Intent vs. Impact: Recent Landmark Supreme Court Decisions

The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest federal court of the United States. In the legal system of the United States, the Supreme Court is the final interpreter of federal constitutional law. This week the court issued three landmark decisions.

The U.S. Supreme Court handed President Barack Obama a major victory on Thursday by upholding tax subsidies crucial to his signature healthcare law, with Chief Justice John Roberts saying Congress clearly intended for them to be available in all 50 states.

In King v. Burwell (June 25, 2015), the court ruled on a 6-3 vote that the 2010 Affordable Care Act (ACA), widely known as Obamacare, did not restrict the subsidies to states that establish their own online healthcare exchanges. It marked the second time in three years that the high court ruled against a major challenge to the law brought by conservatives seeking to gut it.

"Congress passed the Affordable Care Act to improve health insurance markets, not to destroy them," Roberts wrote in the court's decision, adding that nationwide availability of the credits is required to "avoid the type of calamitous result that Congress plainly meant to avoid."

The Obama administration has hailed the law as a success, saying 16.4 million previously uninsured people have gained health insurance since it was enacted.

 

On the same day that the ACA ruling was issued, the court issued its decision in Texas Dep't of Housing, & Community Affairs v.Inclusive Communities Project, Inc. (June 25, 2015): Claims of housing discrimination based on disparate impact rather than a showing of discriminatory intent may be brought under the Fair Housing Act. To defeat a defense based on business justification or a public interest, a plaintiff must identify an available alternative that serves the defendant's needs and would have less disparate impact. Although this decision got much less airing in the media, it is a landmark decision. In effect the ruling says discrimination may not have been intended in the actions taken, but the effect is discriminatory as evidenced by its disparate impact. This ruling gives further weigh to impact as defense against discrimination under the Fair Housing Law. Oddly enough, the court upheld the ACA based on the intent of the law, while it decreed the intent is also weighed by disparate impact under Fair Housing Act.

SCOTUS issued its ruling on Same Sex Marriage in Obergefell v. Hodges (June 26, 2015): Under the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, all states must license a marriage between two people of the same sex and recognize such a marriage if it was lawfully licensed and performed in another state.

All in all these decisions furthered the cause of equal treatment under the law for all American citizens.

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Obama's Actions Speak Louder Than Words

When the Norwegian Nobel Peace Prize Committee surprised the world by giving the 2009 Award to U. S. President Barack Obama, the controversy was widespread and everyone had an opinion. President Obama was chosen from 205 nominees which some found appalling vs. those that saw the selection as amazing. Even as recent as 2013, detractors have sought the means to revoke the Peace Award he was granted. Recently, however, the historic negotiations with Iran to find a sensible halt to their nuclear program have netted our leader comparisons to Nixon's opening the "gate" to China and Reagan relationship with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. It appears the President is fulfilling his promises to usher in a "“new era of American leadership, one that turned the page on a decade of war.” Robert Scheer details the President's current peace efforts in a recent article in The Nation.

As apparent in his 2012 State of the Union Address, President Obama has consistently championed education as a vital component to our nation's growth and well-being. His efforts to spark a dead and unproductive Congress to action is a matter of record. But, little publized facts show he put his money where his mouth is when he received 1.4 million dollars with his Nobel Peace Prize Award.

President Obama contributed his awards dollars primarily to educational foundations and ventures. The Posse Foundation which helps nontraditional high school students get into college was one recipient of his donations. The United Negro College Fund, Hispanic Fund, American Indian College Fund received funds also. Central Asia Institute received funds to help educate girl's in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Africare was also listed as a recipient from the disbursement. Fisher House received $250,000 and the Clinton-Bush Haiti Fund received $200,000.

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Honoring Trayvon Martin: Do All You Can

President Obama weighed in on the George Zimmerman verdict on Sunday, calling on Americans to “respect the call for calm reflection from two parents who lost their young son.”
Zimmerman was acquitted Saturday on second degree murder and manslaughter charges in the shooting death of  17-year-old Trayvon Martin.

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My Take on Obama's Victory in Election 2012

Nobody's talking about Obama's victory in the 2012 Election. Rather, bewildered Republicans and pundits are focused on "why Romney lost". All the media analysts, political commentators and cable news contributors have theories on the election results, but if you want a novice blogger's ideas on Election 2012, take a walk with me. My cause-effect reasons are simple: people and process. Each side made assumptions and predictions about voters and laid out a strategy to win their votes.

