Judge dismisses female genital mutilation charges in historic case

On September 30, 1996, the female genital mutilation law was signed, with Reid stressing: “There is no medical reason for this procedure. ... It is used as a method to keep girls chaste and to ensure their virginity until marriage, and to ensure that after marriage they do not engage in extramarital sex.”

Detroit Free Press  "In a major blow to the federal government, a judge in Detroit has declared America's female genital mutilation law unconstitutional, thereby dismissing the key charges against two Michigan doctors and six others accused of subjecting at least nine minor girls to the cutting procedure in the nation's first FGM case.
"The historic case involves minor girls from Michigan, Illinois and Minnesota, including some who cried, screamed and bled during the procedure and one who was given Valium ground in liquid Tylenol to keep her calm, court records show.
"The judge's ruling also dismissed charges against three mothers, including two Minnesota women whom prosecutors said tricked their 7 -year-old daughters into thinking they were coming to metro Detroit for a girls' weekend, but instead had their genitals cut at a Livonia clinic as part of a religious procedure.
"U.S. District Judge Bernard Friedman concluded that "as despicable as this practice may be," Congress did not have the authority to pass the 22-year-old federal law that criminalizes female genital mutilation, and that FGM is for the states to regulate. FGM is banned worldwide and has been outlawed in more than 30 countries, though the U.S. statute had never been tested before this case. 
" 'As laudable as the prohibition of a particular type of abuse of girls may be ... federalism concerns deprive Congress of the power to enact this statute," Friedman wrote in his 28-page opinion, noting: "Congress overstepped its bounds by legislating to prohibit FGM ... FGM is a 'local criminal activity' which, in keeping with long-standing tradition and our federal system of government, is for the states to regulate, not Congress."  . . .

Socio Political Journal

"The newly elected self-declared socialist congresswoman for New York, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, just hit at Republicans for so-called “drooling” at the chance to criticize her and said that instead of standing at the ready to go public with all her mistakes and missteps, they ought to instead “actually step up enough to make the argument they want to make.”"OK. Invitation accepted. So here goes: Socialists don’t belong in American politics."Socialists don’t even belong in American society."President Donald Trump may call the media the enemy of the people. But that title, that badge, that phrase of scorn and derision, more rightly belongs on the chest of those who say they’re American but at the same time claim political adherence to socialism, either formally — through the party, and its various offspring parties — or informally, in ideology."Drum them out."Yes, that’s right, socialists are the enemy of America, the antithesis of the American dream, the bold-face opposers to all that the Founding Fathers represented — to all that patriots over the long, sometimes bloody decades have fought to preserve."A pretty smile doesn’t change that fact. An engaging personality doesn’t change that. A pretended compassionate concern for the working guy doesn’t change that, either."Neither do polls showing certain segments of U.S. society, like millennials, actually see socialism as a favorable form of government."Socialists. Don’t. Belong."Ocasio-Cortez, as part of her congressional duties, has to take this oath — and, ostensibly, adhere to its principles during her years of service: “I, [Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez], do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion, and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.”"How can she seriously utter those words when every fiber of her being stands in direct opposition to their original meaning?" . . .

Full article.

Obama-appointed federal judge gives green light to Central Americans seeking asylum

Judge Tigar Strikes Again  The writer refers to his article from about two years ago.

. . . A federal judge ruled recently that an inmate serving a life sentence for murder in California must receive sex-reassignment surgery at taxpayer expense.
The inmate was Rodney James Quine, 57, twice married and the father of two daughters. I write “was” because while in prison he changed his name to Shiloh Heavenly Quine. Quine began living as a woman in 2008, when prison officials authorized hormone treatments at taxpayer expense. Quine then began pushing for a sex change operation, to be paid for by California taxpayers like everything else in prison.
Enter Barack Obama. In 2013 Obama appointed Jon Tigar to the federal bench. Tigar, who evidently shares Obama’s fascination with the world of the transgendered, assigned himself to Quine’s case and appointed a team of San Francisco lawyers and the Transgender Law Center to represent Quine. The result of Tigar’s ruling in Quine’s favor is that the state of California must now provide sex reassignment surgery for prison inmates.  . . .

