Steve’s Weblog

For all my neighbors on the right who are gloating about this Supreme Court nominee about now, maybe you should look at what this means to you personally? Great summary from Think Progress:

ALITO WOULD OVERTURN ROE V. WADE: In his dissenting opinion in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, Alito concurred with the majority in supporting the restrictive abortion-related measures passed by the Pennsylvania legislature in the late 1980’s. Alito went further, however, saying the majority was wrong to strike down a requirement that women notify their spouses before having an abortion. The Supreme Court later rejected Alito’s view, voting to reaffirm Roe v. Wade. [Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey, 1991]

ALITO WOULD ALLOW RACE-BASED DISCRIMINATION: Alito dissented from a decision in favor of a Marriott Hotel manager who said she had been discriminated against on the basis of race. The majority explained that Alito would have protected racist employers by “immuniz[ing] an employer from the reach of Title VII if the employer’s belief that it had selected the ‘best’ candidate was the result of conscious racial bias.” [Bray v. Marriott Hotels, 1997]

ALITO WOULD ALLOW DISABILITY-BASED DISCRIMINATION: In Nathanson v. Medical College of Pennsylvania, the majority said the standard for proving disability-based discrimination articulated in Alito’s dissent was so restrictive that “few if any…cases would survive summary judgment.” [Nathanson v. Medical College of Pennsylvania, 1991]

ALITO WOULD STRIKE DOWN THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT: The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) “guarantees most workers up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave to care for a loved one.” The 2003 Supreme Court ruling upholding FMLA [Nevada v. Hibbs, 2003] essentially reversed a 2000 decision by Alito which found that Congress exceeded its power in passing the law. [Chittister v. Department of Community and Economic Development, 2000]

ALITO SUPPORTS UNAUTHORIZED STRIP SEARCHES: In Doe v. Groody, Alito agued that police officers had not violated constitutional rights when they strip searched a mother and her ten-year-old daughter while carrying out a search warrant that authorized only the search of a man and his home. [Doe v. Groody, 2004]

ALITO HOSTILE TOWARD IMMIGRANTS: In two cases involving the deportation of immigrants, the majority twice noted Alito’s disregard of settled law. In Dia v. Ashcroft, the majority opinion states that Alito’s dissent “guts the statutory standard” and “ignores our precedent.” In Ki Se Lee v. Ashcroft, the majority stated Alito’s opinion contradicted “well-recognized rules of statutory construction.” [Dia v. Ashcroft, 2003; Ki Se Lee v. Ashcroft, 2004]

Bush (err, Rove) proves once again that the politics of distraction trumps all. High level administration officials indicted? No problem, send up the most right-wing nutjob you can find. Pay no attention to those men behind the curtain!

Oct 31, 9:27 AM EST

Bush Picks Alito for Supreme Court

By RON FOURNIER
AP Political Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Bush, stung by the rejection of his first choice, nominated veteran judge Samuel Alito on Monday in a bid to reshape the Supreme Court and mollify his conservative allies. Ready-to-rumble Democrats warned that Alito may be an extremist who would curb abortion rights.

Unlike her nomination, which was derailed Thursday by Bush’s conservative allies, Alito faces vocal opposition from Democrats.

“The Senate needs to find out if the man replacing Miers is too radical for the American people,” said Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada.

Alito’s nomination is one step in Bush’s political recovery plan as he tries to regain his footing after a cascade of troubles rocked his presidency. His approval rating in the polls has tumbled to the lowest point of his presidency and Americans are unhappy about high energy prices, the costly war in Iraq and economic doubts. Bush also has been hit by a criminal investigation that reached into the office of Vice President Dick Cheney and led to the indictment of I. Lewis Libby, the vice president’s chief of staff, on perjury and other charges in the CIA leak investigation.

AP via Yahoo News

Women’s rights: take a giant step back., No, take three giant steps back!

Flying blind? Maybe not.

“Rather than selecting a nominee for the good of the nation and the court, President Bush has picked a nominee whom he hopes will stop the massive hemorrhaging of support on his right wing. This is a nomination based on weakness, not strength.” – Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass.

