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Durbin Defends Enforcing SCOTUS Ruling That Upheld Japanese Internment In Attempted ‘Gotcha’ For Trump Nominee
The Federalist ^ | February 26, 2025 | Logan Washburn

Posted on 03/01/2025 8:07:00 AM PST by Twotone

While trying to catch President Donald Trump’s solicitor general nominee in a “gotcha” moment, Democrat Sen. Dick Durbin apparently defended enforcement of the infamous Supreme Court ruling that upheld the internment of more than one hundred thousand Japanese Americans during World War II.

“Let’s go back to Korematsu — describe for me that circumstance that you think relieved an official from obeying a court order,” Durbin said to solicitor general nominee Dean John Sauer. “As bad as it was, that court order was followed for years, was it not?”

In Korematsu v. U.S., the Supreme Court upheld the internment of 120,000 Japanese civilians during WWII. Sauer said the order “has now been, I think, correctly repudiated by virtually everyone.”

“I just wonder whether some historians might think we’d be better off if it hadn’t been followed,” Sauer said.

Durbin made the remark while questioning Sauer in his first confirmation hearing on Feb. 26 — alongside Harmeet Dhillon, nominee for assistant attorney general for civil rights, and Aaron Reitz, nominee for assistant attorney general for the Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Policy. If confirmed as solicitor general, Sauer will oversee litigation on behalf of the United States at the Supreme Court.

(Excerpt) Read more at thefederalist.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Editorial; Government; Japan; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections; US: Illinois
KEYWORDS: 14a; 14thamendment; 5a; 5thamendment; baka; dickdurbin; durbin; eo9066; executiveorder9066; fdr; fifthamendment; fourteenthamendment; internment; korematsu; prickdurbin; scotus; tds
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1 posted on 03/01/2025 8:07:00 AM PST by Twotone
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To: Twotone

His parents named him correctly........DICK


2 posted on 03/01/2025 8:08:53 AM PST by ronnie raygun
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To: Twotone

Little Dick needs a boot in the keister.


3 posted on 03/01/2025 8:10:11 AM PST by FlingWingFlyer (Schmucky Schumer says that Government "hard workers" are working anonymously.)
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To: Twotone

Supreme court: if we rule wrong, we will fix it in 100 years after 70 years of it being obvious. Like our fancy thin robes that serve no purpose EITHER?

Internment camps, dred scot, abortion, buffer zones, gay marriage....what useless twits


4 posted on 03/01/2025 8:17:18 AM PST by If You Want It Fixed - Fix It
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To: Twotone

Durbin was trying to use going along with a court “precedent” as being “constitutional” while repudiating, and returnng to court against a “precedent” is not. Durbin is wrong. SCOTUS is not “the Constitution” and is not infallible.


5 posted on 03/01/2025 8:20:15 AM PST by Wuli (qq)
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To: Twotone

I never like when it becomes so easy and popular to denounce something or someone.

No interest in defending slavery, but we had slavery and that was the evil. Expecting a bunch of Southern Supreme Court Justices to overturn the consequences of slavery would be highly unrealistic. Defying the decision? Maybe. But that would have torn the country apart sooner, an interesting prospect.

Korematsu - Hm. WW2, survival of the nation, dual citizenship. Better not to have done the internment camps? Ok. Defy the law during WW2? That’s a maybe as well.

Just my reaction. We needed to survive WW2.


6 posted on 03/01/2025 8:28:47 AM PST by Williams (Thank God for the election of President Trump!)
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To: Wuli
"Durbin is wrong. SCOTUS is not “the Constitution” and is not infallible."

Especially some of the newer Justices now sitting.

7 posted on 03/01/2025 8:29:30 AM PST by fella ("As it was before Noah so shall it be again," )
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To: Williams

There are always exceptions. But in Korematsu, people were essentially jailed without having committed a crime. If they were dual citizens, perhaps they should’ve been deported. And no effort was made to protect their assets. They lost everything. That was truly an evil decision, & it’s sad that more did not stand against it. Including SCOTUS.


