reforms, and take their case to the people. Does America really want to double or even triple Federal taxes relative to GDP?
Republicans should propose to […]
Border Security in Wonderland
Perhaps last week’s top news story, not counting whatever Rosie O’Donnell and Lindsay Lohan were doing, was the story of Andrew Speaker, the Atlanta personal injury lawyer who decided it would be a good idea to fly a few thousand miles here and there notwithstanding his knowing that he had a virulent form of tuberculosis. The passengers cooped up with him on his long, trans-oceanic flights have not been entirely thrilled with Mr. Speaker’s decisions. They bear some misgivings about having had to share enclosed cabin space with the updated version of the Black Death.
The effort to track down Mr. Speaker and keep […]
May Crosses Be Displayed at War Memorials?
Two days ago I had the opportunity to do a radio debate with Dr. Jeremy Gunn, Director of the ACLU’s Religious Freedom Project. Let me say at the outset that I found Dr. Gunn to be a courteous and intellectually honest man, and I am grateful for his willingness to discuss with those having a different point of view the often heated question whether the Cross may properly, under the First Amendment, be displayed on government property as part of a war memorial to fallen soldiers.
I am in no positon to make a judgment about who “won” this debate. Those who had the chance […]
What Exactly Is Given Sanctuary in "Sanctuary Cities?"
Scott Johnson of Power Line tells us what gets sanctuary in “sanctuary cities” in his shocking report, which I repeat in full below. To give the short answer, what gets sanctuary is human trafficking and sex slavery.
When the police turn a blind eye to the law — when they are ordered turn a blind eye — what exactly did we think was going to happen?
Read Scott’s report:
Thomas Sowell Speaks Up on Immigration
The ACRU does not lobby for or against pending legislation. This does not prevent us from joining an important national debate, however, by bringing readers the views of others (and sometimes our own) on issues relevant to the discussion. Many of these issues, if not all of them, long pre-existed the introduction of the immigration bill presently before Congress.
Below, I re-produce in full a piece by the brilliant Thomas Sowell. For full disclosure purposes, I should add that I was a teaching assistant for Professor Sowell a mere 38 years ago, when he had a dank basement office in the Economics Department of Cornell […]
Let the Voters Decide—For a Day, Anyway
Many readers will remember that Farmers Branch, Texas, a Dallas suburb, recently enacted an ordinance to the effect that landlords may not rent to illegal immigrants. The ordinance went to a vote after a pro-illegal immigrant group waged a vigorous campaign to, as they put it, “Let the Voters Decide.” The voters promplty did so. By a margin of 68% to 32%, they decided to adopt the ordinance.
Without missing a beat, it then became time to “Let the Court Decide,” a strategy the previously pro-vote group has now pursued. Yesterday they obtained, from a federal judge appointed by President Clinton, a preliminary injunction barring enforcement […]
The Farmers Branch Absurdity
Farmers Branch, a small Texas town near Dallas, passed an ordinance imposing penalties on landlords who might rent their apartments to illegal aliens. The act included a requirement that the voters must approve it. In an exceptional turnout last Saturday, the voters did approve, 68% to 32%.
The ACLU and various parties took the town to court, claiming that the ordinance was unconstitutional. The court then ruled that the councilmen and residents of Farmers Branch are too stupid to govern themselves, substituted its judgment for theirs, and struck the ordinance as unconstitutional.
No, that’s not the stated reason for the decision of US District Judge […]