"Anti-war protesters held up blood-red hands behind Secretary of State John Kerry Wednesday as he made the Obama administration's case for military action in Syria. During Kerry's remarks to the House Foreign Affairs Committee, protesters dressed in pink were scattered in the gallery behind the former senator with the palms of their hands painted red — to symbolize blood — and bright pink duct tape over their mouths." Continue reading →
"When Breitbart News asked Maketa what he thought of the recall efforts, he said: 'I firmly believe that if voters think their representatives are not representing their views fairly, then they ought to be able to fire them.' 'Constituents should be able to fire representatives who ignore constituents,' Maketa stated. 'Voters think the two senators currently being recalled dismissed their opinions--literally said they did not want to hear from them--and when a representative shows that kind of arrogance, that kind of tyranny, the people ought to be able to fire them.'" Continue reading →
"Federal lawmakers who plan to vote in favor of a U.S. military strike against Syria 'might as well start cleaning out' their office, U.S. Rep. Justin Amash said Thursday. Amash, R-Cascade Township, tweeted that the 'unprecedented level of public opposition' to military intervention in the country should beg for dissenting votes. Amash garnered national attention for hosting 11 town hall meetings this week to gauge opinion on President Barack Obama's request for Congress to approve a Syria strike. The sophomore lawmaker, whose mother was born in Syria, estimated 95 percent of those who turned out at meetings throughout his district were opposed to intervention." Continue reading →
"The obama regime spies on the entire world and lies about it. The obama regime is fully engaged in killing people in seven countries, a murderous rampage that not even Hitler attempted. Whether the criminal obama regime can purchase the collaboration of Congress and the European puppet states in a transparent war crime will soon be decided. The decision will determine the fate of the world. Are the American people and the rest of the world just going to stand there, sucking their thumbs, while a new Nazi State rises in Washington? Congress must vote down the war and make it clear to obama that if he defies the constitutional power of Congress he will be impeached." Continue reading →
"Pundits on both sides of the aisle say losing the high-stakes bid for congressional authorization would make Obama an instant lame-duck, and might well endanger his entire second-term agenda. On Thursday afternoon, as the whip counts were being tallied, the realization dawned in the nation’s capital that President Obama is perilously close to what would be an historic, humiliating international rebuke. To date, no major military power or international organization has supported Obama’s stated intention to launch a cruise-missile barrage at Assad, the so-called 'shot across the bow.'" Continue reading →
"Initiating airstrikes in Syria would undermine rather than uphold the credibility of the UN Charter, which generally permits the use of non-defensive force only with Security Council authorization. That has not been granted. The charter’s purpose is in fact to prevent individual states from engaging in the sort of international policing the US is proposing to undertake in Syria. Ultimately, it isn’t clear where the administration could turn for legal justification in the event of a no vote in Congress. Even without a strong legal foundation, if the administration decides to proceed with airstrikes, there isn’t much Congress could do to stop it." Continue reading →
"As President Obama continues to push for a plan of limited military intervention in Syria, a New York Times/CBS News poll showed that though just 1 in 4 Americans believe that the United States has a responsibility to intervene in the Syrian conflict, more than 90 percent of the public is convinced that putting all 535 representatives of the United States Congress on the ground in Syria—including Senate pro tempore Patrick Leahy, House Speaker John Boehner, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, and, in fact, all current members of the House and Senate—is the best course of action at this time." Continue reading →
"'Smart Approaches to Marijuana' sends a letter to the DOJ: Re: State Laws Legalizing Marijuana: 'We represent tens of thousands of people working in drug prevention, drug and mental health treatment, medicine, criminal justice reform, and millions of individuals and families in recovery from alcohol and drug dependence.' Of course, it’s signed by a Who’s Who of people who profit from marijuana prohibition. Patrick Kennedy, Kevin Sabet, Peter Bensinger, Robert DuPont, Calvina Fay, Howard Meitiner, Steven J. Pasierb, Betty Sembler, and some others in the treatment industry." Continue reading →
"The political class is subject to a different set of laws than the rest of us. Instead of a nation based upon the idea that all citizens have equal rights before the law, politicians, bureaucrats, and their minions are regularly shown special preference. In the words of George Orwell, 'some animals are more equal than others.' While some states are now liberalizing their drugs laws, America — the Land of the Free — has the highest incarceration rate in the world due to the War on Drugs. On the other hand, Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama have both admitted to using marijuana when they were younger. Many other high government officials are on the record as marijuana users." Continue reading →
"Facing competing pressures as he fends off a conservative challenger for re-election, Mitch McConnell is steering clear so far of the debate over whether to attack Syria. The potency of the GOP’s hawkish wing is waning as isolationist sentiments flourish within the conservative movement. The deep-pocketed Heritage Action is against military action. Many Republicans are leaning that way. The public is weary of more war. And being on the same side as Obama is not a comfortable place for Republicans to be politically. 2016 hopefuls Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Rand Paul (R-KY) both voted against the use of force in committee Wednesday." Continue reading →