8 posted on 03/01/2025 8:37:30 AM PST by Twotone ( What's the difference between a politician & a flying pig? The letter "F.")
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To: Williams

No interest in defending slavery, but we had slavery and that was the evil. Expecting a bunch of Southern Supreme Court Justices to overturn the consequences of slavery would be highly unrealistic.


There was no Constitutional way for SCOTUS or the Federal government to ban slavery in 1860. States could ban it like Massachusetts or limit it like N.Y.

The U.K. banned slavery but compensated slave owners. But the U.K.’s government really isn’t limited by written constitution. And the U.K. was rich enough (or could easily borrow the money). I don’t think any state could have done that.

That said, the Dred Scott decision declaring that blacks, free or slaves , had no rights was an abomination that was still ‘the law of the land’ even after the Civil War. Took the 14th Amendment to undo the Scott ruling.


9 posted on 03/01/2025 8:47:37 AM PST by hanamizu ( )
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To: Twotone

BTTT


10 posted on 03/01/2025 8:51:23 AM PST by nopardons
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To: Twotone

Just another Illinois loser.


11 posted on 03/01/2025 8:52:56 AM PST by Maudeen (https://patburt.com/ (a true story to share); https://thereishopeinjesus.com/)
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To: Twotone

Now what does the queer Japanese guy who spent time in one of FDR’s internment camps say?


12 posted on 03/01/2025 8:54:14 AM PST by jmaroneps37 (Freedom is never free. It must be won rewon and jealously guarded.)
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To: jmaroneps37

Now what does the queer Japanese guy who spent time in one of FDR’s internment camps say?


“Oh my!”


13 posted on 03/01/2025 8:58:31 AM PST by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
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To: Twotone
The U.S. Constitution states: "The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it."

Does the threat of a Japanese invasion constitute a "Case of Invasion". I think so.

The way Japanese internment was handled was very unfair to the Japanese affected.

It was also pretty unfair to draft nineteen-year-olds and demand that they march through machinegun fire to hold the Normandy beaches.

I think our Founders were quite aware of just how difficult it is to conduct a war.

14 posted on 03/01/2025 9:13:30 AM PST by William Tell
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To: Twotone

Their homes and stuff should have been protected, for sure.

What’s interesting and I don’t know how true this is, is part of the reason for the internment camps was to protect the innocent Japanese Americans from retribution by some of the virulent anti-Japanese sentiment people felt.

Which, knowing human nature and our history, is plausible.


15 posted on 03/01/2025 9:17:00 AM PST by metmom (He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon." Amen. Come, Lord Jesus)
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To: If You Want It Fixed - Fix It

Excellent post—you nailed it.

The judges are human—and their track record is dubious.


16 posted on 03/01/2025 9:21:31 AM PST by cgbg (The Democrat Party is a criminal enterprise.)
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To: Twotone

Democrats are the party of slavery and the party that interned the Japanese.


17 posted on 03/01/2025 9:25:30 AM PST by DFG
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To: Twotone
Showing up dressed like a slob was the first insult. JD Vance always dresses appropriately.

18 posted on 03/01/2025 9:25:40 AM PST by Governor Dinwiddie ( O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is gracious, and His mercy endureth forever. — Psalm 106)
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To: William Tell

There was certainly a lot of fear that we might be invaded, but it hadn’t happened yet.

Was the internment a necessary evil or not? We’ll never know for sure, but it was certainly against our basic civil rights & principles.


19 posted on 03/01/2025 9:29:53 AM PST by Twotone ( What's the difference between a politician & a flying pig? The letter "F.")
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To: metmom

Another reason I have read is, there were quite a few spies amongst the population, and we knew who they were because we had cracked the Japanese codes. However, had we only arrested the spies, the Japanese would have known we had cracked their codes and changed them, so, to ensure continued use of the broken codes, we interred everyone, including the spies. The plan “worked” - the codes weren’t changed, at the cost of the rights of many thousands of innocent people


20 posted on 03/01/2025 9:32:06 AM PST by coloradan (They're not the mainstream media, they're the gaslight media. It's what they do. )
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