Free Republic

U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts’ swing vote to uphold ‘Obamacare’ under Congress’s taxing powers has drawn praise from his usual critics. One top Democratic senator lauded Roberts’ “judicial independence” in saving President Obama’s signature law, but also argued that the Bush-appointed jurist broke his promise by narrowing the scope of the Commerce Clause. In his opinion, Roberts explained in detail why he believes his view is not inconsistent with precedent, siding with conservative architects of the legal challenge in the argument that Congress may not regulate inaction. “In my view it certainly merited upholding under the Commerce Clause,” said Sen....

I would caution my fellow conservatives on the frustration they may be enticed to express at Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts. It is unwarranted, and it is unwise. The reason I state such is that it is my firm belief that the Roberts' decision on the Obamacare mandate will without question bring about ultimate doom to the government control of healthcare, and through the best means possible--not judicial activism--but through the democratic process. In boxing terminology no one has pulled a "rope-a-dope" this effective since Muhammad Ali himself. In doing so, it is clear that John Roberts duped the...

After wounding socialism, why didn’t Roberts go for the glory and slay Obamacare while he could? Chief Justice stepped aside to let We the People do the honors.

As part of damage control after US, French leaders overheard ridiculing Israeli premier, deputy national security advisor tells reporters 'Obama has taken security cooperation with Israel to unprecedented levels' WASHINGTON – US President Barack Obama has a "very close working relationship with Prime Minister Netanyahu. They speak very regularly," Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes said Wednesday, days after Obama and French President Nicolas Sarkozy were overheard ridiculing the Israeli leader during a private exchange at the G20 summit in Cannes. Briefing reporters at the White House, Rhodes said, "I think they've probably spent more time one on one than...

Supporters of obamacare claim the president simply delivered what he promised during the campaign, so the American people should stop demanding the law's repeal. But that isn't true. As a candidate, Obama actually campaigned against many of the law's most important provisions. Obama's biggest policy switch came on the mandate that all Americans buy health insurance coverage. The health care plan Obama unveiled to great fanfare in 2007 and henceforth campaigned on contained no mandate. Hillary Clinton's plan did. Obama attacked Clinton's mandate relentlessly. He said the right reform was not to pass a mandate, but to lower costs. "The...

What can we deduce about the state of mind of those who rally, sometimes with remarkable fervor, behind a man they know nothing about? Abdication of reason. In the Emory Wheel, the student newspaper of Emory College, Josh Prywes reported, “Pollster Frank Luntz asked college students at a recent focus group to name the candidate they were going to vote for. All of them said Obama, but when Luntz followed up by asking them to name a single accomplishment of the senator, they couldn’t name one. Nobody could name a single accomplishment that Senator Obama has achieved” (emphasis mine throughout)....

Since it now seems very imminent, I decided that it was an appropriate time to start this up. Links to information and pictures (if we get them) can be posted here.

SACRAMENTO — In the sanctuary of his Capitol office with an audio recorder rolling, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger describes Republican legislators as the "wild bunch" and, referring to a Latina lawmaker, casually says that "black blood" mixed with "Latino blood" equals "hot" — a fiery personality. The governor is heard on a six-minute recording, obtained by The Times, of a meeting with some members of his inner circle last spring. At the time, Schwarzenegger was struggling to persuade Republican lawmakers to embrace his plan to place billions of dollars in borrowing on the November ballot.It's unclear why the session was taped,...

Up until a couple of weeks ago, George W. Bush's script to put the misery of 2005 behind him had seemed destined for a smooth rollout. Buoyed by the apparent success of the Iraqi elections, the President would score a quick confirmation victory with Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito, follow it up with a soaring State of the Union address and then return to full campaign mode with a sweep around the country, talking about big issues like immigration and Medicare and throwing the spotlight on a resurgent economy. But the revelation that his Administration has been spying in this...