Judge blocks Trump asylum changes: Caravan can demand protections even after illegal entry  "A federal judge blocked President Trump’s new asylum crackdown policy early Tuesday, ruling that federal law allows anyone — including illegal immigrants who jumped the border — to demand protections once they reach U.S. soil.

"The decision is a major dent to the administration’s efforts to derail the migrant caravan camped out on the U.S.-Mexico border, undercutting Homeland Security’s efforts to funnel those people to the legal border crossings.

"Under U.S. District Judge Jon S. Tigar’s ruling, they can demand asylum no matter how they enter, and even if they don’t have a real claim, which the administration fears will restore the enticement to attempt to sneak in.

"Judge Tigar, an Obama appointee to the federal court in the Northern District of California, blocked a rule Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued just weeks ago that had said illegal immigrants caught after jumping the southwest border would not be allowed to make asylum claims.

"The judge ruled that contradicted the Immigration and Nationality Act, which he said clearly gives even illegal immigrants a pathway to claim asylum." . . .

Thanks, Judge! Caravan migrants take judicial ruling as green light to enter the U.S. illegally  "Caravan migrants have heard a lefty judge's ruling to block President Trump's executive order halting asylum claims from foreigners who have illegally crossed into the U.S., and sure enough, are taking it as a 'ready-set-go' opening gun. They're telling the press they're set to illegally enter the U.S. because the penalty for entering illegally is now off, thanks to the Ninth Circuit's lefty Judge Jon S. Tigar. It's just as I suspected would happen yesterday, because people know an incentive when they see one." . . .

. . . "So obviously, with the U.S. border being heavily fortified with concertina wire and additional personnel, there's potential for confrontation as large numbers of people decide to enter illegally. According to Homeland Security SecretaryKirstjen Nielsen, who was in San Diego yesterday, there about 6,200 of them camped out in Tijuana and another couple thousand in Mexicali, lined up and expecting to file phony asylum claims to enter the U.S. and work awhile as their cases are adjudicated in the backlogged courts. Only 9% are likely to be able to substantiate their claims, she said. So now, with their hopes up and hopes likely to be dashed of easy entry to the U.S., there's likely to be confrontation."

Trump Calls 9th Circuit Court a 'Disgrace,' Says Asylum Ruling Will Be Overturned by SCOTUS  . . . "President Donald Trump railed against the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals and federal Judge Jon Tigar, who on Monday blocked the administration's plan to restrict asylum claims at the southern border as the migrant caravan begins to collect in Tijuana, Baja California Norte.
. . . "Tigar, a 56-year-old England native, was nominated to the Northern California bench by Barack Obama in 2012. 
""The Ninth Circuit -- we're going to have to look at that," Trump told reporters before departing for Andrews Air Force Base in Camp Springs, Md." . . .

CNN vs the White House, the episode continues.

Rich Terrell

'SNL' mocks CNN's Trump coverage

CNN Contributor Makes Racist Claim About White GOP Women  . . . "One of the more insane stories the guys talk about is a recent CNN segment where liberal Kirsten Powers suggests women who vote for President Trump are enabling white supremacy and racism. Isn’t this ironic? Leftists want to empower women and call for them to think for themselves, but I guess that only applies if you are one of them." . . .

Off-teleprompter Obama rambles, nearly incoherently attacking American global warming skeptics

"We could have electricity and smartphones and all that stuff which would buy us probably another 20, 30 years for that technological breakthrough that's necessary," Obama continued. "The reason we don't do it is because we are still confused, blind, shrouded with hate, anger, racism, mommy issues."

Thomas Lifson  "Back in 2008, when he was addressing vast throngs in Berlin and Mile High Stadium, Barack Obama was, we were assured by most of the Smart Set, one of the greatest orators in history. That was but one of the many ways in which he was overrated by those anxious for the first black president to be a brilliant champion of the Democratic Party, “bending the arc of history” toward progressivism.

"Those of us who paid attention to his speaking abilities when he was not reading a prepared text were already skeptical, with his stalling the completion of his thoughts with  “uh…uh” and mispronunciations (“corpse-man”) and outright errors (“57 states” speaking “Austrian” in Austria) painful evidence that this was no Winston Churchill, and not even a passably well-educated man.

"But at least he had the discipline of a White House staff behind him, presumably briefing him before he opened his mouth in public.

