[Epoch Times] As the administrative state implements more regulations on Americans, a team of legal veterans has come together to fight the expansion of un-elected government agency power. Sometimes, they even win.
The New Civil Liberties Alliance (NCLA), which consists of a team of 27 lawyers and support staff, including former judges, had four of the cases they litigated go before the Supreme Court in 2023. One case was decided in their favor, the remaining three are pending.
Founded by Columbia Law professor Philip Hamburger six years ago, the NCLA targets cases where they believe federal agencies have blatantly overstepped their authority or violated civil liberties. NCLA Website
"Normally, administrative power is understood as a separation of powers question, but it’s also a civil liberties problem because it dilutes our voting rights," Mr. Hamburger told The Epoch Times. "We all get to vote, but the ability to make legislation is no longer in the hands of the people we elect."
The U.S. Constitution vests Congress with law-making authority. However, government agencies are not only making laws today, he said, they also enforce those laws, then act as judge and jury over alleged violations. Taking a historical view on this issue, Mr. Hamburger argues that such administrative "absolutism" is not a new phenomenon, but merely a modern expression of absolute power once wielded by medieval kings.
"It deprives us of the right to a jury; it deprives us of ordinary burdens of proof; it deprives us of having an unbiased judge," he said. "We have ALJs [Administrative Law Judge] and commissioners instead."
In one case, SEC v. Cochran, appellate courts took the side of the SEC. This case challenged the lifetime tenure of ALJs, who act as judges for federal agencies.
"We battled that for five years, and we had six circuit courts of appeals against us," she said. "We got to the Supreme Court and we won unanimously."
Mr. Hamburger said the NCLA has several advantages when arguing their cases. "We have the truth on our side, and I think the justices understand that," he said. "Second, we take the Constitution seriously, while many agencies view it as a minor impediment to what they want to do in regulation."
The questions that Mr. Hamburger raises in his book are at the heart of the current political divisions within the United States. Progressives often advocate the implementation of policies designed by unelected "experts," while conservatives expect edicts to go through elected representatives.
The movement to vest power in the administrative state in America goes back more than a century and has enjoyed cumulative success via a ratchet effect, whereby authority is progressively ceded to the administrative state, often in response to real or perceived crises, but rarely surrendered back to citizens.
Woodrow Wilson, the first progressive president and precursor to modern progressives, expressed contempt for voters and viewed representative lawmaking as an impediment to economic and social reforms. He was highly critical of the U.S. Constitution and its separation of powers, particularly the limitations it put on government bureaucrats.
"Wherever regard for public opinion is a first principle of government, practical reform must be slow and all reform must be full of compromises," he stated in his 1887 treatise "The Study of Administration."
"The people, who are sovereign, have no single ear which one can approach, and are selfish, ignorant, timid, stubborn, or foolish."
"The English race has long and successfully studied the art of curbing executive power to the constant neglect of the art of perfecting executive methods," President Wilson stated. "It has been more concerned to render government just and moderate than to make it facile, well-ordered, and effective."
One result of concentrating such all-encompassing power in the executive branch is that presidential elections have become pivotal in determining the direction for the country, even in areas such as residential zoning and education, that are traditionally under the purview of states, counties, and towns.
Posted by: Bobby ||
05/04/2024 00:00 ||
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#1
"The English race has long and successfully studied the art of curbing executive power to the constant neglect of the art of perfecting executive methods,"
[NEWARAB] The Gambia
... The Gambia is actually surrounded by The Senegal on all sides but its west coast. It has a population of about 1.7 million. The difference between the two is that in colonial days Senegal was ruled by La Belle France and The Gambia (so-called because there's only one of it, unlike Guinea, of which there are the Republic of Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, New Guinea, the English coin in circulation between 1663 and 1813, and Guyana, which sounds like it should be another one) was ruled by Britain... is under scrutiny as its politicians have advanced a bill to repeal the ban on Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) in the West African country.
The Gambia’s politicians have justified their decision to repeal the procedure for reasons including religious purity and safeguarding cultural norms.
The bill has been referred to a parliamentary committee and is expected to return to parliament in June for a debate and final vote.
"FGM is not mandated by any religion," Divya Srinivasan, Global Lead for End Harmful Practices at the NGO Equality Now told The New Arab.
If the bill is passed, it could have catastrophic impacts.
"The Gambia’s legacy as a pioneer in West Africa in the fight against FGM will be jeopardised if this bill is passed," Divya explained.
The repeal of the ban "would undermine its credibility and unravel years of progress in promoting gender equality and human rights One man's rights are another man's existential threat. ," she added.
