Category Archives: Legislation
The Supreme Court’s Partisan Divide
There can be little doubt that the current Supreme Court is politically biased. When ruling on major politically polarized cases, the court is divided along party lines. One can almost guarantee the decisions of those cases. There are no longer … Continue reading
2nd Amendment – What you probably didn’t Know
To truly understand the entire context of the 2nd Amendment one must truly understand the concerns of state legislators at the time it was written by James Madison around 1789. There is a window into that time in history and the thinking that went into the writing of the Constitution and the Bill of Right through the Federalist Papers. Continue reading
President Who Speaks with Forked Tongue
“Man who speaks with forked tongue” has been attributed to how the Native American Indians described the White man throughout history. It describes a person who says one thing but means the very opposite. It is an apt description of … Continue reading
2nd Amendment – Right to Bear Arms?
The 2nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution seems rather straightforward to me: There is a purpose “Awell regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state…” and there is the expressed Right “…the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.” So why does the nation’s Supreme Court ignore the purpose of this Amendment and grant “the right of the people to keep and bear arms”? Continue reading
Children Demonstrate Against Gun Violence
Children have a powerful effect upon adults because when they speak against injustices to parents, government legislators, and local officials we are amazed at how mature they are. We always underestimate the intelligence of our youth… But when some get in front of the press and many demonstrate en masse as they are doing and shout enough is enough of this gun violence, adults start to pay attention because they put we adults to shame for failing them repeatedly after each mass shooting… I am so proud of our young children soon to be young adults. As a matter of fact, many are now of voting age and are registering to influence our legislators. They plan to make a difference in upcoming elections. Continue reading
A Complicated Nation in Search for Simple Solutions
Recent poles show Donald Trump by far the most popular Republican frontrunner for President. Trump presents very straight forward and simple solutions to many of America’s domestic and foreign policy issues. He is well-known for his reality shows as being quick and decisive, the sign of a good leader, at least that is the perception of many of his supporters. He reminds me a little of Ross Perot who ran as an independent some years ago. We like civil war heroes like Grant and Lee who quickly assessed a situation and decisively rallied their troops to victory even though those decisions cost tens of thousands of lives in America’s bloodiest conflict. Continue reading
Separation of Church and State
The First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States begins with: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…” This was the vary first sentence in the Bill of Rights written by the original authors of the Constitution because of its importance. Many people such as the Pilgrims came here to escape religious persecution by the Church of England which was part of the British Royal Crown. The question is how important is the separation of church from state in the context of today’s world as many fundamentalist Christians want their moral and religious values legislated into law. Continue reading
Immigration Myths
The President would like to see the passage of an immigration reform bill which would allow many undocumented immigrants to gain legal status. This is strongly opposed by many conservatives and Tea Party members who claim that illegal immigrants take … Continue reading
Historic Victory for Transparency as California DISCLOSE ACT, SB 52, Passes Senate Floor
Bill providing dramatically increased transparency and disclosure for political ads passes Senate floor on a 28-11 vote with bipartisan support. It now goes to the Assembly for a vote. Continue reading
Another Victory for Califronia DISCLOSE Act SB 52
The second victory on the road to transparent elections happened on Thursday, as the Senate Appropriations Committee passed SB 52, the California DISCLOSE Act, on a vote of 5-2. The DISCLOSE Act would force political ads to clearly list the top 3 actual donors to the political campaign. This makes it more difficult for deceptive political ads to fool the public. Continue reading
Confusing Political Ads – time for “California DISCLOSE Act” SB 52
AB 52, the California DISCLOSE Act, would fight back against unlimited hidden spending on campaigns by letting voters know who REALLY is paying for political ads — on the ads themselves. Continue reading