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tanadrin · 1 year

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A modestly amended U.S. Constitution

I’ve been listening to a lot of 5-4 (the podcast) lately, which has me in a Legal Mood. This is how I might amend the U.S. Constitution, if 1) I was given unlimited scope to propose reforms, and I could somehow magically persuade the entire country to pass them, and 2) if I wanted to preserve as much as possible the spirit, style, and structure of the original, while still importing certain major structural fixes. Amendments are inserted into the text in modern style, rather than being appended at the end; major changes are noted in bold. Reasons for changes, when given, are given as footnotes.

Obviously there are a lot of other ways you could go about major constitutional reform--heck, taking the constitution of Germany or France and filing the serial numbers off would probably work fine. Most liberal-democratic constitutions are fine, and most are better than the U.S. constitution if only because they’re more up-to-date and easier to amend. But if you’re not rewriting the thing from scratch, it’s interesting to think about what you could do from the current form as a starting point.

The biggest changes are 1) a unicameral Congress, 2) a semi-Presidential system along French lines, and 3) expanding major rights and incorporating them into the main body of the text. SCOTUS reform and making amendments easier are also included.

Preamble

The following Constitution is instituted in order to provide a framework for government for the union of states and the citizens which constitute the United States of America;[1] to establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity. The union herein established is perpetual, and not to be dissolved without the common consent of the people of the United States.[2]

Article I - Congress

Section 1: All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a single house of representatives.

Section 2: Congress shall be composed of members chosen by direct popular election. Elections shall be free, equal, and secret.[3] Any citizen who has attained the age of majority may stand for election.[4] Congress shall be elected not less than every four years. Its term shall end when a new Congress convenes. New elections shall be held no sooner than 46 months and no later than 48 months after the electoral term begins. If Congress is dissolved, new elections shall be held within sixty days. [5]

Representatives and direct taxes shall be apportioned among the several states, territories, and other districts according to their respective numbers. The census shall be taken not less than every ten years, in such manner as Congress shall by law direct. All states, territories, and other districts shall have at least one representative, and Congress may, if it so chooses, provide for members of federally recognized Native tribes to elect representatives directly to Congress.[6]

When vacancies happen in the representation from any state, territory, or district, the executive authority thereof shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies.

Congress shall choose its speaker and other officers; and shall have the sole power of impeachment.[7]

Section 3: The times, places, and manner of holding elections to Congress shall be regulated by federal law.[8] All citizens shall be entitled to vote in elections for the representatives of the state, territory, or district in which they reside.[9]

Elections shall use the single-vote mixed-member proprotional representation system. The boundaries of electoral constituencies shall be determined by a nonpartisian and politically neutral redistricting comission, which shall use the criteria of compactness and contiguity to form districts, which so far as possible follow preexisting political boundaries. There shall not be less than one member for every four hundred thousand persons, not counting additional seats allocated for the sake of proportionality.[10]

Section 4: Congress shall be the judge of the elections, returns and qualifications of its own members, and a majority shall constitute a quorum to do business; but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the attendance of absent members, in such manner, and under such penalties as provided.

Congress may determine the rules of its proceedings, punish its members for disorderly behaviour, and, with the concurrence of two thirds, expel a member.

Congress shall keep a journal of its proceedings, and from time to time publish the same, excepting such parts as may in their judgement require secrecy; and the yeas and nays of the members on any question shall, at the desire of one fifth of those present, be entered into the journal.

Section 5: Members of Congress shall receive a compensation for their services, to be ascertained by ;aw, and paid out of the treasury of the United States. They shall in all cases, except treason, felony and breach of the peace, be privileged from arrest during their attendance at a congressional session, and in going to and returning from the same; and for any speech or debate, they shall not be questioned in any other place. No member shall, during the time for which he was elected, be appointed to any civil office under the authority of the United States, which shall have been created, or the emoluments whereof shall have been increased during such time; and no person holding any office under the United States, shall be a member of Congress during their continuance in office.

Section 6: Every bill which shall have passed Congress shall, before it become a law, be presented to the President of the United States: If they approve it, they shall sign it, but if not they shall return it, with their objections, to Congress, who shall enter the objections at large on their journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If after such reconsideration two thirds shall agree to pass the bill, it shall become a Law. But in all such cases the votes shall be determined by yeas and nays, and the names of the persons voting for and against the bill shall be entered on the congressional journal. If any bill shall not be returned by the President within ten days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the same shall be a law, in like manner as if he had signed it, unless the Congress by their adjournment prevent its return, in which case it shall not be a law. Every order, resolution, or vote to which the concurrence of Congress may be necessary (except on a question of adjournment) shall be presented to the President of the United States; and before the same shall take Effect, shall be approved by them, or being disapproved by him, shall be repassed by two thirds of Congress, according to the rules and limitations prescribed in the case of a bill. [11]

Section 7: Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes (including income taxes), duties, imposts, and excises; to pay the debts and provide for the common defence and general welfare of the United States; but all duties, imposts, and excises shall be uniform throughout the United States, its territories, and other districts.

Congress shall have the power to borrow money on the credit of the United States; to regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states; to establish a uniform rule of naturalization, and uniform laws of bankruptcy throughout the United States; to coin money, regulate the value thereof, and of foreign coin; and fix the standard of weights and measures; to provide for the punishment of counterfeiting the securities and current coin of the United States; and to establish post offices and post roads.

Congress shall have the power to promote the progress of science and the useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive rights to their respective writings and discoveries; to regulate the size, number, and jurisdiction of inferior courts; to define and punish piracies and felonies committed on the high seas, and offences against the law of nations, and crimes against humanity, wherever they occur;[12] to declare war;[13] to develop and support the armed forces of the United States, and to make rules for their government and regulation;[14] and to suppress insurrections and repel invasions.

All powers of Congress shall be limited by the rights and privileges protected by this Constitution.

Congress shall have the power to create federal districts, over which it shall exercise exclusive jurisdiction, from territories, or from the territory formed from the voluntary cession of particular states; and to exercise like authority over all places purchased by the consent of the legislature of the state in which the same shall be, for the erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, dockyards, parklands, military bases, and other needful buildings; and to make all laws, or to derogate to such departments and agencies it shall authorize the authority to make such laws and regulations in its stead,[15a] which shall be necessary and proper for the carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all other powers vested by this constitution in the government of the United States, or in any department or officer thereof.

Section 8: The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it.

No bill of attainder or ex post facto law shall be passed.

No tax or duty shall be laid on articles exported from any state.

