[ April 17, 2024 ]
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This is an excellent summary not only of what’s wrong with the latest judicial ruling stopping President Trump from defending America, but of what’s wrong with the leftist activist judiciary in general. This is a massive problem that the Supreme Court needs to address, and address fairly. The judiciary is supposed to be above partisan politics. That is far from the case nowadays.
“5 Problems With The Hawaii Judge Halting Trump’s Travel Ban,” by Mollie Hemingway, The Federalist, March 16, 2017:
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Hours before it was to take effect, a federal judge in Hawaii put President Donald Trump’s latest Middle East travel ban on hold. The executive order, which was a loosened version of a previous version struck down by another court, suspends entry to the United States for 90 days from nationals of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. It also suspends the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program for 120 days.
“This is an unprecedented judicial overreach,” Trump said of Judge Derrick Watson’s order, during a rally in Nashville.
Whether you agree or disagree with the executive order — and there are plenty of people on both sides of that debate, for many different reasons — the judge’s ruling has some serious problems. Here are a few of them.
1. Feelings, Nothing More Than Feelings
Trump said the temporary travel restriction was needed for national security. In issuing his temporary restraining order, Watson said Trump’s order was a result of nothing more than religious animus against Muslims. The judge’s order is predicated on what he thinks Trump wants to do, not the order itself.
Throughout the ruling, Judge Watson concedes there’s nothing about the executive order that would be problematic if not for his interpretation of Trump’s statements made in the months and years prior to issuing it. He repeatedly states his feeling that Trump had a bad motive in issuing the order.
Judges using campaign rhetoric to infer intent instead of plainly evaluating the law as written is a dangerous development. Also because the public can witness the selective use of this trick, it undermines confidence in the judiciary at a time when the judiciary can’t afford too much erosion of trust.
Imagine, for instance, if judges ruled that the Obama-era Health and Human Services mandate forcing nuns to pay for birth control and abortifacients against their religious will was motivated by President Barack Obama’s religious animus, since he had made derogatory comments during his campaign about people bitterly clinging to God. Judges have ruled against powerful mandates such as that one for much better reasons than a parsing of Obama’s campaign rhetoric or political speeches.Or remember when the Supreme Court saved Obamacare by ruling it constitutional because the individual mandate — the penalty people had to pay for not buying health insurance — could be considered a tax? They ruled that way despite the fact that President Obama repeatedly maintained that the mandate was not a tax. Or as one attorney on Twitter joked:
Throughout his ruling, Watson shifts from discussing Trump’s campaign rhetoric to the executive order itself. In this sense, Watson’s decision looks to be largely a rewrite of a February decision issued by Judge Leonie Brinkema in Aziz v. Trump.
The restraining order is a commentary on Trump rather than the executive order he promulgated. Law professor Josh Blackman wrote of the earlier Brinkema ruling that the judge had “applied a ‘forever taint’ not to the executive order, but to Donald Trump himself.” In defending the earlier executive order that limited travel from seven countries, the government pointed out the naming of those countries as requiring “special scrutiny” by the Obama administration.
Brinkema wrote, “Absent the direct evidence of animus presented by the Commonwealth, singling out these countries for additional scrutiny might not raise Establishment Clause concerns; however, with that direct evidence, a different picture emerges.” In other words, if Obama selected those countries for extreme vetting, she would find it lawful but because Trump had, it was unlawful.
As Blackman notes, “No matter that Trump excluded forty-three other Muslim-majority nations that account for 90 percent of the global Muslim population. Even though three of the included nations are state-sponsors of terrorism! It will always a ‘Muslim ban’ because of comments he made on the O’Reilly Factor in 2011, a policy he adopted in 2015, and abandoned after his lawyers told him it was illegal. She admits as much. ‘A person,’ she writes, ‘is not made brand new simply by taking the oath of office.’ Not the policy. The person. Trump.”
Watson essentially makes the same point in his restraining order. Even though his own ruling notes the evolution in Trump’s rhetoric from a “Muslim” ban to a restriction on certain “territories,” in his view the original motivation of the man remains and forever taints the immigration policy of the executive branch for all time, no matter the words of the policy itself.
2. Selective Quotations
Watson’s temporary restraining order focuses exclusively on campaign rhetoric from Trump and his advisors. He dismisses the government’s desire to “focus on the Executive Order’s text, rather than its context” by waving it away and discussing Trump’s press releases and cable news talking points. But those statements are selectively quoted.
For instance, Watson quotes Rudolph Giuliani as saying, “When [Mr. Trump] first announced it, he said, ‘Muslim ban.’ He called me up. He said, ‘Put a commission together. Show me the right way to do it legally.’”