The impacts could be felt elsewhere. "Other countries could be motivated to repeal their anti-FGM laws or deter them from putting laws in place," said Divya.
UNICEF released data in March 2024, stating 230 million girls and women around the world have experienced a form of FGM/C.
Africa accounts for the majority of incidences, exceeding 144 million; Asia has over 80 million, and the Middle East has a further six million.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/04/2024 00:00 ||
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[BLAZE] Wealthy business magnate Elon Musk is sounding the alarm about America's massive national debt, warning that unless action is taken to tackle the problem, the U.S. dollar will become worthless.
"We need to do something about our national debt or the dollar will be worth nothing," Musk tweeted.
The country's national debt is more than $34 trillion, according to fiscaldata.treasury.gov.
Responding to Musk, Ed Krassenstein wrote, "The problem is that no administration wants to take on the National Debt issue because the longterm fix is likely a short term detriment to the economy."
#1
"The problem is that no administration wants to take on the National Debt issue because the long term fix is likely a short term detriment to the grift economy."
FIFY. How about quit spending. Look what the government funded in 1970. Cut everything not there, out.
Already had 2 wheelbarrows to haul the worthless paper dollars round in.
But then I realized that's maybe why the Fed is pushing the idea of an Electronic US currency.
🤫 A POSSIBLE PLUS SIDE OF HYPERINFLATION 🤫.
In a hyperinflation economy, a working person's wages will increase to the point where a fixed rate home loan can be paid off in a month using the worthless currency.
[ZERO] Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is warning that only electing conservative candidates to the European Parliament and replacing the EU’s current leadership will lead to peace in Ukraine. Possibly one of the last remaining sane voice in Europe.
"The whole European community is on a razor’s edge. We are standing on the dividing line between war and peace," Prime Minister Viktor Orbán wrote on social media.
"The most important thing to do in politics today, even if Brussels seems far away, is to create peace. Peace can be created beyond the warring parties, those who finance the war. And this war is financed by the West, by Brussels’ budget money and by American money.
"But our vote will determine whether there is a pro-war or a pro-peace majority in the European Parliament, in the European Commission, in the European Council. Now we have a pro-war majority. We must change that, and we must change it on June 9! Only peace! Only Fidesz!"
Some of the most pro-war parties in Europe now belong to the left. For instance, the Green party in Germany, which was founded on pro-peace priorities and opposition to NATO, is now arguably the most pro-war party in Germany. The Greens have pushed for more weapons shipments for Ukraine, aligned themselves with war hawks in the United States, and have a membership overwhelmingly in favor of war.
In fact, the Green party’s supporters are the most in favor of additional weapons shipments to Ukraine of all German parties, but also the most likely to say they would not defend Germany if the country were invaded.
Meanwhile, independent polling agency Medián’s latest research showed that Orbán’s party, the conservative Fidesz, which has been in power since 2010, remains the most popular party in Hungary, with 46 percent of decided voters supporting it.
The newcomer centrist Tisza party, led by Fidesz renegade Péter Magyar, estranged husband of former Justice Minister Judit Varga, is second with 24 percent. The party’s sudden surge has completely rearranged the political landscape in Hungary, with the opposition’s previously largest force, the Socialist Democratic Coalition, now polling at 9 percent, followed by the satire party Two-Tailed Dog at 6 percent and Momentum at 5 percent.
[WIRE] In the late 90’s, a veteran and father of three named Norman Browning took a job as a volunteer coach at Woodlawn High School in East Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Browning had been educated by Baton Rouge’s public schools and he wanted to give back to the community. But very quickly, he realized that Woodlawn was very different from the school it used to be.
For one thing, there wasn’t much discipline. Teachers didn’t have close relationships with parents, and didn’t seem particularly interested in doing their jobs. Test scores were abysmal.
Additionally, demographics had shifted dramatically. Students were poorer than they used to be. And there wasn’t much of the fabled "diversity" that we’re told is so important. More than half of the student body was black. Meanwhile, Baton Rouge and its schools were becoming increasingly violent. (Currently it’s one of the ten most dangerous cities in the country).
Here’s just one recent example of a common sight in Baton Rouge schools:
[ZERO] Scientists with close ties to China and the U.S. government is now saying that risky experiments he proposed—which some experts believe could have led to the creation of SARS-CoV-2—may have been done, deviating from earlier statements.
Another scientist involved in the proposal also says he doesn’t know if the work was done.
"To the very best of my knowledge ... the work hasn’t been done," Peter Daszak, president of the EcoHealth Alliance, told a congressional panel this week.
Mr. Daszak, however, admitted that he doesn’t know whether scientists at the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) in China have done the proposed experiments.