No preference shall be given by any regulation of commerce or revenue to the ports of one state over those of another; nor shall vessels bound to, or from, one state be obliged to enter, clear, or pay duties in another. The right to free movement from state to state shall not be inhibited by Congress, or by any state.

No money shall be drawn from the treasury, but in consequence of an appropriation made by law; and a regular statement and account of the receipts and expenditures of all public money shall be published from time to time.[15b]

No title of nobility shall be granted by the United States. No person holding any office of profit or trust under the United States shall, without the consent of Congress, accept any present, emolument, office, or title, of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign state. No citizen of the United States may accept a title of nobility from a foreign power.

Section 9: No state shall enter into any treaty, alliance, or confederation; grant letters of marque and reprisal; coin money; emit bills of credit; make anything but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of debts; pass any bill of attainder or ex post facto law, or law impairing the obligation of contracts, or grant any title of nobility.

No state shall without the consent of congress lay any imposts or duties on imports or exports; lay any duty of tonnage; keep troops or ships of war in time of peace, enter into any agreement or compact with a foreign state or power, or engage in war.[16]

Article II - The executive

Section 1: The head of state shall be the President of the United States. They shall ensure respect for the principles of the Constitution, the proper functioning of public authorities, and the continuity of the state; and shall be the guarantor of territorial integrity and due respect for the treaties entered into by the United States.[17]

The President shall be elected for a term of four years by direct, universal, equal, and secret elections, using the single transferable vote. No one shall hold the office of President for more than two consecutive terms. The election of the new President shall be held no more than thirty days before the expiry of the term of President in office; or in the case of death or removal from office, no more than sixty days from the end of the previous President’s term. During the vacancy, the Speaker of the House shall exercise the duties of President.

All citizens of the United States of the age of majority are eligible to stand for election to the Presidency.

The President shall appoint the First Secretary. On the recommendation of the First Secretary, he shall appoint the other members of the Government and terminate their appointments. The President shall preside over the Cabinet.

The President shall, at stated times, receive for his services, a compensation, which shall neither be increased nor diminished during the Period for which they shall have been elected, and they shall not receive within that period any other emolument from the United States, or any of them.

Before they enter on the execution of their office, he shall take the following oath or affirmation:—“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

Section 2: The President shall be the Commander in Chief of the armed forces of the United States. The President or First Secretary may require the opinion, in writing, of the principal officer in each of the executive departments, upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices, and they shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons for offences against the United States, except in cases of impeachment.

They shall have power, by and with the advice and consent of Congress, to make treaties, provided six tenths of members present concur; and they shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of Congress, shall appoint ambassadors.[18]

The President shall have power to fill up all vacancies that may happen during the recess of Congress, by granting commissions which shall expire at the end of their next session.

Section 3: They shall from time to time give to the Congress information of the state of the union, and recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient; he may, on extraordinary occasions, convene Congress; he shall receive ambassadors and other public ministers; he shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed, and shall commission all the officers of the United States.

Section 4: The Cabinet of the United States shall determine and conduct the policy of the government. It shall have at its disposal the civil service and the armed forces. It shall be accountable to Congress in accordance with the terms and procedures set out below. It shall consist of the First Secretary, the Secretaries of each executive department, and other cabinet-level officers provided for by legislation.

The First Secretary shall direct the actions of the cabinet. They shall ensure the implementation of legislation, and, with the approval of Congress, appoint judges, public ministers, consuls, and other officers of the United States, except those appointed by the President; and all other officers of the United States, whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by law: but the Congress may by law vest the appointment of such inferior officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in the courts of law, or in the heads of departments .

Membership in the cabinet shall be incompatible with holding any Congressional office, or any other position of public employment.[19]

The First Secretary may, after deliberation by the Cabinet, make a bill, program, or statement of policy an issue of confidence before Congress; Congress may likewise pass a motion of no confidence in the Cabinet. The failure of a motion of confidence, as proposed by the First Secretary, or the passage of a motion of no confidence by an absolute majority of Congress, shall result in the resignation of the Cabinet.

Section 5: The President and all civil officers of the United States, shall be removed from office on impeachment for and conviction of treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.

Article III - The judiciary

Section 1: The judicial power of the United States shall be vested in the Supreme Court of the United States, and in such inferior courts as Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. The judges, both of the Supreme and inferior courts, shall hold their offices for a term established by Congress, of not less than ten years for inferior courts, or twenty for the Supreme Court.[20]

The justices of the Supreme Court shall be elected by Congress, with their appointment subject to the veto of the President; this veto may be overruled by a vote of two thirds of members present. The Supreme Court shall consist of not less than thirty members, of whom seven shall be selected at random to hear any case; and Congress may provide for a greater number of justices as necessary to adequately address the business of the court.[21]

Section 2: The judicial power shall extend to all cases, in law and equity, arising under this constitution, the laws of the United States, and treaties made, or which shall be made, under their authority; to all cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers, and consuls; to all cases of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction; to controversies to which the United States shall be a party; to controversies between two or more states; between a state and a citizen of another state; between citizens of different states; between citizens of the same state claiming lands under grants of different states; and between a state, or the citizens thereof, and foreign states, citizens, or subjects.

In all cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, and those in which a state shall be a party, the Supreme Court shall have original jurisdiction, both as to law and fact, with such exceptions and under such regulations as Congress shall make.

The trial of all crimes, except in cases of impeachment, shall be by jury, and such trial shall be held in the state, district, or territory where the said crimes shall have been committed.

Section 3: Treason against the United States shall consist only in levying war against them, or in adhering to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort; no person shall be convicted of treason unless on the testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or on confession in open court. Congress shall have power to declare the punishment of treason, but no attainder of treason shall work corruption of blood, or forfeiture except during the life of the person attained.

Article IV - States

Section 1: Full faith and credit shall be given in each state to the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state, including adoptions and marriages. And Congress may by general laws prescribe the manner in which such acts, records, and proceedings shall be proved, and the effect thereof.

Section 2: The citizens of each state shall be entitled to all privileges and immunities of citizens in the several states. A person charged in any state with treason, felony, or other crime, who shall flee from justice, and be found in another state, shall on demand of the executive authority of the state from which he fled, be delivered up, to be removed to the state having jurisdiction of the crime.

Section 3: New states may be admitted by Congress into this Union, but no new state shall be formed or erected within the jursidiction of any other state, or any state be formed by the junction of two or more states or parts of states, without the consent of the legislatures of the states concerned, as well as that of Congress.