Well, yes. Giuliani further explains how he put together a commission featuring judge and former attorney general Michael Mukasey, Chairman of the Homeland Security Committee Michael McCaul, and other expert lawyers. He says they focused on “instead of religion, danger. The areas of the world that create danger for us, which is a factual basis, not a religious basis. Perfectly legal, perfectly sensible.” He reiterated that the ban was “not based on religion. It’s based on places where there are substantial evidence that people are sending terrorists into our country.”
If you’re going to quote the man, quote the man. Yet if he’d done that, he would not have been able to write that “These plainly-worded statements… betray the Executive Order’s stated secular purpose.”
3. Unforced Errors
Watson favorably cites the plaintiffs’ condemnation of Trump for saying the following about his earlier executive order that gave priority to persecuted religious minorities such as Christians and Yazidis:
In a January 27, 2017 interview with Christian Broadcasting Network, President Trump said that persecuted Christians would be given priority under the first Executive Order. He said (once again, falsely): ‘Do you know if you were a Christian in Syria it was impossible, at least very tough to get into the United States? If you were a Muslim you could come in, but if you were a Christian, it was almost impossible and the reason that was so unfair, everybody was persecuted in all fairness, but they were chopping off the heads of everybody but more so the Christians. And I thought it was very, very unfair. So we are going to help them.’
Once again, falsely? Once again, falsely? It’s mildly disconcerting the judge would know so little about persecuted religious minorities in the region relevant to the travel ban. Here’s a report from September of last year:
The Obama administration hit its goal this week of admitting 10,000 Syrian refugees — yet only a fraction of a percent are Christians, stoking criticism that officials are not doing enough to address their plight in the Middle East.
Of the 10,801 refugees accepted in fiscal 2016 from the war-torn country, 56 are Christians, or .5 percent.
A total of 10,722 were Muslims, and 17 were Yazidis.
The numbers are disproportionate to the Christian population in Syria, estimated last year by the U.S. government to make up roughly 10 percent of the population. Since the outbreak of civil war in 2011, it is estimated that between 500,000 and 1 million Christians have fled the country, while many have been targeted and slaughtered by the Islamic State.
In March, Secretary of State John Kerry said the U.S. had determined that ISIS has committed genocide against minority religious groups, including Christians and Yazidis.
Once again, falsely? What’s false about what Trump said in that interview from which we’re supposed to deduce so much intent and motivation?
For more, read Nina Shea’s Wall Street Journal piece “The U.S. and U.N. Have Abandoned Christian Refugees.”…
5. Judicial Overreach…What’s more, the idea that these courts are putting forth that restricting entry to a country with a majority religion suggests bias against that entire religion would make any and all immigration policy unconstitutional. Very few countries don’t have a majority religion, after all….
Read the rest here.
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47 Comments
7 years ago
Trump could accomplish many of his security goals by simply defunding immigrant resettlement groups, as well as any other group, organization, NGO, etc, which encourages, supports, advocates for, or caters to immigrants, refugees, or migrants. No money equals no further services.
Also, Trump needs to ensure that these resettlement advocates, groups, and organizations are legally/civilly liable for the crimes and destruction inflicted by these foreign perps.
7 years ago
IMPEACH the Son of a B.
Yes, obama, too!
Take down the deep state and the obama jihad soviet — NOW!
7 years ago
All activists justices are evil and dangerous to the Constitution and American citizens. Must move ahead quickly on Gorsuch nomination/appointment, And hope for the best …
7 years ago
Former Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca was a good sheriff for a very tough county who gave Deputies and jail staff authority to manage the gangbanger, illegal immigrant, drug cartel, wild animal population in the only manner they could understand — violently!
Now thanks to a weak and dependent LA jury and an affirmative action judge appointed by the historic failure and fraud George Bush, Jr., Baca has been convicted on retrial of some bullshit about conspiring to lie to the feds about jail policy.
By the treasonous one-two punch of Bush Jr. and obama, now the inmates of the most savage jail in the nation are in charge.
7 years ago
Reply to
Chris Wolf
I used to know a former L.A. Deputy sheriff who said Baca was weak and corrupt. I believe Baca was indicted on corruption charges as well.
7 years ago
Reply to
IzlamIsTyranny
If you’re going to run the LA County Jail by not letting Deputies WIN fights with the inmates you’re going to surrender authority over the jail to the criminals.
7 years ago
Reply to
Chris Wolf
Um, he was covering up the corruption of other LA County Sheriffs deputies, how is that noble or good again?
