News of the Week for Oct. 18th<\/sup>, 2020<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Sen. Hawley Unloads on Those Who Attack Barrett’s Catholic Faith: “That’s Bigotry”<\/a> Dianne Feinstein Opens Barrett Hearings With a Great Big Whopper About Preexisting Conditions<\/a> Abortion as an “Option”<\/a> Ever Wish You Could Vote against the Greatest Evil?<\/a> Amy Coney Barrett and Ben Sasse: Traitors to Their Class<\/a> Booker Defends Roe with a Series of Euphemisms<\/a> Graduating from Barrett’s High School Does Not Make You an Expert on Her Nomination<\/a> Sasse (And WaPo): Stacking, Packing, Biden, And Boneheads \u2014 A “Civics 101” Lesson<\/a> Sheldon Whitehouse’s not so beautiful mind<\/a> Dick Durbin’s not so beautiful mind<\/a> Sen. Hirono Asked Barrett if She “Ever Made Unwanted Requests for Sexual Favors,” or Committed Sexual Harassment<\/a> Graham Kicks Off Barrett Hearing With Takedown of Obamacare<\/a> Shorter Coons to Barrett: Calling a Chief Justice Ruling “Unsound” is Chastising<\/a> Barrett Reminds Klobuchar That “Scholars Across the Spectrum” Also Don’t Consider Roe v. Wade as “Super Precedent”<\/a> Durbin Shows He Didn’t Read Barrett’s Dissent on Felons Owning Guns<\/a> Mazie Hirono To Barrett: Have You Ever Sexually Assaulted Someone?<\/a> Senator Ben Sasse Explains How Courts Work in the American System<\/a> Richard Blumenthal’s Fear-Mongering<\/a> World’s Greatest Deliberative Body<\/a> Democrats’ Judicial Consequentialism Is on Display Today<\/a> Sheldon Whitehouse’s Funhouse Math<\/a> Sheldon Whitehouse Is a Loon<\/a> Pass the 28th Amendment: The Case for Codifying a Nine-Justice Supreme Court<\/a> Sheldon Whitehouse, the Democrats’ Conspiracy Theorist and Hatchet Man against the Rule of Law<\/a> Richard Blumenthal Lied about Amy Coney Barrett’s “Radical” Quote<\/a> Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse Is A Conspiracy Nutter<\/a> Barrett Smacks Down Critical Race Theory Prof Who Claimed She’s A Colonizer For Adopting Black Children<\/a> Morning Consult: 48 Percent Support Barrett’s Confirmation, 31 Percent Oppose<\/a> Merriam-Webster Alters Definition Of Sexual “Preference” To Say It’s Offensive After Hirono Attacked Barrett For Using It<\/a> Merriam-Webster Alters Dictionary to Align with Democratic Attacks on Barrett’s Use of “Sexual Preference”<\/a> If Amy Coney Barrett Has To Apologize for Saying Sexual ‘Preference,’ Does Joe Biden?<\/a> LGBT Websites Now Say “Sexual Preference” Is An Offensive Term. They Were Fine With It Last Month.<\/a> Chuck Schumer: Dems will deny GOP a quorum to advance Barrett<\/a> Webster Changes “Preference” Meaning After Dems Attack ACB\u2019s Use of “Sexual Preference”<\/a> Leftist “Dark Money” Opposing Barrett Nomination<\/a> Greta Thunberg Mocks Amy Coney Barrett For Not Having “Views On Climate Change”<\/a> On Senator Feinstein’s Ghastly Hug<\/a> <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Portland Rioters Topple Statues of Roosevelt and Lincoln, Smash Windows at Oregon Historical Society<\/a> “Day Of Rage” Rioters In Portland Tear Down Statue Of Abraham Lincoln, Vandalize Buildings<\/a> Patriot Rally Shooting Suspect, Victim Identified<\/a> Denver: “Mostly Peaceful” Protest Until Gunman Murdered a Trump Supporter<\/a> “Spontaneous” Street Violence Is Well Organized, Pursuing a Radical Agenda<\/a> Michael Reinoehl Had People Helping Him Run From Authorities After The Portland Shooting<\/a> Portland’s Rogue District Attorney in Inaction: 543 Cases of Injustice<\/a> Police Arrest Man After He Sets Fire to Patrol Car<\/a> Sheriff says police “omnipresence” will stem Las Vegas Strip violence<\/a> At Least 118 Officers Left Seattle Police Department in 2020, Report Says<\/a> Legislators Pass Bill To Ban Cops From Stopping Cars For No Headlights At Night, Other Violations<\/a> San Francisco Conservative Rally Attacked By Antifa Mob<\/a> Denver Shooter Of Trump Supporter To Be Charged With 2nd Degree Murder<\/a> 18 people arrested after downtown Phoenix protest against police brutality<\/a> <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Hong Kong facing 1,000 winter deaths from coronavirus, expert warns, as city records seven new cases of Covid-19<\/a> A 25-year-old man becomes first in the U.S. to contract coronavirus twice, with second infection “more severe”<\/a> Virus at “turning point” in Europe, hitting at-risk groups<\/a> Sex banned indoors for Tier 2 couples living apart, Number 10 confirms<\/a> <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Adam Schiff Favors Ending Small State Voting Rights \u2013 and That’s Just the Beginning<\/a> Unofficial ballot drop boxes popping up throughout the state worry elections officials<\/a> Cease and desist order issued to CA GOP over illegal ballot drop boxes<\/a> California General Election Ballots Have Been Duplicated, Misprinted, Trashed, and Sent to the Dead<\/a> Biden: People Who Think They\u2019re Better Off Under Trump Shouldn’t Vote for Me<\/a> California Republicans Are Setting Up Their Own Ballot Drop Boxes<\/a> Trash bags of mail found outside Pennsylvania postal worker’s home<\/a> Two Senate races, two runoffs? Double-overtime a growing prospect in Georgia<\/a> If the polls are wrong, why is Trump holding rallies in Georgia and Iowa this week?