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The Choice for Our Kids: Early Childhood Education

America may be one of the richest countries in the world, but it ranks #28 out of 38 countries in the percent of 4 year olds enrolled in pre-primary education programs like Head Start. The United States ranked behind countries like France, Spain and Mexico according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Head Start began in 1965 as an early childhood education program under President Johnson’s War on Poverty. Currently, there are 900,000 children enrolled in Head Start of which 35% are African American. The program cost $7.2 billion, less than a new air craft carrier costing $9 billion.

Does early childhood development matter? You bet it does. Children who are exposed to more language and more caring interaction with adults have an advantage over their peers that grow up in a stressful environment. This inequality leads to the “achievement gap” that educators say is evident as early as nine months of age and continues to inhibit student progress through elementary school and beyond.

Mitt Romney posts a 35 page document on his education plan, but it has no mention of Head Start, early childhood education or Pre-K programs.  The Ryan Budget outlines federal spending reductions, but gives no details as to where these cuts will be made.  The National Education Association (NEA) reports in a N Y Times article that early childhood programs would be cut by $590,000,000, eliminating 80,000 slots for kids and cutting 30,000 jobs for teachers, aides, and administrators. Republicans have used Head Start programs as an example of wasteful spending on unproven programs that need to be reined in.

President Obama expanded Head Start in 2009 under the Stimulus Program injection and additional $2.1 billion for Head Start and opening 61,000 new slots for kids. No additional specifics have been offered, but the Obama Administration has opposed Republican cuts to educational programs.

The 2012 Election is a matter of choice on so many issues, but don’t let early childhood education get missed in foreign policy, women’s issues and other high visibility targets. Our kids deserve more; our kids deserve better.

Vote and let your voice be heard.

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Romney's $716 Billion Medicare Lie

Paul Ryan and Mitt Romney

Here’s how Romney put it in an interview with 60 Minutes shortly after selecting Paul Ryan as his Vice Presidential running mate:

"There's only one president that I know of in history that robbed Medicare, $716 billion to pay for a new risky program of his own that we call Obamacare."

First things first: Neither Obama nor his health care law literally cut a dollar amount from the Medicare program’s budget.

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Rappers, Hip Hop and Politics: Election 2012

Did you know that June is Black Music Month? Well, I thought it might be a good time to look at some strange bedfellows: rappers, hip hop, and politics. Every one remembers the jaw dropping moment when Kanye West declared George Bush doesn't like Black people. But, do we take notice of the continuous interplay of hip hop stars, rappers and the political process?

Some notables come to the forefront in support of current political candidates of both parties. Jay-Z, Russel Simmons, P. Diddy, And Will.I.Am supported Barack Obama for president in 2008 and support his reelection in 2012. Common, Nas, and Chuck D have spoken out in support of Obama, also. Naturally, the President has been attacked by Fox News and other right wing media accusing him of glorifying their lyrics of drugs, sex, and violence. Jay-Z has been particularly in the fore front supporting Obama's stance on the tax code and on gay marriage.

While the President's support and connection to hip hop and rappers might be a political liability for him, Republican politician are enclosed in a protective bubble against their supporters in the industry. Rapper KRS-One supports Ron Paul, has toured with him and appeared in the media in support of Paul. It appears that Ron Paul's racist history documented through his newsletters and his connection to white supremacists don't disturb KRS-One. Prodigy is another rapper supporting Ron Paul. Both rappers are caught up in what they call "The Obama Deception", a New World Order conspiracy theory, as reported in the Grio.

That leaves Mitt Romney, the Republican Nominee for President and his supporter Kid Rock, who responded when Romney sought him out at a political rally. Kid Rock put aside his persona rapping about "sex, drugs, and pimping women", replacing it with a more acceptable, sterile image as a  country rock star wrapped in the confederate flag. Before a packed crowd of more than 1000 supporters, Romney accepted the endorsement of Kid Rock at the Royal Oak Music Theater. Kid Rock and band then performed his anthem "Born Free," which has become the Romney campaign theme. Kid Rock joins country singers Ted Nugent, Waylon Jennings and Trace Adkins in support of Romney.

As an industry, Hip Hop and Rap have become powerful financial and media resources with the ability to influence the main stream political process.

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Will Romney Win the White Working Class Vote?

What's up with the white working class vote? It was for him, his wife, and his family that New Deal Democrats taxed the rich, invented Social Security and supported militant labor unions. Now, seeing the Democrats as pro black and poor, white non-college educated voters are a mainstay for the Republican coalition.