“More than a dozen deputies have been convicted, some as recently as last
week, of federal corruption charges stemming from the federal
investigation, including bribery, civil rights violations and attempts
to cover up beatings.”
Who was bribing these deputies? Gangbangers? Eme?
7 years ago
Reply to
IzlamIsTyranny
The feds call it corruption, conspiracy what have you. It’s the Ferguson Effect. The obama/jihad DOJ tried to disarm all local law enforcement by calling legitimate use of force “abuse,” just like the obama/jihad DOD tried to disarm our military in combat, and sleepers like this Hawaii judge want to block our new American president from defending us from immigration jihad.
7 years ago
Plaintiff behind Trump travel ban runs Muslim Brotherhood mosque
Read
more at
http://www.wnd.com/2017/03/plaintiff-behind-trump-exec-order-ban-runs-muslim-brotherhood-mosque/#0736O6ZgJFkcOGC1.99
7 years ago
another liberal comrade of barry’s doing the bidding of george soros…time to start arresting comrades for treason and sedition…start with soros and then clean house.
7 years ago
Hawaii: Muslim Brotherhood-backed imam dictating US refugee policy
… instead of banning the Brotherhood, the U.S. is letting a Brotherhood-backed imam dictate U.S. refugee and visa policy.
The main plaintiff in the Hawaii case blocking President Trump’s revised temporary travel ban is an imam with ties to the Muslim Brotherhood.
The irony is hard to miss: Trump has talked about declaring the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organization, and now it is a Brotherhood-backed imam who is playing a key role in blocking his executive order on immigration.
7 years ago
Another comrade from Mosque-ow, working against truth and liberty.
7 years ago
If judges can legislate (in essence) why do we waste our time electing senators, representatives, governors and presidents? How can one judge sitting on the beach in Hawaii dictate to the country? Where are conservative judges and why haven’t they stepped up? Crazy. When will he Supreme Court take this case? We are loosing valuable time. Really crazy!
7 years ago
“nothing more than religious animus against Muslims”
It is the invented “You are a bigot, and I am not” law.
It is just like the Oklahoma Question 755 case where the public had voted to prohibit Islamic/Sharia law from taking precedence over all other law. Revive that law, first by putting it on the books, acknowledging the vote results.
7 years ago
Hawaii does not accept muslims colonists, why does it have a say in the business of other states? The best way to ensure muslim colonists are excluded from America, is to stop funding lame stream religions that make a profit in the contemporary slave trade called refugees.
7 years ago
Reply to
Mahou Shoujo
You might want to rethink your comment a bit. I mean in regard to describing the influx of refugees as slave trade. I think that description is pretty far off the mark. They aren’t slaves, they are invaders. In fact, if their numbers grow, as they have in Germany and Sweden, they come to see the native population as slaves.
7 years ago
Reply to
Richard
For the sake of the argument, 50% of the population are theoretically women, who in islam are less that or equal to slaves. So, as islam also sees un believers as you say, slaves, there is an entire social and economic group of people that are slaves. As most of them are welfare recipients, they are owned, to a degree by the government, which is favours islam over everyone else,
7 years ago
Reply to
Mahou Shoujo
I don’t agree with your argument. I do agree that women in Islam are essentially treated as property, slaves, I think we can both agree that far, far fewer than 50% of the Muslims coming in as participants in the current Hijrah are women. So the argument that they are slaves because they are women kind of falls apart.
If you are arguing that they are slaves because as welfare recipients they are owned by the government, I also disagree with that argument. The government gets no benefit, other than votes, from them. And those votes are voluntary and confidential, although they can be counted upon. In fact not only does the government hold Muslim immigrants in higher esteem than the native population, they also refuse to prosecute them for their crimes in many instances citing respect for Islamic cultural differences. With the new administration and a new DOJ I hope to see that all change.
I agree with most of what you say, but I don’t see the influx of ‘refugees’ as slave trade.
7 years ago
Reply to
Richard
Is the slave half dead or is the slave had alive? The issue of what is a slave, is worth discussing, reading the qur’an all muslims are, under generally penalty of death expected to submit to its demands. The there is the custom of shari’a that once installed with her by force or popular vote, it cannot be uninstalled, thereby keeping the entire population under the control of some islamic who literally owns their lives as they can be murdered at a whim for violation of shari’a.
7 years ago
Reply to
Mahou Shoujo
If I understand you this is a third argument that all Muslims are enslaved by Islam itself. OK, I agree with that assertion completely. The tenet of death for apostasy alone is really enough to demonstrate that.