"Do you know if the WIV started this work?" he was asked during a U.S. House of Representatives Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic hearing in Washington.
"No," Mr. Daszak replied.
"Then you can’t say that the work was not done," Mitch Benzine, the staff director for the panel, said.
"There is no evidence of the work being done. There is no evidence that WIV started it," Mr. Daszak said.
Has he ever asked Shi Zhengli, a top scientist at the WIV, whether she carried out the proposal?
"No," Mr. Daszak acknowledged.
The proposal in question, dubbed Project DEFUSE, was submitted in 2018 to the U.S. government as EcoHealth and its partners, including WIV, sought to take viruses from bats, reverse engineer them, and add features. Some outside scientists say the proposed work could have led to the creation of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) declined to fund the proposal, expressing concerns that adding features to coronaviruses could create a dangerous virus.
After the proposal was leaked to the public in 2021, Mr. Daszak and EcoHealth have said definitively that the proposed experiments never took place.
"The DARPA proposal was not funded. Therefore, the work was not done. Simple," Mr. Daszak told The Intercept in 2022.
#3
I still want to know whether the spike genetic sequence that Shi, as one of the authors, provided to Ralph Baric's group for the Univ. N Carolina work[0] aligns with the sequence in SAR2-CoV. The Contributions section states: "Z.-L.S.[Shi Zheng-Li] provided SHC014 spike sequences and plasmids."
#4
The House Republicans have done little with regard to attacking the corruption, government overreach, COVID and J6. They mostly facilitate Schumer and Biden initiatives. Romney or Might might as well be speaker. McCarthy was no better.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
05/04/2024 20:04 Comments ||
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[AP] On May 4, 1970, Ohio National Guardsmen opened fire during an anti-war protest at Kent State University, killing four students and wounding nine others.
#1
When lawlessness and protest overwhelm local law enforcement and the military must be brought in, bad things can happen. A teaching moment is likely to be found here somewhere.
#3
/\ Yes, some perspective for those times may be in order:
"The 1968 Democratic National Convention protests were a series of protests against the United States' involvement in the Vietnam War that took place prior to and during the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Illinois. The protests lasted approximately seven days, from August 23 to August 29, 1968."
[PJ] Former President Donald Trump was back in New York City Thursday for his criminal trial, and it's been a pretty good day for him. During Thursday's proceedings, Keith Davidson, the lawyer representing adult film actress Stormy Daniels, gave revealing testimony that completely undermines Bragg's charges against Trump.
For starters, Davidson argued that the $130,000 payment to Daniels should not be construed as "hush money" but rather as a legitimate "consideration" payment.
Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Johsua Steinglass pressed Davidson on the witness stand about Daniels’ statement in January 2018, which Davidson prepared for his client, that denied any relationship with Trump and said that her only interaction with Trump was "a few public appearances and nothing more."
"Rumors that I have received hush money from Donald Trump are completely false," the statement says."I don’t believe that Stormy ever alleged that any interaction with Trump was ’romantic,’" Davidson testified Thursday. But it is his understanding that Daniels had a sexual encounter with Trump.
He also said the payment "wasn’t a payoff.""It wasn’t a payoff. And it wasn’t hush money. It was consideration," Davidson said. Davidson added that he would never use "hush money" to describe the money exchange.
He would only refer to it as "consideration." "Consideration" is a contractual legal term for what someone gives in return for the promise to abide by a contract; in this case, money. The payment was labeled "legal fees" in Trump's accounting, which prosecutors allege amounted to fraud.
Steinglass asked about the truthfulness of the Daniels’ statement. Davidson replied, "I think it’s technically true."
If that wasn't bad enough, Davidson also testified that Trump's former lawyer, Michael Cohen, was "despondent" when he didn't get a White House job after Trump won the presidency in 2016.
#1
Michael Cohen, Donald Trump's former lawyer, leaves his Manhattan apartment to report to prison, May 6, 2019. Michael Cohen, the former personal lawyer for ex-President Donald Trump, has settled his lawsuit against the Trump Organization seeking $1.3 million in legal fees, NBC News reported Friday.Jul 21, 2023
https://www.cnbc.com › 2023/07/21
Say Trump did do Stephanie Clifford, once, back in July 2006, 18 years ago. Then in 2018, 12+/- years later, someone in his business group decided to draw up a NDA and pay her $130k to sign the NDA for business image issues/reasons.
Many USA Companies, International F-1000's, regularly use NDA's.
YES! Even the US Gov. has involved persons sign a SF312 and other NDA's all the time.