Bush rope-a-dopes libs … again By Dave Weinbaum Never lower your head to someone that possesses a lethal uppercutBush has suffered the insults of arrogant Southpaws as long as he's been winning elections. In fact, some might say, Jr. WINS elections because of the sympathy his verbal lashings beget both from Repubs and moderate Dems. Like Reagan before him, W has learned how to handle the insults and turn them into his advantage. Unlike Ronnie, Bush can't out-charm, out-banter, or out story-tell his degraders. Bush is now the master of the kind of political rope-a-dope that would have Ali jealous....

The New York Times reports on a memo that Colin Powell reportedly carried aboard Air Force One on a trip to Africa the week before Robert Novak named Valerie Plame as a CIA agent. The importance of this memo revolves around the people who accompanied the President and Powell on the Africa trip and the fact that it describes the circumstances of Joe Wilson's hiring for the mission to Niger. However, the report by Richard Stevenson makes several factual errors that even a quick perusal of the Intelligence Committee report would correct. The first error committed by Stevenson is one...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush says he regrets sending the wrong impression of the United States by using phrases like "Bring 'em on" and "dead or alive" in his first term and has pledged to be more diplomatic. In an interview with ABC's Barbara Walters to be broadcast on Friday, Bush said some of his past remarks were too blunt. "'Bring it on,' was a little blunt," the president said in a transcript of the interview released on Thursday. "I remember when I talked about Osama bin Laden, I said we're going to get him dead or alive....

Opening her show, Judy Woodruff stated that CNN asked the President (after his Wisconsin rally) directly about the missing weapons. She said that the president, "Declined to comment."

THE "FLIP-FLOP" CHARGE WAS A DIVERSION? The guys at CrushKerry.com interview a GOP campaign operative - I think I know who they're talking to, and if I'm right, their description of his title and duties is accurate - and get a sense of an emerging strategy shift on the Bush campaign:~~~~~~~~~~~ We recently expressed our frustration over the “flip-flop” narrative with a veteran GOP campaign operative in daily contact with, and in some cases working side by side with, high-level "Bush/Cheney 04" campaign officials, and asked them why, given all the evidence that this message had long since played itself...

SEPARATE HOTEL ROOMS AFTER SHOUTING MATCH

California, spawning ground of the great anti-tax revolt that vaulted Ronald Reagan into the White House, appears pregnant with yet another populist rebellion. Hundreds of thousands of Californians have now signed petitions for an election to recall Gov. Gray Davis. A decade ago, Chief Justice Rose Bird and two colleagues were recalled from the California Supreme Court for refusing to impose the death penalty. Yet, no governor has ever suffered that indignity, though 31 attempts have been made. Why could Gray Davis become the first? Because, with an approval rating at 27 percent, a majority of voters are now telling...

Bush and the art of rope a dope U.S. President as fast on his feet as the boxer Ali Matt Welch National Post Saturday, February 08, 2003 LOS ANGELES - For a quick case study of how George W. Bush's government successfully manages the terms of the Iraq debate and continues to extract concessions from Saddam Hussein, consider the mere fact that it was Secretary of State Colin Powell making the case for war on Wednesday in front of the United Nations. As recently as the second week of January, Powell was still the doves' last great hope and the...

<p>When you tell a lie, the number of words it takes to fool the listener seems directly proportional to the size of the untruth. The strategy is to cover up a misdeed by overwhelming the reader or listener with so much information that the lie will either not be noticed or believed.</p>

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush ( news - web sites) promised Wednesday to seek Congress' approval for "whatever is necessary" to oust Saddam Hussein ( news - web sites) including using military force, as the White House considered giving Iraq a last-ditch ultimatum over weapons inspectors. House Speaker Dennis Hastert said Congress would vote before the Nov. 5 elections on how to deal with the Iraqi president, ensuring that Iraq is a high-profile issue in the campaign for control of the House and Senate. Democrats who control the Senate said the non-binding resolution is possible but not certain because...