"Yesterday, in an utterly friendly venue (an Obama Foundation event) and a friendly audience, Barack went so far off the rails into incoherence that I am wondering if Obama has reverted to the habits of his choom gang days." . . .

Arrogant Barack Obama mockingly explains how he thinks he’s better than everyone he’s worked with.

Brutal and Pragmatic Honesty – President Trump Releases Statement on Kashoggi and Saudi Arabia…

The Last Refuge  "President Trump, not necessarily the White House – but rather, President Trump, releases an absolutely pitch-perfect statement that encapsulates the myriad of interests that have sought to exploit, manipulate, leverage and utilize the murder of Jamal Kashoggi.

"This entirely accurate and brutally honest statement by President Trump will drive the left-wing media, specifically WaPo, NYT and CNN, absolutely bananas:

The President wrote:

After my heavily negotiated trip to Saudi Arabia last year, the Kingdom agreed to spend and invest $450 billion in the United States. This is a record amount of money. It will create hundreds of thousands of jobs, tremendous economic development, and much additional wealth for the United States. Of the $450 billion, $110 billion will be spent on the purchase of military equipment from Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon and many other great U.S. defense contractors. If we foolishly cancel these contracts, Russia and China would be the enormous beneficiaries – and very happy to acquire all of this newfound business. It would be a wonderful gift to them directly from the United States!
The crime against Jamal Khashoggi was a terrible one, and one that our country does not condone. Indeed, we have taken strong action against those already known to have participated in the murder. After great independent research, we now know many details of this horrible crime. We have already sanctioned 17 Saudis known to have been involved in the murder of Mr. Khashoggi, and the disposal of his body.
Representatives of Saudi Arabia say that Jamal Khashoggi was an “enemy of the state” and a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, but my decision is in no way based on that – this is an unacceptable and horrible crime. . . .

. . .
 As President of the United States I intend to ensure that, in a very dangerous world, America is pursuing its national interests and vigorously contesting countries that wish to do us harm. Very simply it is called America First!  ~President Donald J Trump

Did Democrats steal Orange County?

Monica Showalter  . . . "It's an interesting circumstantial case, because it was funny how so many "found" ballots showed up for so many House seats after the election was done, with all of them favoring the same party, which just happened to be the direction of the one-party state that was counting the ballots.  Funnier still, it's amazing how all of those found ballots, in each and every case, amounted to just enough to tip the congressional seat to the Democrats.  The coincidences seem just a little too strong. 

"Fischer is right that all of the press attention seemed to be on the east coast, where judges were brought in to restore order.  There were no such challenges of that kind in California.

"In fact, the strongest of the Orange County Republicans, Young Kim, who had a large-margin three-point victory on election night, same as Democrat Katie Hill, who defeated Republican Steve Knight uphill in the nearby Santa Clarita vicinity, somehow lost that entire lead in the continuous counting, while Hill's margin by contrast didn't make a dent.  Funnier still, the newspapers, though they insisted that 100% of the votes were counted, never acknowledged that Young Kim had won when it seemed as though she had on election night.  It was like some kind of fix was in.

"One other thing that makes me suspicious is that the secretary of state, Alex Padilla, pretty well asked voters to certify only that they were residents of the state on the mail-in ballot form, not that they were citizens. " . . .

Then there is Florida...3000 Votes 'Disappear' From Florida Recount Tally

Vice Is Just More Anti-Conservative Vitriol

"The same Left that despises President Trump despised George W. Bush long before him."

National Review

"President Dick Cheney, the Left’s all-purpose nefarious bugaboo during the Bush years. The film isn’t unique: It follows W, starring Josh Brolin, a box-office failure; Truth, another box-office failure starring Robert Redford about Dan Rather’s attempt to take down George W. Bush with a fake letter about his military service; and You’re Welcome, America, starring Will Ferrell, which aired on HBO. None of these films raked in the cash. But that’s not stopping Adam McKay, producer of HBO’s Succession, from taking on a president who left office a decade ago. 