Oct. 29, 2005, 8:03PM
MAKE A COMMITMENT
Voters under 25 have a chance to take charge of Texas’ future by rejecting Proposition 2.

THE past year has not been very empowering for young adults. Just starting to earn a living and newly eligible to vote, they have witnessed a cavalcade of events beyond their control: disasters in Asia, terrorist bombs in Europe, interminable warfare in the Middle East. At home, officials are under investigation for endangering national security.

Yet even when younger voters have real clout, they tend not to use it. The vote on Proposition 2 on the Nov. 8 ballot, a proposal that would ban gay couples’ right to legally protect their families, offers young people a chance to make their influence felt.

Eighteen- to 25-year-olds vote at about half the rate of 45- to 55-year-olds, notes Rice University political scientist Bob Stein. Without home ownership, school districts and careers to worry about, the younger age group doesn’t feel driven to participate. What a waste. If 18- to 25-year-olds voted their stated beliefs next month, they could show the country that Texans will not stand for bigotry.

Proposition 2 would amend the Texas Constitution to deny same-sex couples not only the right to marry, but also the right to contract any agreements that offer similar protections. On its face, this is redundant: Same-sex marriage is already illegal in Texas.

Examined closely, the proposition becomes actually ludicrous: the drafters’ desire to attack unconventional relationships resulted in a proposal so sloppily written that its wording outlaws “any” compact, including marriage between a woman and man.

This amendment would do serious harm. Suddenly it will be far more difficult for Texans to exercise their wishes if they decide same-sex rights merit further thought. More urgently, the referendum’s language — banning anything even “similar” to marriage — in one dismissive sweep jeopardizes the safety of children in Texas’ estimated 42,912 gay families.

Raised in a culture with a divorce rate greater than 50 percent, Texas’ young adults have no delusion that gay couples threaten traditional marriage. In fact, national polls show that voters under the age of 25 support legal recognition of same-sex relationships by a 3-1 margin. About two out of three voters through their mid-30s support these rights.

This year, young voters can flex an extraordinary amount of muscle. In odd-year elections such as this one, voter turnout is only about 7 percent to 10 percent. Because Texas is a disproportionately youthful state, young voters could come out at twice or three times that proportion and drive Proposition 2 into the ground.

There’s not much voters can do about natural calamities, stateless terrorists or dishonest, unelected public officials. But Texas’ young voters can exert amazing leverage on the home front next month. They need to vote — and show that hateful legislation is an embarrassment in 21st century Texas.

Houston Chronicle

The KKK supports Proposition 2, where do you stand?

Alaska High Court Backs Partner Benefits

By RACHEL D’ORO, Associated Press Writer Sat Oct 29, 6:36 AM ET

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Gay rights advocates claimed a major victory after the state Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional to deny benefits to same-sex partners of public employees.

In overturning a lower court ruling, the state high court said Friday that barring benefits for state and city employees’ same-sex partners violates the Alaska constitution’s equal protection clause.

Yahoo News

Rosa Parks to Lie in Honor at Capitol

By JIM ABRAMS, Associated Press Writer 17 minutes ago

WASHINGTON – In death, Rosa Parks is joining a select few, including presidents and war heroes, accorded a public viewing in the Capitol Rotunda. It’s the place where, six years ago, President Clinton and congressional leaders lauded the former seamstress for a simple act of defiance that changed the course of race relations.

On Sunday, Parks becomes the first woman to lie in honor in the vast circular room under the Capitol dome.

The House agreed by voice vote Friday that the body of Parks will lie in honor in the Rotunda on Sunday and Monday “so that the citizens of the United States may pay their last respects to this great American.” The Senate approved the resolution Thursday night.

Yahoo News

George Takei Discloses His Homosexuality

1 minute ago

LOS ANGELES – George Takei, best known for his role as Mr. Sulu in “Star Trek,” came out as homosexual in the current issue of a magazine covering the Los Angeles gay and lesbian community.

Takei told The Associated Press on Thursday that his new onstage role as psychologist Martin Dysart in “Equus,” helped inspire him to publicly discuss his sexuality.