The Constitution applies in full to all territories or districts under the jurisdiction of the United States. No territory or insular area which is the exclusive possession of the United States or of its states or territories, shall be construed to lie outside the United States proper for the purposes of this Constitution. All persons under the jurisdiction or power of the United States are entitled to the rights which this Constitution protects.[22]

Congress shall make provision for the inhabited territories and districts, which do not belong to any state, to have organized self-government to all reasonable extent; and Congress shall protect the traditional rights, obligations, and privileges afforded by treaties to native tribes and nations within the territory of the United States, including but not limited to the right to exclusive jurisdiction over their territory, and the right of native children not to adopted or fostered by not-native parents.[23]

Congress shall have power to dispose of and make all needful rules and regulations respecting the territory or other property belonging to the United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to prejudice any claims of the United States, or of any particular state.

Section 4: The United States shall guarantee to every state, territory, and district in this union a democratic, free, egalitarian, and republican form of government, and shall protect each of them against invasion; and, on the application of the legislature or of the executive (when the legislature cannot be convened) against domestic violence.

Article V - Amendment

Amendments to the Constitution may be effected by a vote of four-fifths of Congress; or by the ratification of two-thirds of the legislatures of the several states and a majority vote of Congress.[24]

Article VI - Citizenship; constitutional scope; other

All persons born or naturalized in the United States, or any state, territory, or district within them, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside. No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States, nor shall any statae deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law, or deny to any person within their jurisdiction the equal protection of laws.

This constitution, the laws made in pursuance thereof, and all treaties made, or which shall be made, under the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme law of the land, and judges in every state shall be bound thereby, anything in the laws or constitution of the states notwithstanding.

The members of congress and of the several state legislatures, and all executive and judicial officers, both of the United States and of the several states, shall be bound by oath or affirmation to support this constitution; but no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States or any state.

Article VII - Individual rights and obligations[25]

Both the United States and the several States are obligated to protect human dignity and civil rights. The following rights shall bind the legislature, the executive, and the judiciary, both of the United States and the individual states, districts, and territories, as directly applicable by law.

All persons shall be equal before the law, regardless of sex, race, religion, language, place of birth or origin, or political opinions; no person shall be disfavored because of disability. The right of citizens to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States, or any state, for any reason.

Every person shall have the right to freedom of conscience and the free exercise of religion; nor shall Congress or any state establish an official religion. No person shall be compelled against their conscience to render military service involving the use of arms.

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, effects, communications, private spaces, and regarding their private conduct shall not be violated; and no searches or seizures shall occur, or warrants be issued, except upon probable cause supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Every person shall have the right to freely express and disseminate their opinions, and to inform themselves without hindrance from generally accessible sources. Freedom of the press, of reporting by means of broadcast or films, and by digital communication, shall be guaranteed. There shall be no censorship. The right to assemble, to free association, and to petition the government for redress of grievances shall not be abridged.

Children shall be entitled to the support, to protection from parental neglect and abuse, and to education.

No person may be held to involuntary work or servitude; slavery or the interest of property in persons is prohibited.

No person shall be subject to capital punishment, nor to any cruel or unusual punishment; nor to any kind of torture, mutilation, deprivation of food, water, or sleep, or to the threat of physical harm. No person shall be subject to trial for the same offense twice, nor compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against themselves; nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, except for public goods and amenities,[26] and with just compensation.

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial,[27] which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense. Any person subject to arrest must be informed of their rights. Persons subject to trial who cannot afford counsel shall have counsel provided. No one shall be held on condition of bail, nor shall any plea bargain be permitted.[28]

No one may be deprived of citizenship without their consent.

Persecuted persons have the right to political asylum within the United States.

The right to bring suit against officers of the law or government, who violate the rights laid out herein, and the right to redress of such violations, is protected.[29]

The enumeration in this Constitution of certain rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage other rights retained by the people. The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively or to the people.

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[1] Simply making clear that the U.S. is no longer merely a “union of states,” and that the rights and obligations a constitution establishes apply equally to territories and outlying possessions.

[2] Unilateral secession should be clearly illegal.

[3] All citizens are entitled to representation, not just citizens residing within states.

[4] Omitted: the requirement to be a resident of the state one represents. I do not think this is a very important requirement in the modern day, and people should have the right to choose whomever they want as a representative, but I would restore this requirement if it proved to be very popular.

[5] Cf. Article 39 of the German Basic Law.

[6] Large native reservations, like the Navajo Nation, should be entitled to elect members to Congress rather than being represented through state delegations.

[7] There are a lot of more specific requirements that could--and arguably should--be explicitly laid out in a constitution about the operation of a legislature; but the U.S. constitution is fairly light on details about the legislature’s internal workings, and the goal here is to fix only the most obvious problems, so issues like committee structures are omitted here.

[8] The federal government should have oversight of federal elections.

[9] Universal suffrage baybee.

[10] There are lots of voting systems that would improve on first-past-the-post--indeed, almost all of them. Single-vote MMP gets you a reasonably proportionate system, while being, for the voter, as functionally close as possible to the current FPTP system. Congress is also by most measures much too small for a country of the U.S.’s population.

[11] This section and the previous two are amended only to the extent required to account for a unicameral Congress.

[12] Universal jurisdiction for crimes against humanity.

[13] The power to issue letters of marque is omitted.

[14] Mentions of the “militia” are also omitted, since the organized militia doesn’t exist anymore.

[15a] Explicit repudiation of certain conservative legal doctrines which would make the modern regulatory state impossible.

[15b] If you were going to include a balanced budget rule, you could put it here. I wouldn’t. But that’s sure a thing you could do.

[16] Edited slightly to make clear that state defense forces are no bueno.

[17] Cf. Title II of the French constitution.

[18] Ambassadors are appointed by the President; other officers are appointed by the First Secretary (see next section). SCOTUS is no longer appointed by the executive (see Article III).

[19] Besides making Congress unicameral, this is one of the biggest changes: moving to a semi-presidential system. In this system, the First Secretary (who is sort of like the Vice President) runs the day-to-day domestic business of the government, while the President is the head of state and commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The system is approximately based on the French constitution. As in France (but unlike, say, Britain), members of the government (”Cabinet” in American usage) are not members of the legislature.

[20] Term limits are legal, but not mandatory.

[21] Having a large number of judges, from whom a particular panel is drawn to hear an individual case, is a common procedure in modern supreme and constitutional courts elsewhere in the world: it ensures that you don’t have cases not being heard for lack of time (because you can always add more judges to the court of it’s overly busy), and it makes the ideological position of any one member of the court much less important. Indeed, many appellate courts in the U.S. already function like this.