I think devout Muslims are half dead because they have given up free will. Those that are Muslim in name only in order to survive and who don’t buy into the bull shlt of the ‘religion’ are somewhat better off, at least spiritually.
7 years ago
Reply to
Richard
Personally I thing there are a lot of “ethnic” muslims who come from an islamic heritage and background, but do not accept islam. Then there are the ones who do, in varying degrees accept islam, to the point of their personal destruction. Islam makes all sorts of promises that the hereafter will be a hedonists misogynic paradise of drunken glutenous debachery, The problem is the qur’an is contradictory on absolutely everything, mutgonad, police beat upon him, “Prophet Mohammed’s confession:
“I have fabricated things against God and have imputed to Him words which He has not spoken.”
— Al-Tabari, The History of Al-Tabari, vol. vi, p. 111
‘Then Gabriel came to the apostle and said , “What have you done, Muhammad? You have read to these people something I did not bring you from God and you have said what He did not say to you.”‘
— Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah, p. 166
7 years ago
Reply to
Mahou Shoujo
If you self-identify as a f’ing muslum doesn’t that mean you accept it’s vile ideology? Otherwise, why say you’re a f’ing muslum at all?
7 years ago
Reply to
IzlamIsTyranny
Not really, like secular Jews, they are in it for the recipes and social activities, secular muslims are irreligious, participating in things that do not involve murder at the bequest of the mosque.
7 years ago
Reply to
Mahou Shoujo
How do you identify a “secular” muslum? Do you take them at their word? I wonder how many of your “secular” muslums have suffered from SJS in the 21st century? I wonder how many of your “secular” muslums fund the worldwide jihad through islamic charities? I’ll bet if you gave all those muslums from N. Africa, Pakistain, Bangladesh a free ride to Canadastan as long as they state they’re “secular” you would find yourself inundated w/muslums.
7 years ago
Reply to
IzlamIsTyranny
If every muslim followed the qur’an as closely as they are supposed to, the world would be at war in a much more active and violent way than it currently is. There is a significant percentage of muslims that realize that to maintain an acceptable life style, it involves not following the qur’an. But they still like the non violent cultural aspects of their ancestors. It will be necessary to keep this bunch under control, just like socialists and democrats have to be controlled, they re not all violent, but do tend to be a bit stupid.
7 years ago
Reply to
Mahou Shoujo
The instant they trash the book of lies and become human they are just that. There are former Christians who trash all vestiges of Christianity, becoming worse than practicing muslims.
7 years ago
The stench from Watson’s bench, is so powerful, it’s hitting the mainland. He should be IMMEDIATELY removed and put under investigation by the justice dept. What he has done, is tantamount to treason.
7 years ago
This is very interesting … we need to read it from start to finish … and send it on to everyone.
Maybe this is why our Muslims are so quiet and not speaking out about any atrocities.
Can a good Muslim be a good American or a good Canadian? This question was forwarded to a friend who worked in Saudi Arabia for 20 years. The following is his reply:
Theologically – no. Because their allegiance is to Allah, the moon god of Arabia.
Religiously, no; Because no other religion is accepted by their Allah except Islam. (Quran 2:256)
Scripturally – no. Because his allegiance is to the five Pillars of Islam and the Quran.
Geographically – no. Because his allegiance is to Mecca, to which he turns in prayer five times a day.
Socially – no. Because his allegiance to Islam forbids him to make friends with Christians or Jews.
Politically – no. Because he must submit to the mullahs (spiritual leaders), who teach annihilation of Israel and destruction of America, the great Satan.
Domestically- no. Because he is instructed to marry four women and beat and scourge his wife when she disobeys him. (Quran 4:34)
Intellectually – no. Because he cannot accept the American Constitution since it is based on Biblical principles and he believes the Bible to be corrupt.
Philosophically – no. Because Islam, Muhammad, and the Quran do not allow freedom of religion and expression. Democracy and Islam cannot co-exist. Every Muslim government is either dictatorial or autocratic.
Spiritually – no. Because when we declare ‘one nation under God,’ The Christian’s God is loving and kind, while Allah is NEVER referred to as Heavenly father, nor is he ever called love in the Quran’s 99 excellent names.
Therefore, after much study and deliberation … perhaps we should be very suspicious of ALL MUSLIMS in this country. They obviously cannot be both ‘good’ Muslims and ‘good’ Americans. Call it what you wish it’s still the truth. You had better believe it. The more who understand this, the better it will be for our country and our future.
The religious war is bigger than we know or understand! (J.D.D.).
*Footnote:*
The Muslims have said they will destroy us from within, ……SO FREEDOM IS NOT FREE.