Many people don’t understand how the white working class can support a Republican party which clearly favors the rich and would continue to vote against their own interest. But, that depends on how you define their interest. Anti-abortion and anti-gay religious beliefs coupled with NRA gun-toting sentiments may well see this group waiting for economic interest to “trickle down” to them while “getting their country back” with a white guy in the White House.

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The War on Sandra Fluke-A Leader Takes a Stand-Wantabees Evade issue

On Friday, President Obama took a stand on conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh's war against Georgetown law student Sandra Fluke. He called Sandra to offer his support as she waited to appear on MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell Reports.

Limbaugh bashed the student activist on his show for several days, calling her a "slut" and a "prostitute" and suggesting that she provide videos of her sexual activities. The reason for this abuse is Sandra's testimony to a congressional committee of Democrats after Republican Darryl Issa refused to allow her to testify before the full committee.  Her crime is her support of requiring employers to provide health care coverage that includes contraception.

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Shame On You: "Righteous Rick" Santorum

I watched a clip from a Rick Santorum political meeting in Florida. One of the attendees had the floor and spoke to Rick Santorum about her belief that President Obama was not born in America (yes, that same birthier crap) and that she would not call him "president" since he legally didn't deserve the title. Santorum listened to her, smiling all the while. She wanted to know when someone was going to do something about "it". Rick said "I'm going to do something about it".

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People Get a Life-Stop Hating on Beyonce and Jay Z

You'd think that fans of Beyonce and/or jay Z would be happy about the birth of daughter Blue Ivy Carter.  Other who are not fans could and should be about other business that interests them. But, not so in today's world of hate, stupidity and malicious behavior.

If you thought it was just politicians who were ignorant with their "Birthier Theory" and "he's a Muslim" rhetoric about President Obama", or even that "George W. Bush was involved in the September 11th tragedy", you were sadly mistaken. Folks are going out of their way to create outrageous stories about the happy couple as they celebrate their daughter's birth.

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Nevada Presidential Caucus-January 21, 2012

"Hope is that thing inside us that insists, despite all the evidence to the contrary, that something better awaits us if we have the courage to reach for it and to work for it, and to fight for it."
Barack Obama

The Nevada Presidential Caucus is scheduled for January 21, 2012. Some voters maybe unfamiliar with the caucus process, particularly if you are accustomed to a primary with private voting as I was coming from Chicago. Here's a quick primer I'll call Caucus 101.

A caucus is a meeting of local Nevadans of a political party to show support and select delegates to a convention for candidates running for office. The caucus is the first step in Nevada's presidential nominating process and a simple gathering of neighbors to meet and discuss grassroots politics. Each political party is responsible for selecting its own presidential nominee. President Barack Obama will be the 2012 Democratic nominee.

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President Appoints Cordray to Head CFPB

President Obama in Shaker Heights, Ohio, with Richard Cordray, whom he appointed Wednesday to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Here's the story of the Senate's rejection of the President's nominee before the recess apointment:

The Senate rejected Richard Cordray, President Obama's nominee to head the newly formed Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). There was little mystery to the vote -- 44 Republicans pledged in May to block his nomination. The final tally was 53-45, with Republican Olympia Snowe of Maine voting "present." Sen. Scott Brown of Massachusetts, facing the bureau's inventor Elizabeth Warren, was the lone dissenting GOP vote.

Republicans don't like the agency, so they've fought to hamper it by refusing to approve any one as its Director. Once again, they've made new rules and confirm they'll do anything to protect the rich and stick it to the middle class.

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FORBES Names the World’s Most Powerful People

There are seven billion people on the planet. FORBES listed the 70 that matter most. What do the president of the United States, the Dalai Lama, a billionaire drug dealer and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg all have in common? They are all featured on FORBES' annual ranking of the World's Most Powerful People.

The FORBES ranking takes into account four factors. First, they measured how many people a person has power over. Then they looked at the financial resources controlled by each candidate. Next they asked: Is a candidate influential in more than one arena, or sphere? Finally, FORBES gave consideration to how actively the candidates wield their power. This measure eliminated inactive heirs to great fortunes, semi-retired industrialists and former heads of state. In all, 70 people made the final list, one for every 100 million people on the planet.

The title of the World’s Most Powerful Man on this year’s list is President Barack Obama, who gave up the top spot last year to China’s president Hu Jintao (#3). Despite his current political weakness, Obama remains the head-of-state of the world’s largest, most dynamic economy, commander-in-chief of the planet’s deadliest military and, unofficially, the leader of the free world.

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