"What’s driving McKay? The need to live out his anger against Bush. McKay recalls attending the victory party for John Kerry — who, needless to say, did not win. “Everyone you could imagine was there,” McKay describes, including Tom Hanks, Nicole Kidman, and Ferrell. “Once again, we’re like, ‘Oh, they’re going to lose.’ There’s no way you’d reelect these guys after the disaster we just had. I remember Frank Rich was on the phone, and he’s like, ‘It’s over.’ And within two minutes, the entire party had cleared out.”

"McKay turned away from political projects until The Big Short. But now he’s back, and he’s betting a $60 million budget that Americans are desperate to see Christian Bale put on 45 pounds and play Cheney as a Machiavellian devil hell-bent on sending American troops into battle for no good reason. The cast is massive and includes Sam Rockwell as W., Steve Carell as Donald Rumsfeld, and Tyler Perry as Colin Powell. According to McKay, Cheney was far more powerful than W. " . . .

Trish Regan takes on Kamala Harris over her attack on ICE

100%FedUp  "Senator Kamala Harris was just called out by Fox’s Trish Regan! Harris has met her match!
"Regan made commentary about Harris comparing ICE to the KKK (see below) then Harris made a claim that Fox News was distorting what she said during a hearing. Trish Regan wasn’t taking this sitting down and called Kamala Harris out on her attempt at claiming she didn’t compare ICE to the KKK.

Sen. Kamala Harris has an issue w/ my commentary where I criticized her for saying there's a perception that #ICE is somehow akin to the KKK. She claims Fox is using distortion tactics & that Fox is manufacturing outrage. No Senator, YOU ARE! #TrishRegan #TrishIntel

"Watch below where Regan lets Harris have it: Go Trish!"  
"In case you missed Senator Kamala Harris totally disrespecting ICE, this will make your blood boil. This is what Trish Regan was calling Harris out on:

"Several Democrats recently called for ICE to be abolished. The narrative has continued with the grandstanding the morning from Senator Kamala Harris who is trying to appeal to the millennials with her assertion that ICE is like the KKK:

"Democrat Senator Kamala Harris compares ICE to the KKK and appears to suggest that they are a terrorist group during a Senate hearing to consider the nomination of Ronald Vitello to be the director of ICE.

CNN, the most (fill in the blank) name in news

Brian Stelter?

Thomas Lifson: CNN media critic attacks White House ground rules for press conferences  "CNN seems to have forgotten the old adage, "Be careful what you wish for."  After filing suit over the revocation of Jim Acosta's hard pass to the White House and winning, that network's media beat reporter is upset.  Speaking on CNN's Newsroom, Brian Stelter seems certain that danger lurks in the new open and transparent rules provided by the White House in response to the judge's demand for due process on decisions over revocation of access to press conferences or the White House." . . .

Brian Stelter?

"This new letter, laying out the explicit rules, will help maintain decorum.  Stelter may not be able to admit it, but his colleague Acosta has been way out of line, and only anti-Trump solidarity among the media (a huge problem that the media won't admit) has prevented public shaming of Acosta by his colleagues, many of whom deeply resent him.

"Stelter has just reinforced President Trump's view of CNN as reflexively opposed to him no matter what he does.

"CNN chief White House correspondent Jim Acosta’s carnival-barking"

CNN: All Pro-Trump White Women Are 'Racist,' Benefit from 'White Supremacy'
Video

Dallas Cowboys former head cheerleader Cindy Villareal released a movie about the Cowboys squad in the 80s. Cheerleading has changed. Americans love to watch beautiful women in tight sweaters who cheer for one side or the other, the difference is, today they do it as cable news anchors.  Comedian Argus Hamilton 

 CBS' White House Correspondent: There's a Level of Decorum Expected of White House Press Pool

“Some of my colleagues might say ‘what did you do that for? You had the microphone. You have a voice. Speak.,'” Garrett explained. “The President of the United States said, 'Not you.' So my way of thinking [is] that's enough. The President said, 'I didn't call on you. I called on someone else.' Alright then. Some might say you laid down and were too deferential, I don’t feel that way…I deferred hoping he might call on me again, he didn’t, that’s how I orient myself to the institution…and I respect the institution and the country’s choice.”

Jim Acosta Will Only Behave When There's A Democrat In The White House  . . . 
. . . "Reporter[s] rarely, if ever, interrupted Obama while he gave long, meandering answers.