I think there is actually a very good argument to separate out the “constitutional court” role of the Supreme Court on the one hand, and the “court of final appeal/court which arbitrates between federal entities” roles (which themselves could even be broken up into more courts, to streamline judicial business further), but I think the most defective features of the court are fixed here. Still, if there is one more change I would add, a separate constitutional court (and the ability for individuals and federal bodies to make direct applications to it) in the style of Germany would be it.

[22] Essentially repeals the idea of “unincorporated territory” created by the Insular Cases, U.S. territory to which the Constitution doesn’t apply in full. Also makes sure non-citizens are entitled to legal protections like due process.

[23] The goal here includes (among others) to constitutionally enshrine some of the protections of the ICWA.

[24] The U.S. constitution is stupidly hard to amend; this fixes that (though still sets the threshold for amendment quite high). Congressional approval is required for a state-led amendment process to ensure residents of non-states aren’t getting totally screwed.

[25] This section borrows heavily from both the German constitution and the bill of rights.

Virtually unchanged from the First Amendment, except to reflect two minor points of jurisprudence; the Second Amendment is, however, omitted.

[26] Explicitly repudiating Kelo v New London

[27] I don’t think “jury trial” is that important in this day and age, given the ability of prosecutors to exert control over the shape of the jury; but I could be convinced that it’s worth restoring that right explicitly.

[28] Constitutionally enshrining Miranda rights and the right of the indigent to counsel; also banning cash bail and plea bargaining.

[29] Explicit repudiation of qualified immunity; you have the right to sue the government if they violate your rights.

#conworlding #sorta

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mourning-again-in-america · 5 months

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hate when people say that SCOTUS is "right-wing" because

1. SCOTUS has been to the left of American genpop since the 50's

2. SCOTUS is more obviously right-wing relative to genpop now than it has been in living memory

3. SCOTUS is far to the left of American genpop when considering only those of similar age

4. SCOTUS is to the right of those with similar educational achievement, and far to the right when filtering only on alma maters common to the Justices

5. A majority of justices on the Supreme Court are certainly far to the left of the American genpop, when considering only that majority.

P.S. "6-3" is far less accurate than "3-3-3"

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bills-bible-basics · 7 months

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Abortion * Children * Pregnancy Graphic 30 https://www.billkochman.com/Blog/index.php/landmark-conservative-victory-scotus-overturns-roe-v-wade/ WOW! Praise the Lord! They did it! After fifty years of enduring such an ungodly farce, which only brought shame to our nation in the eyes of God, on Friday, June 24, 2022, in a 6-3 ruling, the conservative justices of the Supreme Court of the United States mustered their courage and overturned Roe v. Wade. By so doing, they have sent the abortion issue back to the individual states where it actually belongs. What a hot battle will now ensue in each state as locally-elected officials and their constituents make their OWN decision with regards to this extremely divisive issue. I am so encouraged by this news! Their ruling gives me a little hope that maybe there is some light at the end of the tunnel. For once, the SCOTUS has done something right, after so many blunders in recent years, such as legalizing same-sex "marriage" in 2015. Of course, honestly speaking, the nation as a whole still has a long way to go, and a lot of serious repenting that still needs to be done, if she expects to be forgiven, and receive God's full blessings. As we read in the Holy Scriptures: "Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people." Proverbs 14:34, KJV "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14, KJV "The LORD is far from the wicked: but he heareth the prayer of the righteous." Proverbs 15:29, KJV "The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles." Psalm 34:17, KJV "Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways, as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God: they ask of me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to God." Isaiah 58:2, KJV "But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him." Acts 10:35, KJV To continue, despite all the devilish things the radical Left and those wicked pro-abortionists did to try to dissuade the conservative justices from making this ruling -- including protesting outside some of their homes, threatening their lives, demonizing them, etc. -- the six conservative justices stood firm. God bless them for that! Satan and his crowd are no doubt quite outraged and imploding at this very moment! In fact, as you have probably already read, the public protests by the ungodly wicked who insist on murdering their unborn children have already begun. Who knows what those extremists will do in coming days, weeks and months. We have already witnessed what they have done in the recent past when they don't get their way: mob violence on the streets! Quite frankly, it is totally absurd that Roe vs. Wade has lasted these past fifty years as it has, because as far as I know, there is absolutely no right to abortion to be found anywhere in the US Constitution. The word "abortion" does NOT even exist in the document anywhere. I have no doubt that the founders of this nation, and the authors of the US Constitution, would be horrified to learn how their carefully-crafted words have been so terribly twisted by radical politicians and justices in our modern day, in order to magically create support for such a heinous, wicked, devilish, murderous procedure as abortion. As we all know, surgical abortion did not even exist at that time, so how could the Constitution's framers possibly have even imagined it, much less condone it and protect it as a right in said document? They couldn't, and didn't. In short, my friends, the constitutional right to abortion has been a Big Lie, and a fabricated fiction, which has endured for these past fifty years due to weak politicians, and weak justices, who were too afraid to do anything about it. No one had the guts to do what really needed to be done.

So again, thank God that Roe v. Wade has finally been overturned, and the abortion battle will now continue in the individual states where it belongs. One thing is for certain. This ruling will make the 2022 midterms, and the 2024 presidential campaign season all the more interesting. Every politician -- whether representative, senator, governor or presidential candidate -- will now be forced to make an open, public stand on one side of the fence or the other. There are no longer any gray areas in which to hide. Red states will now become redder, and blue states will become bluer. That is a given. As many of you have no doubt already read or heard, not surprisingly, former US President Donald J. Trump is taking credit for this monumental, landmark decision, being as he nominated three of the justices who were a part of the majority opinion. While I personally don't care for Trump's constant self-glorification and tooting his own horn, in this regard, he is right. Without those three justices on the bench, this victory for Christian and Conservative values would have never happened. Of course, as a Bible-believing Christian, I also believe that the LORD was behind the developments which ultimately led to this ruling. After all, the Scriptures clearly inform us that He is the one who raises up and puts down leaders, as we can easily determine by the following group of verses: "Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil. Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake." Romans 13:1-5, KJV "Lift not up your horn on high: speak not with a stiff neck. For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another." Psalm 75:5-7, KJV "Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are his: And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding:" Daniel 2:20-21, KJV "This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men." Daniel 4:17, KJV "I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are upon the ground, by my great power and by my outstretched arm, and have given it unto whom it seemed meet unto me." Jeremiah 27:5, KJV "The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will." Proverbs 21:1, KJV "For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king. And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned: for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD, and thy words: because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice. Now therefore, I pray thee, pardon my sin, and turn again with me, that I may worship the LORD. And Samuel said unto Saul, I will not return with thee: for thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD hath rejected thee from being king over Israel." 1 Samuel 15:23-26, KJV "And upon a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat upon his throne, and made an oration unto them. And the people gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man.

