Monday, February 29, 2016

Corporate Tax

My latest @ Opportunity Lives: Getting Serious on Corporate Tax Reform

Saturday, February 27, 2016

The McLaughlin Group - February 27th - (PBS Nationwide and CBS-NY)

My Time Linked Comments:














MORE TV LINKS ON RIGHT SIDE OF HOMEPAGE!

Saturday, February 20, 2016

Thursday, February 18, 2016

ISIS Libya

My latest @ National Review: Delusion Defined

''President Obama claims he is leading and inspiring U.S. allies around the world. The opposite is true: The architecture of American-anchored global stability is collapsing, and our adversaries are advancing. Put simply, President Obama’s rhetoric of confidence is at war with a reality of chaos. Just look at Libya...''

Some of my previous thoughts that are relevant to this piece:

On Islamic State Threat to UK (National Review)
National Review Online

Monday, February 15, 2016

Syria

A few pieces on Syria's humanitarian catastrophe

Syria's Starvation   National Review
Syria's Humanitarian Catastrophe   National Review
How Assad Slaughters His People   National Review

Scalia's Legacy

My latest @ Opportunity Lives: Scalia's Legacy

Here's a quote Fox News's Supreme Court Correspondent, Shannon Bream, kindly gave me

"Covering Justice Scalia was always an adventure because, although you never knew what he would say, you knew it would be colorful.  He was a strong personality, independent thinker and incredibly gregarious.  I’ll never forget him hijacking the carol-singing at the Court’s holiday parties.  He belted out songs with gusto, while assigning other carolers their parts and conducting the whole affair with obvious delight.  He was a character on and off the bench, never minced words and regularly provoked the entire courtroom into howls of laughter.  He was also known for his deep friendship with Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, despite their ideological differences.  The affection between the two was unmistakable, and the loss for her must be especially painful."

Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Natural Born Citizenship

A friend asked for my thoughts on this article:
Author Contentions:
''The 18th-century English jurist William Blackstone, the preeminent authority on it, declared natural-born citizens are “such as are born within the dominions of the crown of England,” while aliens are “such as are born out of it.” The key to this division is the assumption of allegiance to one’s country of birth.''

-Rebuttal- ''Dominion'' in this sense means under the inferred authority of the government. As a citizen at birth, you have responsibilities to the authorities of government (not to be a traitor, pay taxes etc.). But Blackstone is functionally irrelevant to constitutional legal interpretation - the constitution is a deliberate manifestation of distinction against English common law. Put simply, it isn't relevant.

''Instead, Cruz was naturalized at birth. This provision has not always been available. For example, there were several decades in the 19th century when children of Americans born abroad were not given automatic naturalization. ''

-Rebuttal- He was born as a citizen at birth. Regardless, that the author uses the historical application of the law under Congressional direction as part of her argument, directly contradicts her other claim that Congress is irrelevant. But Congressional action in the 19th century is not relevant to the status of law in the 21st century. The key here is that the Supreme Court has given Congress great latitude to define the specific legal meaning of ‘natural born citizenship’. They have done so for the reasons I point out in my guardian piece from 2011 – here.

''But Article II of the Constitution expressly adopts the legal status of the natural-born citizen and requires that a president possess that status.''

-Rebuttal- This is a laughable stretch of Constitutional theory. Article 2 states that only natural born citizens can be Presidents. It expressly does not define natural born citizenship. Congress has been left to define that natural born citizenship status – section ghttps://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/8/1401– and the SCOTUS has accepted their judgment.