<\/a>![\"\"](\"https:\/\/impeachreno.org\/politicalhat\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Newsboy.jpg\" "\\"News")
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<\/a>Supreme Court Vacancy<\/h1>\n
\n“When you tell somebody that they’re too Catholic to be on the bench, when you tell them they’ll be a Catholic judge, not an American judge, that\u2019s bigotry.”<\/p>\n
\nThe Senate Judiciary Committee began hearings on the nomination of Amy Coney Barrett today, and Ranking Member Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) let everyone know what the Democrat members\u2019 focus would be. On November 10, the Supreme Court will begin hearings on Texas v. California, which challenges Obamacare\u2019s constitutionality. Feinstein was careful to refer to the legislation as the Affordable Care Act.<\/p>\n
\nIn his opening statement at Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation hearing, Senator Cory Booker warned that a Justice Barrett would vote to overturn Roe v. Wade. Predictably, Booker avoided addressing the legal merits of overturning Roe, instead relying on consequentialist arguments for upholding it. Moreover, in making those arguments, he resorted to euphemism rather than scientific or moral reasoning. Women in states that banned or restricted abortion in a post-Roe world would have “no options” according to Booker. Of course, Booker knows that describing abortion as an “option” is politically preferable to acknowledging that the result of an abortion procedure is the ending of a distinct human life, and delving into the violent reality of what such a procedure looks like.<\/p>\n
\nA great many Americans who are prepared to vote for Biden are really Trump opponents. By the same token, many of those who are prepared to vote for Trump are actually most desirous of avoiding a Biden presidency. Unfortunately, our voting system doesn\u2019t allow us to express our strongest preference if it is negative. We have to vote for the lesser of two evils \u2014 but why?<\/p>\n
\nMichael Brendan Dougherty has a typically perceptive analysis of why some of the opposition to Amy Coney Barrett seems different from past Supreme Court nominees from Republican presidents. In short: Her background, while obviously still impressive, deviates in certain ways from what those on the left “expect” of someone of her stature \u2014 even of her Ivy League and\/or Beltway-saturated potential colleagues on the Court. <\/p>\n
\nDuring today’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Senator Cory Booker (D., N.J.) used part of his opening statement to assert that Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett is a threat to Roe v. Wade.<\/p>\n
\nThe Guardian has published an op-ed this morning by Lisa M. O\u2019Neill, who graduated from St. Mary’s Dominican High School in Louisiana, the same high school from which Amy Coney Barrett graduated.<\/p>\n
\nThis might be the most worthwhile eleven minutes of the entire confirmation hearing for Amy Coney Barrett, and it’s not surprising that it came from Republican Ben Sasse. He\u2019s been a gadfly at times, a more committed conservative than partisan actor, and perhaps the GOP member of the Senate Judiciary Committee with the most credibility to deliver this “Civics 101” spanking to his colleagues.<\/p>\n
\nI skipped yesterday’s hearing on the nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. I didn’t want to waste a day listening to speeches by Judiciary Committee members.<\/p>\n
\nIn a post below, I complained about how, instead of questioning Amy Coney Barrett, Senators are using her as a prop while they make speeches. Not surprisingly, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, a world class grandstander, was the biggest culprit during three hours or so of the hearing that I watched.<\/p>\n
\nSorry, Senator. No Kavanaugh theater for you!<\/p>\n
\n“We want ‘South Carolina Care,’ not Obamacare.”<\/p>\n
\nNo, Senator. You can criticize or disagree without it being considered “chastising.”<\/p>\n