And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost." Acts 12:21-23, KJV But concerning Donald J. Trump, in my view, the truth is that unless those nasty Democrats soon find a way to totally destroy him, Trump may very well make a comeback, and be the next US president AGAIN! We all know that the radical Left -- and even some members of Trump's own party -- has been working really hard at it for years now, trying every possible trick in the book to bring down Trump. It is evident that the radicals are becoming more desperate and vicious by the month, as the 2024 campaign season draws ever closer! Yet Trump still stands. Is it by Divine Will? Good question. In fact, with the rulings the SCOTUS has just made regarding Roe v. Wade and Second Amendment gun rights, I suspect that the court has indirectly pretty much handed Donald Trump the Republican 2024 presidential nomination, and quite possibly a 2024 presidential victory as well, being as it was Trump's three judicial nominations which has resulted in these two rulings. Time will tell. These two rulings have certainly fired up Trump's base, and Trump himself is capitalizing on these two developments as much as he can. Article: "Abortion: Slaughter of the Innocent: https://www.billkochman.com/Articles/abort-01.html Article: "Murdering Millions by Mail: The Abortion Controversy": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles/murdering-millions-by-mail.html Article: "The Fruit of the Womb": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles/fruitwm1.html "Abortion" KJV Bible Verse List: https://www.billkochman.com/VerseLists/verse493.html "Child Discipline and Obedience" KJV Bible Verse List: https://www.billkochman.com/VerseLists/verse122.html https://www.billkochman.com/Blog/index.php/abortion-children-pregnancy-graphic-30/?feed_id=76476&_unique_id=650e4b9c405ca&Abortion%20%2A%20Children%20%2A%20Pregnancy%20Graphic%2030

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dontmeantobepoliticalbut · 2 years

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Conservatives on the SCOTUS leak 3 months ago...

"We must protect our Judges from violent threats against them and their family!!!"

Conservatives after the Mar-a-lago Raid...

"Find out where this Judge's kids live!! Make an example of them!!!"

Far-right extremists on pro-Donald Trump message boards and social networks are making violent, antisemitic threats against the judge who reportedly signed the warrant that allowed the FBI to search the former President's Mar-a-Lago property in Florida.

Multiple members of these toxic online communities are even posting what appears to be Judge Bruce Reinhart’s home address, phone numbers, and names of his family members alongside threats of extreme violence.

“This is the piece of shit judge who approved FBI’s raid on Mar-a-Lago,” a user wrote on the pro-Trump message board formerly known as TheDonald. “I see a rope around his neck.”

Responding, another user wrote: “Idgaf [I don’t give a fuck] anymore. Name? Address? Put that shit all up on here.” Moments later, a different member replied with what appears to be Reinhart’s current address, phone numbers, previous addresses, and names of possible relatives.

In another post on the same message board, one user commented, “Let's find out if he has children....where they go to school, where they live...EVERYTHING.”

These threats of violence and antisemitic slurs on a range of platforms, including 4chan, Telegram, Gettr, Gab, and Trump’s own platforms called Truth Social, were first uncovered by Advance Democracy, a nonpartisan and nonprofit organization that conducts public-interest investigations.

“The threats against Judge Reinhart in the wake of the Mar-a-Lago raid are significant,” Daniel J. Jones, founder of Advance Democracy, told VICE News. “In addition to the antisemitic and violent slurs, we’re seeing his address and other personal information being shared online—with the implied or explicit purpose of ‘real-life’ action.”

A message board where a number of these threats were posted also happens to be the same one where many of those involved in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot posted threats of violence in the lead-up to Jan. 6.

These threats against the Judge, Jones told VICE News, are “all the more alerting given the events of January 6.”

These threats made against Reinhart and his family didn’t occur in a vacuum: Within hours of the FBI searching Trump’s Palm Beach home, the former President’s supporters reacted furiously, calling for civil war and the dismantling of the FBI. As Trump has scrambled to explain why his home was searched, he has also pushed conspiracy theories about the FBI supposedly planting evidence there.

Right-wing news outlets have also tried to connect the judge to convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. Reinhart worked as a federal prosecutor until 2008, and a day after he quit, he became the defense attorney for a number of Epstein’s employees, including his pilots and a scheduler, according to his 2018 Miami Herald report. The link between Reinhart and Epstein has been weaponized by Trump supporters to incorrectly imply Reinhart was Epstein’s own lawyer, and, by extension, was corrupt and possibly a pedophile. (A small note in light of these accusations: Trump had a long personal relationship with Epstein, and once famously told New York Magazine that he was a “terrific guy.”)

On fringe message board 4chan, one user posted an image of Reinhart with the caption: “About that Judge that signed the search Warrant…Bruce Reinhart once quit his job as a U.S. Attorney to work for Jeffrey Epstein." Another 4chan user wrote in response: “That is a kike. And a pedophile … He should be tried for treason and executed.”

“The U.S. Marshals are responsible for the protection of the federal judicial process, and we take that responsibility very seriously,” a spokesperson for the U.S. Marshals told VICE News when asked for comment about the threats. “While we do not discuss our specific security measures, we continuously review the measures in place and take appropriate steps to ensure the integrity of the federal judicial process.”

The FBI deferred comment to the U.S. Marshals, and the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida told VICE News “the Court has no comment.”

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thefallenangelsgang · 10 months

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ahhh the Supreme Court

what a load of horse shit amiright? (dont cry dont cry dont cry dontcry dontcrydontcrydontcry)

Here's your local History Major who just took a course on the politics and workings of the Constitution coming at you with some takes on the Supreme Court that no one asked for or wanted:

(My certifications are I just sat through 6 weeks of torture debating what every word means in the fucking constitution. The air force is unconstitutional and we haven't been in a legal war since WWII. My brain WILL melt if I don't use this information)

SO the Supreme Court has to go right? Well, it can... But you are about to bring down the whole system of government with it. Which may be exciting for some but I raise you this:

The issues you have with the government have absolutely NOTHING to do with the government as laid out by the Constitution.