Yahoo News

Let the investigations uncover the truth

Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald is moving towards indictments in the case of who disclosed the identity of Valerie Plame, a CIA covert operative working to stop the spread of weapons of mass destruction. This case reaches into the highest levels of the White House; Senior Advisor Karl Rove, Vice Presidential Chief of Staff Scooter Libby, and Vice President Cheney himself have been repeatedly questioned by the special prosecutor.

President Bush, who has already broken his public promise to fire anyone involved in the leak, is probably considering pardoning those involved before any trial, just as his father did more than a decade ago in pardoning six high-level officials who broke the law in providing arms to Iran and the Nicaraguan contras.

Whether Mr. Fitzgerald indicts or not, this case has always been about the Bush Administration’s brazen efforts to mislead the American public into supporting the invasion of Iraq. With the nation in mourning for our 2000 slain soldiers, nothing could be more offensive than to pardon those who misled us, covered it up, and then endangered the lives of undercover CIA agents in order to intimidate those who stood up for the truth.

This isn’t a failed real estate deal or a stained blue dress — this is the national security of the United States. Thousands have already died, with more to come. Regrettably, we cannot be sure that justice will be served in this case. President Bush has the unilateral power to pardon anyone accused of a crime, even before their trial.

Sign the petition

Miers Withdraws Under Mounting Criticism

By TERENCE HUNT, AP White House Correspondent 11 minutes ago

WASHINGTON – Under withering attack from conservatives,
President Bush ended his push to put loyalist Harriet Miers on the Supreme Court Thursday and promised a quick replacement. Democrats accused him of bowing to the “radical right wing of the Republican Party.”

The White House said Miers had withdrawn her name because of a bipartisan effort in Congress to gain access to internal documents related to her role as counsel to the president. But politics played a larger role: Bush’s conservative backers had doubts about her ideological purity, and Democrats had little incentive to help the nominee or the embattled GOP president.

The withdrawal stunned Washington on a day when the capital was awaiting potential bad news for the administration on another front — the possible indictments of senior White House aides in the
CIA leak case. Earlier in the week, the U.S. military death toll in Iraq hit 2,000.

Yahoo News

How about nominating someone who is at least qualified, and not a crony next time pResident moron?

Coffee IS a flavor. ™

Governor comments on KKK plans

10:24 AM CDT on Wednesday, October 26, 2005

KVUE News

Texas Governor Rick Perry commented about the Ku Klux Klan Tuesday and their plans to hold a rally in Austin next month.

The Klansmen say they will come to drum up support for a Texas amendment to the constitution that defines marriage as the union of one man and one woman.

One of the amendment’s biggest supporters is Governor Perry who voted early Tuesday in favor of Proposition 2. He says the Klan has a right to its opinions despite its reputation as a hate group.

“As long as they don’t break any laws of the state or the City of Austin — relative to parades and what have you — they have every right to state their pro or con on a vast array of issues,” Perry said.

Austin police will provide security during the event to keep a buffer between Klan members and people protesting the group.

See that, even the haters of the KKK are given equal protection.

In case you had any question about the kind of folks that would support a same-sex marriage ban, here’s your answer:

City To Permit KKK Rally Against Gay Marriage

The city has given permission of the Ku Klux Klan to hold a rally on Saturday, November 5. The group says they want to have a pro-family values rally in front of City Hall that afternoon to get voters to vote against gay marriage.

The city has reserved the Austin City Hall’s south plaza on Lavaca and Cesar Chavez from 1-3 pm on Saturday, November 5.

KXAN Austin News

U.S. Military Deaths Reach 2,000 in Iraq

By ROBERT H. REID, Associated Press Writer 2 minutes ago

BAGHDAD, Iraq – The U.S. military death toll reached 2,000 with the death of an Army sergeant who was wounded by a roadside bomb north of Baghdad and died in Texas last weekend.

A Pentagon announcement Tuesday said Staff Sgt. George T. Alexander Jr., 34, of Killeen, Texas, died in San Antonio, Texas. The death raised the Associated Press tally of military fatalities in the Iraq war to 2,000.

Yahoo News

Civil Rights Pioneer Rosa Parks Dies at 92

18 minutes ago

DETROIT – Rosa Lee Parks, whose refusal to give up her bus seat to a white man sparked the modern civil rights movement, died Monday. She was 92.