\nHey, Klobuchar. Even RBG criticized SCOTUS’s reasoning on Roe v. Wade.<\/p>\n
\nNonviolent felons, Durbin. Read her opinion.<\/p>\n
\nNot the first question that would occur to me to ask when interviewing a very Catholic mother of seven, but Hirono’s prone to losing her mind during Supreme Court confirmation hearings. Remember two years ago when she said Brett Kavanaugh might not enjoy the same presumption of innocence on a rape claim as everyone else because he’s a judicial conservative?<\/p>\n
\nSenator Ben Sasse (R., Neb.) deftly used his questioning of Amy Coney Barrett to illuminate the true purpose and role of America’s judiciary.<\/p>\n
\nCiting the Ginsburg Rule, Amy Coney Barrett continues to refuse to opine on constitutional issues that may come before her should she be confirmed to the Supreme Court. In the context of in vitro fertilization, Senator Richard Blumenthal called that refusal “chilling” and insisted that the woman in an example he used, Tracy, would be fearful after hearing it.<\/p>\n
\nDumber than nine chickens, that guy.<\/p>\n
\nHealth care, with NFIB v. Sebelius as its avatar, and abortion, with both Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey as its own, have been at the forefront of Democrats’ questioning of Amy Coney Barrett. As of 3:15 p.m., Dianne Feinstein, Patrick Leahy, Dick Durbin, Sheldon Whitehouse, Amy Klobuchar, and Chris Coons have had the opportunity to interrogate Barrett on her judicial views, including her academic criticism of Chief Justice John Roberts’s majority opinion in Sebelius. That’s a combined three hours of time. Several of them have noted her criticism of the opinion in Sebelius and suggested that Barrett would rule against the ACA in future cases. Feinstein gave a monologue about how important abortion rights are. Whitehouse made about as much sense as the typical InfoWars guest. None of them have even tried to explain why the majority opinions in Sebelius, Roe, or Casey were well-reasoned. That pretty much says it all about the merits of those opinions and the Democrats’ judicial consequentialism.<\/p>\n
\nRhode Island Democratic senator Sheldon Whitehouse was in full-bore conspiracy-theorist mode today, to the point where he did not even allow Amy Coney Barrett to answer a single question during his time speaking. Senate Republicans were ready \u2014 Ben Sasse cracked that Whitehouse was using “Beautiful Mind conspiracy charts” and Ted Cruz bored in detail into Whitehouse’s hypocrisy given the torrents of money on his own side. Whitehouse’s claim that all legal disagreement with him is the result of a unitary conspiracy to buy off the legal system is par for the course for him \u2014 as I’ve discussed before at length \u2014 but one particular line struck me as especially dishonest: He talked about 80 cases that were decided 5-4 (by the “Roberts Five,” as if they were some sort of criminal gang) in favor of what he characterized as dark-money corporate interests, and he went on a rant about how this was an “eighty to nothing” record and showed that there was a conspiracy<\/p>\n
\nAs those of you who are watching this hearing will now be aware, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island is a lunatic. Here’s a good rundown on him from Dan McLaughlin.<\/p>\n
\nThe states should step in and take the option of court-packing off the table forever.<\/p>\n
\nWhitehouse’s conspiratorial bent runs deep.<\/p>\n
\nDuring his questioning of Amy Coney Barrett, Senator Richard Blumenthal claimed that the nominee had admitted in her dissent in Kanter v. Barr \u2014 a case that revolved around the gun rights of a convicted non-violent felon \u2014 that her position sounded “radical.”<\/p>\n
\nSpent 30 minutes espousing a grand theory of right-wing conspiracy, the same one he used against Brett Kavanaugh and Neomi Rao, while not asking Amy Coney Barrett a single question.<\/p>\n
\n“It was the risk of people saying things like that, which would be so hurtful to my family, that\u2026 I had to really weigh the costs of this.”<\/p>\n
\nMaybe Democrats would be better off just getting the Senate Judiciary Committee hearings of Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination over and done with quickly. <\/p>\n
\nAs far as I can tell, critics have them dead to rights on this.<\/p>\n
\nMerriam-Webster on Tuesday changed its definition of “preference” to note that the term is “offensive” when used in connection to an individual\u2019s sexual orientation, just as a Senate Democrat was criticizing Judge Amy Coney Barrett for using the term during her Supreme Court confirmation hearing.<\/p>\n