They more have to do with abuses of power taken by people in office that have created "norms" in our government.

Like i mentioned above we haven't been in a War since WWII. You want to know why? A President ages ago took a step too far in one direction and his successors have been pushing the limit ever since. In a simplified domino effect it looks kind of like this:

America announcing it will protect it's interests in the western hemisphere (The Monroe Doctrine) -> One of the fucks deciding that means Policing the Western Hemisphere (it was one of the ones before Teddy Roosevelt or Teddy himself) (Spanish American War) -> Teddy Roosevelt taking "Protecting America's interests" to mean show off the navy to the world (Speak Softly and Carry a Big Stick) -> Needing to desperately take down communism in post-WWII because it impedes our "interests" (Red Scare/Cold War) -> General MacArthur wants to keep warmongering in the pacific post WWII (Korean War) -> Congress refuses to declare war formally and at some point signs off to allow the president to make war-like military actions without the need of congressional approval (I can't find the exact Law off the top of my head but this breaks the system of Checks and Balances in place to stop one branch from acting above it's station) Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan remain Military actions despite two of them being referred to as Wars and Vietnam utilizing the fucking DRAFT

Peachy, right?

The Supreme Court did the exact same thing except fucking immediately after our first justice was instated. John Jay (who famously wrote only 5 of the Federalist Papers and set a precedent for group projects that has outlived him) was our first chief justice and IMMEDIATELY just came up with Judicial Review during Marbury v. Madison (1803). SCOTUS's ability to just say shit is unconstitutional is made up.

THIS IS ALL OF SCOTUS's POWER IN THE ARTICLE 3 SECTION 2 OF THE CONSTITUTION:

"The judicial Power shall extend to all Cases, in Law and Equity, arising under this Constitution, the Laws of the United States, and Treaties made, or which shall be made, under their Authority;—to all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls;—to all Cases of admiralty and maritime Jurisdiction;—to Controversies to which the United States shall be a Party;—to Controversies between two or more States;—between a State and Citizens of another State,—between Citizens of different States,—between Citizens of the same State claiming Lands under Grants of different States, and between a State, or the Citizens thereof, and foreign States, Citizens or Subjects. In all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, and those in which a State shall be Party, the supreme Court shall have original Jurisdiction. In all the other Cases before mentioned, the supreme Court shall have appellate Jurisdiction, both as to Law and Fact, with such Exceptions, and under such Regulations as the Congress shall make. The Trial of all Crimes, except in Cases of Impeachment, shall be by Jury; and such Trial shall be held in the State where the said Crimes shall have been committed; but when not committed within any State, the Trial shall be at such Place or Places as the Congress may by Law have directed."

Judicial Review- the ability of the Court to declare a Legislative or Executive act in violation of the Constitution (from uscourts.gov) DOES NOT APPEAR IN THE CONSTITUTION

THE VERY ACT OF IT IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL!

anyways for those that have stuck around:

The Air Force is unconstitutional because the powers of Congress ONLY mention raising and maintaining an Army and Navy. The Air Force was under the Army but has become it's own branch now. Unfortunately the founding fathers didn't plan for us to launch each other in the air at mach jesus.

also unfortunately, an argument can be made that the raising and maintaining of an Air Force falls under the necessary and proper clause.

This has been History Facts with Jericho

Good Luck, Godspeed, Gangnam Style, and all that jazz

Punch a Fascist for me <3

(this took 2 hours to write)

#supreme court #scotus #constitution #america #current events #united states #affirmative action #abolish the supreme court

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welcometoqueer · 1 year

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I posted 78 times in 2022

5 posts created (6%)

73 posts reblogged (94%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@theygender

@stele3

@justlgbtthings

@no-need-to-demonstrate-art

@uglygirlstatus

I tagged 5 of my posts in 2022

#goncharov is a cultural and generational touchstone - 2 posts

#goncharov (1973) - 2 posts

#lgbt - 2 posts

#queer pride - 2 posts

#goncharov - 2 posts

#goncharov deserves more love and recognition - 2 posts

#give goncharov the respect it deserves - 2 posts

#or studio execs - 1 post

#respect for marriage act - 1 post

#tw politics - 1 post

Longest Tag: 77 characters

#*hits studio executives with broom* keep your grimy hands away from our baby!

My Top Posts in 2022:

Yoooo!!!!

The U.S. Senate just passed the Respect for Marriage Act which federally protects same-sex and interracial relationships!!

♡　♥　♡　♥　♡　♥ ♡　♥　♡　♥

It took way longer than it should have but federal law now recognizes that everyone, no matter who they love, is entitled to respect and equal treatment. Love is love and that sentiment will now be codified into law! 🏳️‍🌈🎉⚧🎊

Now, I’ve seen some of the comments in response to this announcement: “Okay, so what? LGBTQ+ and interracial couples have been able to be married before though, why is this so important?”

With SCOTUS overturning decisions such as Roe v. Wade in recent years, it is clear that established precedent is not enough to secure what seem like basic rights.

(Not to mention it’s importance since interracial and LGBTQ+ relationships have really only been accepted within recent history but still face extreme hate and discrimination. That’s another whole tangent though.)

Essentially, this act is important because it serves as a preventive measure against other attacks on peoples’ rights or their access to fair and equal treatment.

♡━━━━━━━━━━━━♡

The act itself passed with 61 to 36 votes, only 12 Republicans were for the act at all. Even Mitch McConnell, who is in an interracial marriage himself, voted against the bill.

Below are the 37 Senators that voted against the fair treatment and equal access for those in interracial and/or LGBTQ+ marriages/relationships. Note the names of the people who want to strip away freedoms for those who don’t align with “traditional” values.

1 note - Posted November 29, 2022

omg hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii bestie <- blushing screaming crying 🤩

omgay I wonder who it is ahhhh

2 notes - Posted October 6, 2022

I’m worried some studio exec will see Goncharov trending, get the wrong idea, and actually try to make a movie to “appeal” to us…

Now if that does happen, I believe it’s our duty to pretend like it was never a liked/popular thing and to absolutely flame whatever product comes of it.

On the other hand, I think it’d be hilarious to get tumblr an academy award for a completely fake film, I mean, it is critically acclaimed, it should recognized as such.

8 notes - Posted November 23, 2022

is he…ya know…, an

amBIvert ???

good question, misha doesn’t seem to know either

24 notes - Posted April 25, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

man, we gotta make like, an extremely long, detailed test people gotta survive and pass before they’re allowed to make a “informal” tumblr account

AND THEN the survivors of that get thrown in a gauntlet where og tumblarians get to watch them fight and panic as they try to figure out how to survive on this site

if they manage to survive all that then I guess, they can stay…I still won’t be happy about it but I won’t be as pissed off if they “pay their dues,” so to speak

no but for real, y’all are doing great work out there, keep those twitter users far away from here!