7 years ago
This judge’s ruling is not going to fly in a higher court. He totally twisted the law. President Trump has every right as our commander and chief to put a travel ban on any country he feels threatens our security. So screw all the federal judges that Obama appointed. Trump will prevail in the end!??
7 years ago
Great way to put an end to this once and for all. President Trump should suspend all travel into the United States from any foreign country period.
No if’s and’s or buts about it, no entry from any country for the next 90 days. Then they can’t accuse him of any kind of a bias, racial, religious, or other. Just cut it all off from Muslim Countries and non-Muslim countries alike. Hawaii is more concerned for their tourist trade than they are about the safety of the American People of all the country.
7 years ago
Make the Hawaiian Islands a Safe Haven for Middle Eastern refugees and immigrants.
The Beautiful Islands of Hawaii would make an outstanding safe place to relocate and house refugees, migrants and immigrants from Middle Eastern countries experiencing war and terrorism.
The People of Hawaii are loving, hospitable and welcoming. They are willing to share their paradise with the less fortunate.
Since vetting refugees is time consuming and ineffective it will no longer be required before entry into the Hawaiian Islands. We welcome all.
Hawaii reaffirms our solidarity with immigrants and refugees who come to this island paradise to make a better life for themselves, their families, and their neighbors.
Hawaii is just one big safe space for all races, nationalities, creeds and so called religious ideologies. Hawaii is also open to other laws, such as Sharia Law, superseding, not only the laws of Hawaii, but those of the United States Constitution.
Aloha Akbar! PLEASE SIGN AND SHARE THE PETITION!
7 years ago
Reply to
Satan is Allah
Once you have put them all in Hawaii what’s to stop them moving to other parts of the US?
You’d have to prevent them from flying to the mainland directly or indirectly and likewise with any ship or boat at any time in the future.
7 years ago
By basing his ruling on an opinion of what was meant by speech made in the context of a political campaign and not th contnt of the order that he is ruling against this judge is engaging in an egregious example of judicial Bad Behaviour..
Since the standard for judicial service is that the judge shall serve “during a term of good behviour” this judge has clearly breached this standard and must be removed from the bench.
POTUS Trump has information available to him that has an influence on what Executive Orders are issued and what those orders will state. Much of the criticaal information comes from high level intelligence, information of such high level that the judge would not even qualify for the security clearance necessary to be privy to this key information.
The judge has acted upon specultion in place of knowledge and by doing so has violated every standard of judicial ethics and the oath of office sworn when he assumed his current judicial office. Such action falls well below the minimum of what can legitimately be considered as good conduct in the context of a judge in the performance of his office.
7 years ago
Many people just do not understand that the left and Demoncraps are MORONS! When you come to this understanding you won’t have this problem.
You must take that suit and tie image off your mind, even if a monkey wears it.
7 years ago
Another area in which the judge errs is that campaign rhetoric cannot be conflated with official government policy. The judge had also labeled the Executive Order as “unconstitutional”. How does a foreigner who has never even so much as set foot in this country come under the purview of the US Constitution? Also on the question of constitutionality, it is Trump’s First Amendment guarantees that are being trampled. They allow a candidate to say practically anything, many a time revealing a host of red flags to turn voters away, such as Goldwater’s ill-advised implied threat to use nuclear weapons in Vietnam.
D
7 years ago
Also, a good article, by Andrew McCarthy:
7 years ago
Ignore the order, and jail the asshole.
7 years ago
First of all islam is a political system.. The shadow govt sent obola there to get his judge he appointed as Valerie Jarret spoke said, was ready to go. Any order against obama must be stopped, lawful or not… so speaks the shadow govt of obola.
The 9th cct must be dismantled
7 years ago
7 years ago
I heard that the judges are being ‘handpicked’ and instructed to make the insane judgments against any and all of the Presidents E.O.’s. In other words. Obama is wreaking havoc on the new administration and will continue to do so until stopped. Why our current Department of Justice allowing this continual interference???
7 years ago
Alright then, why can’t Trump simply ignore this judge? If this is as illegal as it is irrational, why can’t he just ignore it? Well, maybe, the third time will be the charm. Meanwhile, our borders are still being breached. Something needs to be done about those who are acting from emotions and from a political agenda, or who are working for Soros and company.
7 years ago
Just enforce the ban anyway. That’s how I’d handle it.
7 years ago
I do not believe any judge can overturn national security policies put in place to prevent the enemies of America from entering. This is dangerous and I would think Pres Trump could have this “judge” and others involved charged with crimes against this nation while at the time implementing his policies.