\nSens. Mazie Hirono and Cory Booker both criticized the Supreme Court nominee for saying “preference” instead of “orientation.”<\/p>\n
\nAfter Judge Amy Coney Barrett used the phrase “sexual preference” during her Supreme Court confirmation hearings, Democrats rushed to condemn the term and claim it was outdated and “offensive.”<\/p>\n
\nSenate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer says that Democrats will not supply a quorum with which to advance the nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. Schumer defended this move, saying that Barrett’s nomination is “illegitimate, dangerous and unpopular.”<\/p>\n
\n“Webster’s dictionary has revealed itself to be a propaganda machine,” noted one astute Twitter user.<\/p>\n
\nDon’t be fooled by the myriad groups with fierce names and slick websites like Demand Justice. They represent Beltway Big Money, not America.<\/p>\n
\nTeen activist Greta Thunberg has mocked the US Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett for declining to give her opinions about climate change during her confirmation hearings on Capitol Hill this week.<\/p>\n
\nAs the Senate Judiciary Committee wrapped up its hearings for Judge Barrett’s confirmation to the Supreme Court, Senator Dianne Feinstein had some egregiously sharp words for her colleague, Senator Lindsey Graham. Typically, we err on the side of not publishing such profane remarks, but given the circumstances, we think it best to share them with you. <\/p>\n<\/a>Riots & Revolution<\/h1>\n
\nOn Sunday night, rioters in Portland, Ore., toppled statues of Abraham Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt and caused thousands of dollars’ worth of damage at the Oregon Historical Society. Declaring a day of action, the “indigenous wing” of antifa threatened violence to anyone caught live-streaming or recording video of their actions leading into Columbus Day.<\/p>\n
\nToday is Columbus Day which has been renamed “Indigenous People’s Day” in many places around the country. In preparation for today a group of Antifa in Portland planned an “Indigenous People’s Day of Rage” promising “direct action.”<\/p>\n
\nWhen we discussed the killing of a Trump supporter at a Patriot Rally in Denver on Saturday, many questions remained. Law enforcement was being tight-lipped about the details, including the identity of both the shooter and the victim as the investigation moved forward. By the end of the weekend, a few of those questions had been answered. The victim has been identified as Lee Keltner, a 49-year-old military veteran, father, and grandfather. Making an already horrible situation even worse, Keltner was shot dead right in front of his son.<\/p>\n
\nNothing quite so perfectly illustrates what’s wrong with America’s media class as what happened Saturday in Denver. A group of conservative “Patriots” announced a pro-police rally. The organizer of the event said the intention was “to make a public show of force after communist and socialist protesters broke up a pro-police rally in July.”<\/p>\n
\nAdd up everything we know about the ongoing violence in America’s cities, and you get a troubling picture.<\/p>\n
\nTuesday afternoon both the NY Times and ProPublica published stories about the death of Michael Reinoehl, the man who shot and killed Aaron “Jay” Danielson in Portland on August 29. Reinoehl was located several days later in Olympia, Washington, more than 100 miles away. He was clearly on the run and the ProPublica story has some interesting details about how he got there [emphasis added].<\/p>\n
\nMultnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt has refused to prosecute more than half of the protest-related cases referred to his office by law enforcement officials in Portland, Oregon. That”s 543 cases that will never be tried.<\/p>\n
\nAround 1:30 PM, an officer was in their patrol vehicle in an alley between Dexter Avenue and John Street looking for a man who was reportedly brandishing a flaming piece of lumber.<\/p>\n
\nClark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo acknowledged that the recent rash of violence on the Las Vegas Strip is a significant problem that could hurt tourism, but he said he is “100 percent confident” police will get a handle on it.<\/p>\n
\nAccording to Jason Rantz of KTTH, at least 118 Seattle police officers have left the police department in 2020, with 39 of them leaving in September.<\/p>\n
\nVirginia is poised to drastically reduce the circumstances in which law enforcement officers will be permitted to conduct traffic stops and enforce traffic laws.<\/p>\n
