Neither Mr. Romney nor Mr. Obama have distinguished
themselves lately with sensible verbiage. Come November
2012, I MAY just write myself in as a presidential
candidate; at least I can manage to be a bit more
circumspect and mindful of law and history when
speaking for publication.
Ordinarily I have favored Mr. Obama, had voted for
him, donated a tiny amount of money to his campaign,
etc. But his jejune anti-Supreme Court high-handed
high-hat "threat" proved he's no competent constitutional
scholar, his assistant professorship at the University
of Chicago notwithstanding. An unimpeachable truth:
the Supreme Court IS the court of last resort. No
president, unless and until our system is changed by
amendment under Article 5 of the Constitution, can
overrule the Supreme Court. Only a subsequent court
decision can achieve such reversals.
This is not to say that I side with/like the current
composition of the Supreme Court. These courts have
swung between uncaring right wing decisions and much
more humane judicial philosophy over the decades.
(For an eye-opening history of the court, read
The People's Court by Peter Irons, available at
most libraries.)
Mr. Obama is hurt and concerned that his healthcare
law overhaul, due to take effect in 2014, well may be
struck down in June 2012 by the court....just in time,
very possibly, to dent his prospects for reelection.
But I must ask, how could he mandate all Americans must
purchase health insurance coverage? No, that is NOT the
same thing as requiring auto insurance--at least there,
one can decide not to own/operate a car. (Try "operating"
without a body!)
The hubris and high elation of becoming this nation's
first black president skewed his judgement, to say
nothing of his inner circle's; the exigencies of economic
catastrophe should have been the ONLY focus of Mr.
Obama's first term. Yes, the White House dealt with the
Great Recession of 2008 (which continues), but even
more effective measures might have been enacted
without the distraction of promoting the healthcare
package. If Mr. Obama wanted to help America obtain
some justice from insurance companies, he should
have proposed only one change: abolish pre-existing
conditions as coverage disqualification by the insurance
establishment.
Amendments 9 and 10 don't authorize forcing millions
of people to buy anything; harking back to the Dred Scott
decision from 1857 (-?) is really reaching. Meanwhile,
the obstreperously lengthy healthcare overhaul which few
have read, fewer understand, and even fewer support, is
with us, at least 'til June.
During this presidential election season, many
major candidates should be washing out their
mouths with soap after they've extricated their
feet therefrom: free speech doesn't always betray
intelligent insight.
Exercising one's First Amendment privileges: not
always a good idea.
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Amber, I'm not comfortable with the mandate either for many of the same reasons you specified. But I couldn't imagine not casting my ballot for Obama, despite my misgivings about some of his other positions as well; particularly his over-reliance on Wall Street-connected economic advisors and his administration's militarily strident approach to Iran and unquestioning support of Israel.
ReplyDeleteAll that said, I realize that the "lesser of the evils syndrome" is once again rearing its ugly head. But I believe that a Republican sweep in November would have horrific consequences. There are also two vital words to consider: "Supreme Court".
Nonetheless, I believe you've made a convincing case regarding the constitutional issue.
Howdy, Dan!
DeleteYes, of course I too will be voting for Mr. O, but I find him not exponentially different from Romney et al, merely an incremental improvement. (He's pretty good in the foreign policy arena.)
Yes, he picked the wrong PERMANENT Wall Streeter advisers. He would have needed them initially, to figure out how/what had actually happened, but afterwards, he should have listened more to Pauls Volcker and Krugman, Simon Johnson, Ellen Warren, et al.
Now, where in any of my rants have I advocated for a republican sweep?? --Never ever. I'd like to see legislative bodies reflecting my ballot choices since 2006: democrat, republican, green, in that order.
No more misunderstandings/miscommunications--that's devoutly to be wished.
Best Wishes to you during tax time and
archiving activities--See you shortly after that, end of April-ish.
Dan, I added a new paragraph in the middle of the above post, re: the Supreme Court. It should put your mind at ease--I never support the likes of Alito or Thomas, with extremely rare exceptions....like when these jokers actually vote as if they understand the Constitution and its Bill of Rights.
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