Free Republic

US Constitution - Art 1/Sect 9: No Capitation, or other direct, Tax shall be laid, unless in Proportion to the Census or enumeration herein before directed to be taken.

After Bush v. Gore and Citizens United, many despaired that the Supreme Court would be able to salvage its reputation as a politically neutral arbiter. As the Senate was considering his nomination to become this nation's 17th chief justice, John Roberts—once a star pupil in my constitutional law class—famously compared the role of a judge with that of an umpire, just calling the balls and strikes. In many respects, that analogy is a deeply flawed one. Constitutional rules are not black and white; there are many shades of grey in between, and it’s up to our highest court both to...

I am woman, hear me whine. With apologies to Helen Reddy, whose "roar" was heard 'round the world from the top of the Billboard Hot 100 in 1972. The new line, replacing roar with whine, hasn't found a place on the 21st century Hit Parade, but we've all heard versions of it. This latest wail was inspired by the latest feminist cause celebre, an Atlantic magazine cover story titled, "Why Women Still Can't Have It All." The article (and the controversy) by Anne-Marie Slaughter, a 53-year-old onetime star in the Obama constellation, has gone viral. She was the first woman...

The American Medical Association has long supported health insurance coverage for all, and we are pleased that this decision means millions of Americans can look forward to the coverage they need to get healthy and stay healthy. “The AMA remains committed to working on behalf of America's physicians and patients to ensure the law continues to be implemented in ways that support and incentivize better health outcomes and improve the nation's health care system.

(CNSNews.com) – House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Thursday that “It’s pretty exciting” that the Supreme Court upheld the health-care law’s individual mandate as a tax, saying now Sen. Ted Kennedy can “rest in peace.” “I knew that when he left us he would go to heaven and help pass the bill,” Pelosi said of the late Massachusetts Democratic senator. “Now I know he was busily at work until this decision came down, inspiring one way or another. And now he can rest in peace.” Pelosi, who had previously predicted a 6-3 victory for Obamacare, said the decision was...

Mr. Robert's convoluted constitutional gymnastics to justify voting with the forces of socialism and communism is without any legal merit. His opinion makes no sense constitutionally, legally and morally. There are two other reasons I am very suspicious of his vote on CommieCare: 1. Nancy Pelosi stated the day before the announcement of the decision that she thought Mr. Roberts would vote with the "majority," on this issue...i.e. the liberals. How on earth would Ms. Pelosi even suspect this development. She had absolutely no reason to think Mr. Roberts would do so unless she had some inside information. 2. Ms....

Choir of Westminster Abbey and the Sistine Chapel Choir together in St Peter's BasilicaAt the invitation of the Pope an Anglican delegation will attend the Papal Mass in St Peter’s Basilica on the Solemnity of Sts Peter and Paul. The delegation from Westminster Abbey in London will include several members of the clergy with the Choir and the Organist and Master of the Choristers. At the express wish of the Holy Father, the Choir of Westminster Choir of Westminster AbbeyAbbey will form one choir for the Mass with the Papal Choir, the Cappella Musicale Pontificia “Sistina”, under the direction of...

Conservatives are scratching their heads trying to figure out why Chief Justice of the Supreme Court John Roberts voted with the four liberal Justices on the Court 5-4 to uphold the constitutionality of the most controversial part of Obamacare. Even swing vote Justice Anthony Kennedy voted against it. The Obamacare individual mandate requires all Americans to purchase health insurance by 2014 or face jail time or huge monetary penalties. The majority decision, written by Roberts, characterizes the mandate as a tax permissible under the constitution's Tax Clause. But what if someone chooses not to buy health insurance, resulting in a...

The United States Supreme Court reaffirmed the power of words and rhetoric. Take a bow, Progressives. Clap. Clap. Clap. Clap. But beware the Pyrrhic victory, dear friends on the left -- the victory that cost too much. The Court has called you to account. This decision wraps and ribbons a gift to Republicans, the gift of a core issue that remains very unpopular with much of the voting public. Lemons to lemonade, they say. This decision presents the opposition with a rallying cry. If intuition serves, the Supremes have re-irritated an already addled giant. Make hay when it shines, they...

An exclusive interview with Archbishop Naumann about the HHS mandate, the Ryan budget, and what the Supreme Court ruling means for the religious freedom fight.Most Reverend Joseph F. Naumann, D.D., archbishop of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, has been an important figure in the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) as a member of the Committee on Pro-Life Activities and the Committee on Marriage and Family Life. He spoke yesterday with Carl E. Olson, editor of Catholic World Report, a few hours after the much-anticipated Supreme Court ruling on the Affordable Care Act, and shared his thoughts about...

