Thursday, June 18, 2020
All Lives Matter
In recent days, the phrase "Black lives matter" has been ubiquitous. It is everywhere you look, whether spray-painted on building walls, painted on a city street or coopted as a virtue signaling slogan by every corporation in the country.
I know that all across America, and especially here in Washington, many people are afraid to say, "All lives matter," because there's a good chance that you will be labeled a "racist" for doing so.
Well, an amazing poll was released yesterday that isn't getting the attention it deserves.
The latest Rasmussen survey found that 59% of likely voters said the phrase "All lives matter" was closest to their own view. Just 30% said the phrase "Black lives matter" was closest to their view.
Moreover, this poll found that more black American voters (47%) prefer "All lives matter" over "Black lives matter" (44%).
The only groups of likely voters against saying "All lives matter" are liberals (63%) and those making over $200,000 a year (53%). I don't know what to make of that last statistic. Presumably you have to be smart to make over $200,000, but I guess you can also be a smart, fearful rich person.
We are at a very dangerous place as a country when so many are so fearful about something so simple as "All lives matter."
By the way, Atlanta District Attorney Paul Howard showed his fear of the mob surrounding his office and fear of his own election defeat yesterday when he announced 11 charges against former Officer Garrett Rolfe, including felony murder for the death of Rayshard Brooks. Rolfe potentially faces the death penalty.
Maybe Howard is hoping to pressure Rolfe into a plea deal. But he also runs the risk of a jury refusing to convict Rolfe of murder given other facts in the case.
Sadly, we now have a situation where prosecutors are letting rioters out of jail, while earning notches on their belts by giving in to the mob for throwing the book at police officers.
Speaking Of Fear. . .
We are getting reports from all over the country that police officers of all races, men and women, are completely demoralized. The suicide rate among police officers had already been trending up. And now these officers are not only being called every disgusting thing you can think of, but their families are also under attack.
Meanwhile, a number of Atlanta police officers walked off the job yesterday and others called in sick instead of showing up for a scheduled shift change.
There were unconfirmed reports that Atlanta officials sent requests to neighboring areas for additional officers. Some jurisdictions reportedly responded that they would only go to Atlanta if there is a report of an officer down.
This sounds like what has historically been called the Blue flu. It happens when police officers get sick and tired of constantly having to defend themselves not only from criminals on the streets, but also from feckless politicians and commentators.
These frustrated officers are essentially saying, "You want less of us? Okay. Let's see what happens when we're not on the streets and only bad guys are."
For those too afraid to speak up, I wonder how afraid we'll all be when 800,000 law enforcement officers take a "Policing Holiday."
DACA Disappointment
John Roberts strikes again. I am loath to include the word "Justice" in his title at this point because his rulings increasingly have little to do with justice.
Today, Roberts once again sided with the Supreme Court's liberal bloc to prevent President Trump from ending Barack Obama's quasi-amnesty program for some illegal immigrants. In a 5-to-4 opinion, Roberts ruled that Trump's order repealing Obama's order was "arbitrary and capricious [and] in violation of the Administrative Procedures Act (APA)."
Obama's original order was "arbitrary and capricious." And Obama essentially said so himself on multiple occasions when he initially resisted radical demands to unilaterally amend our immigration laws. But, as we know, he ultimately did so believing it would benefit him politically during a difficult reelection campaign.
The silver lining is that the majority's opinion is a narrow ruling in that it was only a process decision that avoided larger constitutional issues. Roberts wrote: "We do not decide whether DACA or its rescission are sound policies. . . The dispute is instead primarily about the procedure the [Department of Homeland Security] followed in [repealing DACA]."
So the Trump Administration can try again to find some justification that will pass muster with John Roberts.
As you may recall, Roberts used this same twisted logic to prevent the Trump Administration from putting a citizenship question on census forms. He's essentially telling the administration, "Yeah, you CAN do that, but not THAT way."
But the effect is the same: He's using process arguments to give liberals a big victory while allowing fundamental principles to fall by the wayside.
Rep. Jim Jordan blasted today's decision, saying:
"By ruling that President Trump cannot terminate DACA in the same manner that President Obama used to start it, the Court's decision creates two standards of executive power: One for President Obama and another for President Trump."