37 notes - Posted November 8, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

I knew I wasn’t that active this year cause my life got busy and stressful but not bad

#now I have college and living on my own vaguely figured out #I’ll be more active I promise #i used to post more I’m sorry I haven’t lately #tumblr2022 #year in review #my 2022 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review

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longwindedbore · 2 years

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I’m shocked! Shocked I say that Darth Brandon called fascists “fascists” just for

Carrying Nazi flags [1]

Advocating shooting LGBTQ+ in the back of the head [2] or locking them up in camps [3]

Advocating hunting down and shooting RHINOs ~ AKA Republicans or former Republicans who are ‘disloyal’ to the Great God Trump [4]

Calling for a ‘Purge’ of Liberals and posting how great it’ll will be when we are all dead. [5]

Lynching black people in election years [6]

Storming our Capitol with fascist regalia. [7]

Marching around like The Nazi’s SA (Sturmabteilung) [8]

Threatening civil insurrection on an hourly basis. [9]

Inciting violence against women [10]

Open advocation of white Christian theocracy [11]

With nary a condemnation from a certain political Party leadership [12]

Every triggered fascist wants to claim Brandon insulted “1/2 the country “.

I think they’re going to find that they are a minority within the white community.

I think they’re going to be surprised and dismayed at how many Republicans who voted for Trump are going to sit out the Election .

And how many Independents are going to vote against their candidates.

How the electorate is really really really angry about SCOTUS Dobbs decision overturning R v W. And Uvalde.

PSA - there’s a whole lot of disgusting 💩below the line. Proceed at your own risk. Not responsible for projectile vomiting nor aneurysms resulting from outrage.

=====================================

[1] Nazi Flags at Turning Point USA

[2] Shooting LGBTQ.

[3] Kamps

[4] Hunting RHINOs

[5] The Purge fantasy.

[6] Lynchings

[7] Fascist symbology at the Capitol Jan 6. https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/interactive/2021/far-right-symbols-capitol-riot/

[8] The SA in the USA.

[9] Threatening Civil Obsurrection

[10] Threats against women.

[11] Pushing for a theocracy

[12] Radio silence on condemning violent extremism

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jackabernard · 2 months

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"Conservatives further politicizing our legal system"; Fayette County News;3-6-24

Conservatives further politicizing our legal system Our Supreme Court has gone too far to the right. It’s losing the confidence of most Americans, as shown in repeated surveys of voters (https://news.gallup.com/poll/394103/confidence-supreme-court-sinks-historic-low.aspx ). Donald Trump’s carefully calculated reliance on his SCOTUS appointments to solidify his support from Evangelicals has…

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stephanieo85 · 5 months

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Washington's Conversion Therapy Ban Remains in Effect as SCOTUS Declines to Hear the Case | Them

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chubbycaucasianchristiancloseted · 10 months

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A year later do we know who or how the Supreme Court decision was leaked?

A year later do we know who or how the Supreme Court decision was leaked? It’s interesting that these leaks only EVER go one way. There will never be any accountability because the rules don’t apply to radical progressives.

How deceiving to say the SCOTUS “eliminated” the right. They only found that it was unconstitutional for that decision to be made on a Federal level and sent the decision back to the states. That way states that value life can limit abortions and New York and California can have a 6 month return policy for their children.

The saving of innocent unborn children’s lives is something to be celebrated. When wackos from “fix the court” start calling for the investigation to be stopped, you know it’s a Democrat inside job. Why do we want term limits for our Justices’ now? Do you not faith in our institutions?

Direct Quotes:

Roberts announced the investigation on May 3, the day after Politico published its explosive leak detailing the draft of Justice Samuel Alito’s opinion. Court Marshal Gail Curley was tapped to lead the investigation.

If any justice was swayed, it didn’t manifest itself in a visible way. The draft was largely incorporated in Alito’s final opinion, which added in responses to points made by the dissenting justices, and on June 24, a conservative majority of the court overturned Roe and eliminated a nearly 50-year-old right to abortion.

Abortions have largely stopped in at least nine states, and the decision is expected to lead roughly half the states to ban or severely restrict abortions.

Roberts should close the investigation, said Gabe Roth, leader of the court transparency group Fix the Court.

“There’s just so many other things the marshal’s office needs to worry about right now that’s far more important than the leak. The justices’ safety is under threat probably more now than in years past,” Roth said.

The security concerns reached alarming levels in early June, when police arrested an armed man near Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s house after he called 911 and said he was going to the kill Kavanaugh.

In 1973, Chief Justice Warren Burger was infuriated by the leak of the outcome of the Roe case a few hours ahead of its announcement. Burger threatened to subject employees to lie detector tests, but the leaker quickly came forward and explained it had been an accident.

If the leak of the Alito draft was deliberate, it might have been from someone who was so upset by the prospect of overturning Roe that informing the public at the earliest possible moment was of paramount importance.

#USA #TheChubbyCaucasianChristianClosetedConservative #SCOTUS #RoeVWade #AP

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themotherlove · 10 months

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Dr. Mother Love presents The Rapmedian Cool TLC as he shares people in his head, Indie Artists, Wit & Wisdom

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xtruss · 1 year

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After Tuesday, What Can Democ(Rats) Do Now?

Democratic voters don’t send Democratic politicians to Washington to give the Republicans what they want. They want that stuff shot down.

— By Ted Rall | November 9, 2022

O u can’t blame the Democrats for spinning the fact that their losses fell short of worst-case scenarios. But elections are arithmetic, not calculus. A loss is a loss. Democrats lost the midterms.

Why They Lost

1– History: In a two-party system, voters express anger and annoyance by lashing out at the party in power. They elect a president, get pissed at crimes of commission and omission, and punish the incumbents by voting for the other party two to four years later. This tendency worked against them.

2– Weak Leadership: We live during an era of unprecedented connectivity. You can place a phone call to Mongolia for free. You can see a picture of what someone in Botswana had for dinner a minute ago. Voters want to hear from their president more than ever before—yet Biden, no doubt due to his advanced age and fading mental acuity, followed the longstanding trend of chief executives who give fewer primetime presidential addresses and press conferences than their predecessors. No wonder the number of voters who think Biden cares about people like them keeps plummeting. They feel disconnected from him.