"These were the same reporters, mind you, who'd just spent eight years hounding President Bush. Back then it was NBC News' David Gregory who played the Jim Acosta role, repeatedly sparring with Bush and his press secretary. Gregory's reward for showboating was a coveted spot as anchor of "Meet the Press.' " . . .

Gregory was one of those who asked Mr. Bush if he would apologize for the attack on Iraq. He called Bush a "failed president" in another interview, completely intimidating the president.

Ian Macfarlane

Vile Michelle Wolf has killed off the comedy feature at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner

Well, for me it all began with the celebriweasel Stephen Colbert and his bullying of George Bush at this same affair. TD

Thomas Lifson  "Purported comedian Michelle Wolf, whose vile attacks at the last White House Correspondents' dinner caused open reactions of dismay from the audience, has induced the group to cancel the custom of featuring a comic at its gatherings.  She has managed to diminish laughter, which is in keeping with the thrust of her unfunny, hate-filled work.  Cancelation is the current theme of her career: her Netflix series lasted three months before getting the axe.  Her reliance on shock and grotesquerie – in place of actual humor based on wit – is at the level of a three-year-old saying "poo-poo head" at the family dinner table, expecting a reaction.  The WHCA demeaned itself by featuring her, and the group seems to have figured that out.

"In a press release, the group touted its choice of Ron Chernow as featured speaker at the next dinner.

"I'm delighted that Ron will share his lively, deeply researched perspectives on American politics and history at the 2019 White House Correspondents' Dinner," said Olivier Knox, Chief Washington Correspondent for SiriusXM and president of the WHCA.  "As we celebrate the importance of a free and independent news media to the health of the republic, I look forward to hearing Ron place this unusual moment in the context of American history."

"The White House Correspondents' Association has asked me to make the case for the First Amendment and I am happy to oblige," Chernow said.  "Freedom of the press is always a timely subject and this seems like the perfect moment to go back to basics.  My major worry these days is that we Americans will forget who we are as a people and historians should serve as our chief custodians in preserving that rich storehouse of memory.  While I have never been mistaken for a stand-up comedian, I promise that my history lesson won't be dry."

Sarah Sanders being attacked by
"The Voice"

"I have never heard Chernow speak, but I have read some of his first-rate work.  Almost certainly, the WHCA is looking to contrast the current POTUS with practices of the past, but such is Chernow's standing as a serious and fair scholar that he has every incentive to avoid cheap shots.  The biggest danger he faces is speaking over the (air)heads of the journalists assembled.

"The correspondents have taken to calling their fashion-show-cum-laugh-fest the "nerd prom" – as if they had the intellectual standing to merit the term "nerd."  With Chernow attending, the title may become justified.  

"No doubt, there are hopes that President Trump will attend next year's dinner, appeased by the assurance that he will not be roasted by a professional comedian.  But with the WHCA promising to disregard the new guidelines offered by the White House in response to the court-ordered "due process" for removing press passes, it will take some further developments for Trump to risk making himself a target of a group that generally hates him and wants him out of office. "

Bring Out Your Dead

American Digest  "Every night at 6 PM the Sherriff of Butte County reveals the grim count of the dead discovered, so far, in the ashes of Paradise. He also reveals the latest number of known missing persons who cannot be located by family or friends.  Finally, there is the list of homes and businesses destroyed. The raging fires that destroyed Paradise utterly have passed (for now) but the search for the dead is only beginning.

"Last night’s official tally was:

DEAD: 71 (all but one found inside a home.)MISSING: 1,100HOMES DESTROYED: 9,740 (only about 5% have been search so far)BUSINESSES DESTROYED: 336 . . .

. . . "In the ravines and forests of Paradise, cell reception was so spotty that AT&T gave me my own personal internet driven cell-phone tower. If those off the grid in Paradise actually owned cell phones they would have been lucky to get an alert. But most of those did not own cell phones, and landlines didn’t run that deep in the woods. When the fire closed over them they would have had no warning. No warning until the trailer melted around them. And then there was, out behind but still close to their trailer, their large propane tank.

"How many bodies will be found in the pyre of Paradise? Right now nobody knows for sure.  Nobody will ever know for sure. In five years from today, somewhere in the reviving forest of Paradise, some hiker is going to step on a skull. He won’t be the only one."