The US Gov. even offers $$,$$$.00 fines, property confiscation and 20 years in a cozy cell for violating their NDA's.
E.G. Over the course of any Business, employee and/or Consultant's career, they will likely sign to and be bound by dozens of individual, or employer NDA's for years afterward.
While Trumps timing was crappy.
What about Biden's well known and seen videos and photos of him "accidentally ☺" groping little girls. Or how about Biden's own adult daughter, now stating Biden had her taking showers with him as a child and teen?
When will we see ANY DOJ, or state related sexual assault charges, for Biden?
#5
While consideration for an NDA certainly isn't illegal, isn't the issue here whether the funds came from Trump's campaign, rather than his personal funds?
[GEO.TV] At least 20 people bit the dust while 21 sustained injuries after a passenger bus veered off a narrow mountain road and plummeted into a ravine in a remote area of Diamer district, Gilgit Baltistan, police told Geo News on Friday.
The mishap took place at the Yashokhal area on the Karakoram Highway in Diamer early Friday morning at around 5:30am, according to police.
The bus was on its way from Rawalpindi to Gilgit. Meanwhile,
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Fred ||
05/04/2024 00:00 ||
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[American Thinker] Most Americans know of suppressors—usually misgendered as "silencers"—from the movies. In that medium, suppressors produce no more sound than a dainty sneeze, and are used only by assassins and tier 1 special operators. It’s all very dramatic, but reality, as usual, is different.
Suppressors were invented in 1902 by MIT graduate, Hiram Percy Maxim, son of Sir Hiram Stevens Maxim of machinegun fame. Patented in 1909, his suppressors quickly became popular. One graced Teddy Roosevelt’s Winchester model 1894 lever action rifle.
However, in 1934, the National Firearms Act was passed, imposing licensing and registration requirements on automatic arms and suppressors, including a $200 dollar, non-transferrable, tax. In 1934, this amounted to a substantial portion of the average American’s annual income, which stalled suppressor development and sales for nearly half a century.
However, in recent years, interest in suppressors has boomed, certainly in reaction to Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, Democrats/socialists/communists (D/s/cs) in general, and their gun banning intentions. Circa 2021, just under three million were in private hands. More currently by 2023, there were nearly four million. That number has surely increased since, as circa 2021 applications/approvals were rising by as much as 17% per year, though the approval process can take up to a year.
#2
So I get how silencers are cool. But to own one, even legally, is bad policy for gun owners. Read the fine print in the permit. You as a gun owner waive your 4th amendment right to search and seizure. The feds can come in, without a warrant, and search your home. So beware if you do this, know what your giving up.
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
05/04/2024 10:36 Comments ||
Top||
#3
Purchase a threaded barrel adapter with a thread pattern that allows for a small FRAM Oil filter to screw on. Adapter runs about $25 and a generic filter about 7.95
[ET via ZERO] Approximately half of the health care workers in a Polish study were found to be averse to taking COVID-19 booster shots, with one of the reasons for this hesitancy being their negative experiences with previous vaccinations.
The peer-reviewed study, published in the Vaccines journal on April 29, examined factors underlying "hesitancy to receive COVID-19 booster vaccine doses" among health care workers (HCW) in Poland. Almost 50 percent of the participants were identified as being wary of the boosters. "Our study found that 42 percent of the HCWs were hesitant about the second booster dose, while 7 percent reported no intent to get vaccinated with any additional doses."
"As reasons for not vaccinating, participants most frequently highlighted lack of time, negative experiences with previous vaccinations, and immunity conferred by past infections."
The study involved 69 healthcare workers composed of nurses, midwives, physicians, other health associate professionals, and administrative staff.
At the time of enrollment, 47 had a history of lab-confirmed COVID-19 infection and 31 had at least one comorbidity, a situation where a person suffers from more than one disease or medical condition at the same time.
Remember the articles last year about the low percentage of CDC workers taking the Clot Shots and boosters. Which were quickly was challenged by Politico, Fact-Check, Social Media and the MSM.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
"It deprives us of the right to a jury; it deprives us of ordinary burdens of proof; it deprives us of having an unbiased judge," he said. "We have ALJs [Administrative Law Judge] and commissioners instead."
"We battled that for five years, and we had six circuit courts of appeals against us," she said. "We got to the Supreme Court and we won unanimously."
[WIRE] In the late 90’s, a veteran and father of three named Norman Browning took a job as a volunteer coach at Woodlawn High School in 
[ET via ZERO] Approximately half of the health care workers in a Polish study were found to be averse to taking COVID-19 booster shots, with one of the reasons for this hesitancy being their negative experiences with previous vaccinations.