Mrs. Parks died at her home of natural causes, said Karen Morgan, a spokeswoman for U.S. Rep. John Conyers (news, bio, voting record), D-Mich.

AP via Yahoo News

Election Day is right around the corner, and early voting has already begun in some Texas counties. Some locations have early voting only on Saturday Oct 29 and Sunday Oct 30. Each county will be different – the best way to find out if there is early voting in your county, remind others to vote, or get reminded yourself is to visit the No Nonsense in November campaign’s “Email A Friend” system at www.friendsvote.org.

There are many reasons to oppose Proposition 2 on Nov. 8, but Lynnie Henderson of Dallas, said it best: “This proposition is solely a hate measure: same sex marriage is already illegal in Texas. Plus, the proposal would amend the Bill of Rights in a way that DENIES rights. The implications of this amendment also go far beyond same sex marriage (the language of the bill makes it apply to common law marriage, contracts, etc.). Please vote NO on Prop. 2.”

Endorsements
Constitutional amendments

On Nov. 8, Texas citizens will once again be asked to go to the polls and write a constitution. It’s our answer to Californian initiative and referendum system – rather than trust our elected representatives to do their jobs, we choose usually arcane but occasionally hot-button issues (e.g., “same-sex marriage”) to fuss over mightily and a Committee of the Whole Citizenry to attempt to enact laws – worse, constitutional provisions – more rationally reserved to the people elected to debate public questions, sort out the details, and act responsibly. The Chronicle is generally disposed, therefore, to recommend against any and all amendments, as a silly and fruitless way to run a democratic republic. But we always strain mightily to find an amendment or two we can recommend to those of our readers who enjoy such fine distinction. We strained again this year – but alas, could find not one among the nine offered propositions worth recommending to voters of sound mind and reasonable presumptions. In truth, we only feel strongly about Proposition 2, a disgrace to a free people and an abomination to fair men and women everywhere. Please turn out against Proposition 2 – and otherwise, consider these considered recommendations on the remainder, as you will. – The Chronicle Editorial Board

Austin Chronicle

Proposition 2: NO!

“The constitutional amendment providing that marriage in this state consists only of the union of one man and one woman and prohibiting this state or a political subdivision of this state from creating or recognizing any legal status identical or similar to marriage.” This is the most outrageous proposition on the ballot, the most direct assault on human rights and privacy rights, and the most blatant attempt to write bigotry into the Texas Constitution since the Civil War. It’s also totally unnecessary as a legal matter and goes beyond “defining” marriage to outlawing civil unions as well as threatening the contractual and legal rights already represented in domestic partnerships and even common law marriages. We could wax apoplectic against official pandering and gay-bashing at great length, but we expect regular Chronicle readers are largely in agreement in opposing this ridiculous amendment. Unfortunately, it’s not enough to despise it in private – we need every one of you, and all your friends and relatives, to get out on Election Day (or before) and vote to prevent the state of Texas from joining this march to take part in modern History of Infamy.

Texas Court Issues Warrant for DeLay

By SUZANNE GAMBOA, Associated Press Writer 45 minutes ago

AUSTIN, Texas – A Texas court Wednesday issued a warrant for Rep. Tom DeLay, ordering him to appear at the Fort Bend County jail for booking on state conspiracy and money laundering charges.

The court set an initial $10,000 bail as a routine step before the Texas Republican’s first court appearance Friday.

DeLay, R-Texas, could be fingerprinted and photographed, although his lawyers had hoped to avoid this step. DeLay will surrender in his home county, near Houston, although his court appearance will be in Austin.

Yahoo!

IBM Beats Expectations in Third Quarter
Monday October 17, 4:36 pm ET

By Brian Bergstein, AP Technology Writer
IBM Beats Analysts’ Expectations With $21.5 Billion in Third-Quarter Profit

BOSTON (AP) — Good results in hardware and services aided third-quarter profits at International Business Machines Corp., beating analysts’ forecasts for the technology bellwether.

Yahoo

Back from two weeks vacation, what did I miss?