Top Line ABC 'Nightline' anchor Terry Moran joined Top Line for a special edition dissecting the Supreme Court's decision on health care, a blockbuster ruling which upheld President Obama's signature piece of legislation. And the president and supporters of the law were not the only victors. Chief Justice John "Roberts rode to the rescue of the Obama health care plan, and maybe rode to the rescue of the Supreme Court, as well," says Moran, who has been covering the Supreme Court for many years. The justices have seen the esteem for the court diminish over these hyper partisan years. Since...

The passion of American ministers for political freedom in 1776 reflected their belief in religious toleration.On Sunday morning, Jan. 21, 1776, at a church in Woodstock, Va., Rev. Peter Gabriel Muhlenberg brought his sermon to a dramatic and unexpected crescendo. His text was taken from the book of Ecclesiastes. "The Bible tells us 'there is a time for all things,' and there is a time to preach and a time to pray," said Muhlenberg. "But the time for me to preach has passed away; and there is a time to fight, and that time has now come." Stepping down from...

KELLER, Texas – (KDAF) - Billboards are popping up in parts of Texas asking Catholics to quit the church. “I no longer want my name on their lists.I don’t want to be considered a Catholic at all,” said Zachary Moore. Moore, who is with the Dallas-Fort Worth Coalition of Reason, is doing what a billboard near I-30 and Highway 360 urged. He has decided to quit the church because he does not like the stand the church has taken on contraception. “The vast majority of Catholic women are using birth control and for the bishops to take the position that...

Good grief. I feel like these ailing Department of Energy-backed loan guarantees are so laughably many that they’re barely even worth noting anymore, but you’re darn tootin’ I’ll continue to do so as long as President Obama keeps acting like it’s the federal government’s divine right to pick and choose winners in the energy market on the taxpayers’ dime.Abound Solar, a company that President Obama has specifically touted by-name as a poster child of the glorious green future, was supposed to “creat[e] more than 2,000 construction jobs and 1,500 permanent jobs.” …Not quite. The company has been on the rocks...

Everyone knows and understands the meaning of responsibility as being responsible for our own actions. We reap what we sow. There is, however, another side to responsibility and that is taking things as they are and making them work. When my dad was eighteen years old, in 1940, it was discovered he had a brain tumor. He was told he had 6 months to live. They also told him there was a new type of surgery that he could try but he would only have a 10% chance of survival. He opted for the surgery anyway and passed away just...

Many of us are lamenting the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold PPACA. The law will almost certainly lead to increasing medical costs and significant disruptions in the provision of health-care services. Yet what must not go unnoticed is the fact that with parts of its decision today, the Court reaffirmed certain important core principles. The Court reminded the federal government that it has limited and enumerated powers. While the federal government is supreme in its sphere, it is not permitted to operate outside of its constitutionally defined role. The Court expressly rejected the federal government’s assertion that it could use...

Would you rather freely help Republicans in tough races beat the Democrats who voted for ObamaCare now, or would you rather pay dearly, for the rest of your life, "pay it out" to the Government, by the force of IRS thugs, as a tax later? These are the vulnerable Democrat Senators who you can help oust NOW: Bill Nelson (D-FL) Donate to His Opponent HERE Claire McCaskill (D-MO) Donate to Her Opponent HERE Jon Tester (D-MT) Donate to His Opponent HERE Ann Stabenow (D-MI) Donate to Her Opponent HERE Sherrod Brown (D-OH) Donate to His Opponent HERE There are also...

The U.S. Supreme Court's decision that President Obama's health care law is constitutional keeps it alive for now. But it's important to remember that the law has already lost in the court of public opinion. The Supreme Court ruling is a temporary reprieve more than anything else. In March, I wrote that the health care law was doomed even if it survived the court. Looking at the data today, it's hard to draw any other conclusion. Fifty-four percent of voters nationwide still want to see the law repealed. That's going to be a heavy burden for the Obama campaign to...

Shera Bechard, the Canadian-born former girlfriend of Playboy Enterprises founder Hugh Hefner, would not be an obvious candidate for the special visas that the U.S. government reserves for "individuals with extraordinary ability." Playboy magazine named Bechard Miss November in 2010, and she also started an online photo-sharing craze called "Frisky Friday." Neither seems quite on the level of an "internationally recognized award, such as a Nobel Prize," which the government cites as a possible qualification. But Los Angeles immigration lawyer Chris Wright argued that Bechard's accomplishments earned her a slot. The government ultimately agreed. That kind of success has put...

Obama alludes to profanity. We are living the movie "Idiocracy." History again imitates art. See the parallels here: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0387808/quotes Any of that sound like Obama