\nWhen you think of San Francisco, a conservative rally in support of the President and law enforcement probably isn’t the first thing that comes to mind. But a group called Team Save America somehow managed to pull one off yesterday. Or at least they did so briefly. The group was displaying Thin Blue Line flags, along with American flags as they protested Twitter’s suppression of free speech and the blackout of news unfavorable to Joe Biden. The reason the rally didn’t last long was that hundreds of Antifa thugs showed up almost immediately and began attacking both the protesters and the police who were attempting to keep the two groups apart. At least one protester was taken to the hospital and multiple officers were injured. <\/p>\n
\nDespite the protestations from Denver shooter Matthew Dolloff that he acted in self-defense, it sounds like the law enforcement officials investigating the case aren’t buying it. According to CBS Denver, The Denver District Attorney announced on Thursday that second-degree murder charges will be filed against Dolloff on Monday. The killer already has an attorney and they initially claimed that Dolloff was going to dispute the charges, but the DA clearly feels she has a winning case. It’s possible that some plea bargaining may be taking place in the background, but we probably won’t know about that until after the weekend.<\/p>\n
\nPolice say 18 people were arrested in downtown Phoenix during a protest against police brutality on Oct. 17.<\/p>\n<\/a>Corona Virus<\/h1>\n
\nThe coronavirus could kill 1,000 residents and leave tens of thousands sick this winter if holes in Hong Kong’s defences are not plugged, an infectious disease expert has warned, as the city recorded seven new Covid-19 cases on Sunday.<\/p>\n
\nIt is the first confirmed case of a U.S. patient becoming re-infected with Covid-19, and the fifth known case reported worldwide. <\/p>\n
\nDoctors are warning that Europe is at a turning point as the coronavirus surges back across the continent, including among vulnerable people, and governments try to impose restrictions without locking whole economies down.<\/p>\n
\nBoyfriends and girlfriends will be able to meet outdoors in Tier 2 but are expected to adhere to social distancing rules such as hands, face and space. They must also adhere to the rule of six.<\/p>\n<\/a>Election 2020<\/h1>\n
\nThe Bloviating Bullsh*ting Burbank Barrister, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA)Rep. Adam Schiff, who heads up the House Intelligence Committee, has power and influence despite his constant leaks and lies. He was recently interviewed on Bill Maher\u2019s Real Time on HBO. Maher, a far-left hack, asked shifty-Schiff about the U.S. Constitution. Maher, who hates religion, prefaced his questions by mentioning that many Americans think that Jesus delivered the Constitution. Schiff ending voting rights<\/p>\n
\nPromoting such boxes \u2014 which have been found in Los Angeles, Orange and Fresno counties \u2014 could be a felony.<\/p>\n
\nCalifornia’s Republican Party has acknowledged owning unofficial ballot drop boxes that state election officials say are illegal.<\/p>\n
\nSo California Gov. Newsom’s executive order is working as expected!!!<\/p>\n
\n“They think\u201454 percent of the American people believe they’re better off economically today than they were under our administration? Well, their memory is not very good, quite frankly.”<\/p>\n
\nThis sounds like more of a nothingburger than any sort of constitutional crisis, but if nothing else it may be good for a laugh. Out in California, the battle over mail-in ballots and collection boxes is raging as it is across much of the country. But in the Golden State, Republicans have added a twist to the story. They’ve taken to distributing their own drop boxes in locations including churches and gun shops. These collection boxes are not produced or placed by state election officials, so the Democrats in charge of the state are complaining loudly, claiming that the boxes are illegal. But at least thus far, the GOP is basically telling them to pound sand.<\/p>\n
\nTrash bags full of undelivered mall were discovered at the curb outside the home of a postal employee in Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n
\nThe wild special election for U.S. Sen. Kelly Loeffler’s seat was always destined to head to a runoff. But there’s a growing possibility the state’s other Senate contest could also go into overtime, making Georgia home to twin January showdowns that could determine control of the Senate.<\/p>\n
\nI haven’t seen a ton of poll denialism this month but I saw a little this morning and was left wondering how true believers square his campaign itinerary with the “FAKE POLLS!” spin.<\/p>\n