3– Denying Voters’ Reality: Who are you going to believe, us or your lying eyes? Voters’ top issue this year was the economy, specially inflation. Biden dismissed rising prices as a temporary blip while—political malpractice alert!—failing to emphasize a far more important economic indicator, low unemployment. Citizens worried about rising violent crime; Governor Kathy Hochul (D-NY) dismissed their concerns as “people’s feelings” while accusing Republicans of being “dishonest” about the issue, and almost lost a race that should have been a cakewalk. Even if you don’t have a solution for their problems, voters want to be “seen.” Donald Trump didn’t do anything about deindustrialization but Rust Belters loved him for being the first president to call out NAFTA.

4– It’s the Future, Stupid. It’s nearly impossible to win a political campaign in the U.S. based on past grievances, yet that’s what the Democrats did in 2022, running against Trump, tying GOP candidates to the former president in ads and reminding voters about the January 6, 2021 Capitol Hill riot. Yet investigations into Trump ranked 16th in the list of issues voters cared about. Voters want to hear politicians acknowledge their present problems—inflation, healthcare, gas prices, crime, gun violence, abortion rights—and offer a credible plan to fix them in the (near) future. Democrats’ Inflation Reduction Act didn’t pass the smell test, Biden’s release of petroleum reserves addressed a dollars problem with cents of relief and had no credible solution to the Dodd SCOTUS decision with which to motivate angry women voters. P.S. If you don’t have a solution to a problem, say so. Voters don’t want magicians. They want elected officials to try.

5– They Sounded Self-Serving: It took the hammer attack/home invasion against Paul Pelosi, a personal friend of the president, to bring him to the mic for a primetime address about crime—crime against politicians. Likewise, the Democrats’ pitch that voting GOP would lead to the end of democracy-as-we-know-it fell flat. Democrats should have been fighting for we, the people. They came off instead as fighting against Republican voter suppression—in other words, they fought our right to vote for Democrats. The democracy argument might have landed in a multiparty parliamentary democracy—but vicious Democratic lawsuits to keep the Green Party off the ballot ensure we don’t get that.

What Democrats Can Do Now

Act how House Republicans do when they’re out of power. It works.

1– Obstruct! Newspaper pundits’ conventional wisdom says that voters dislike obstructionism, love compromise and want both parties to work together to get things done in Washington. History says the opposite. Recently, you need only look at the GOP’s relentless ankle-biting of Obama to see that a minority party that relentlessly blocks the majority’s agenda can be effective—ask Supreme Court Justice Merrick Garland—and drive its acolytes into such a spasm of loyal enthusiasm that it later recaptures the majority. “This strategy of kicking the hell out of Obama all the time, treating him not just as a president from the opposing party but an extreme threat to the American way of life, has been a remarkable political success. It helped Republicans take back the House in 2010, the Senate in 2014, and the White House in 2016,” Politico noted in 2016.

2– Veto! Democratic voters don’t send Democratic politicians to Washington to give the Republicans what they want. They want that stuff shot down, with extreme prejudice. Biden should pull a Gerry Ford and veto every crazy bill the Republican Congress sends to his desk.

3– Executive Orders! Executive orders have become abused and are overused and antidemocratic and—get real. End-runs around the legislative branch are here to stay, so Biden should go nuts doing stuff that will shore up his party’s progressive base and drive the Republicans to distraction. Pardon Edward Snowden and other political targets. Pardon every nonviolent drug offender and commute the prison sentence of every nonviolent criminal in federal custody. Tell states and cities that refuse to do the same that they’ll lose federal highway funding; that’s how we got the national drinking age of 21.

4– Quorum Theater! The House of Representatives needs a quorum of 218 members present in order to conduct business. Democratic representatives should stick around for most matters. When Speaker Kevin McCarthy and his merry band of bigots try to pull something truly cruddy (ahem national abortion ban cough) there’s no reason for the Dems not to leave town on a secret road trip. Call your buddies in the Texas state legislature; they did it to bring attention to a GOP effort to suppress voting.

5– Open Field! 75% of Democratic voters don’t want Biden to run again. Anyway, obviously, he can’t. He’s too feeble. So, politically, is Kamala Harris. Only 28% of Democrats want her to step in as their party’s nominee in 2024. That’s pathetic. The lame-duck #1 and #2 must step aside, open the field and refrain from issuing endorsements. The strongest nominee is, by definition, the winner of the primary process. Let a battle-tested candidate with the most support within the Democratic Party go on to face Trump or another Republican standardbearer. Abolish superdelegates. Dutifully sticking with a doomed sacrificial lamb, like Bob Dole in 1996, would be the height of idiocy.

— Ted Rall, the Political Cartoonist, Columnist and Graphic Novelist, is the Author of “Francis: The People’s Pope.”

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bills-bible-basics · 6 months

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And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost." Acts 12:21-23, KJV But concerning Donald J. Trump, in my view, the truth is that unless those nasty Democrats soon find a way to totally destroy him, Trump may very well make a comeback, and be the next US president AGAIN! We all know that the radical Left -- and even some members of Trump's own party -- has been working really hard at it for years now, trying every possible trick in the book to bring down Trump. It is evident that the radicals are becoming more desperate and vicious by the month, as the 2024 campaign season draws ever closer! Yet Trump still stands. Is it by Divine Will? Good question. In fact, with the rulings the SCOTUS has just made regarding Roe v. Wade and Second Amendment gun rights, I suspect that the court has indirectly pretty much handed Donald Trump the Republican 2024 presidential nomination, and quite possibly a 2024 presidential victory as well, being as it was Trump's three judicial nominations which has resulted in these two rulings. Time will tell. These two rulings have certainly fired up Trump's base, and Trump himself is capitalizing on these two developments as much as he can. Article: "Abortion: Slaughter of the Innocent: https://www.billkochman.com/Articles/abort-01.html Article: "Murdering Millions by Mail: The Abortion Controversy": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles/murdering-millions-by-mail.html Article: "The Fruit of the Womb": https://www.billkochman.com/Articles/fruitwm1.html "Abortion" KJV Bible Verse List: https://www.billkochman.com/VerseLists/verse493.html "Child Discipline and Obedience" KJV Bible Verse List: https://www.billkochman.com/VerseLists/verse122.html https://www.billkochman.com/Blog/index.php/abortion-children-pregnancy-graphic-30/?feed_id=95333&_unique_id=653087af6f461&Abortion%20%2A%20Children%20%2A%20Pregnancy%20Graphic%2030

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