Putin Says Western Elites Are the Enemy

 If ever there was a question, about whether there was an affinity between Vladimir Putin and the Trumpist movement in the United States, any doubt was extinguished by Putin’s speech at a conference in Russia on Thursday. Echoing the racist canards of the MAGA crowd and other autocratic leaders in the West, Putin declared that they had a common enemy, namely Western elites. Dripping with antisemitism, and using the dog whistles of the ultra-right, he identified these elites as aggressive, cosmopolitan neoliberals who are trying to impose their “pretty strange values on everyone else “. Putin contrasted these “common enemies “with those in the West who follow traditional, Christian values.

Trump and his following may decry evidence of collusion with Putin, in past elections and current rhetoric, but the handwriting is on the wall. There is a growing coalescence in both the West and the East to find scapegoats for unpopular policies and a justification for abandoning democratic government.

Alito Says Roe Leak Altered Atmosphere

 

The interview of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, as recounted by Adam Liptak (10/26, A22), confirms that Justice Alito is a hypocrite who invokes constitutional shibboleths to camouflage his activist approach to judging. His record on First Amendment cases is revelatory. He is a strong proponent of free speech when that protection benefits corporations and the wealthy (Citizens United) and a dissenter when that right is relied upon by persons or organizations he disfavors. 

He professes to be offended by attacks on the Court's integrity even as he regularly spurns precedents, contrary to assurances given at his confirmation hearing, and reaches to adjudicate issues not requiring judicial scrutiny to advance his political and religious agenda. Justice Alito is a radical jurist whose invocation of originalism is dishonest and intellectually disingenuous; he has undermined the Court's credibility and weakened respect for the rule of law, adding to the growing threat to our democracy.

Russia Analyst Behind Dossier Wins Acquittal

 

So, Igor Danchenko, the source of the infamous Trump dossier, has been acquitted by a jury of lying to the FBI. The greatest scandal in US history, as described by Sean Hannity of Fox News, has ended with a whimper, not a bang. Special Counsel John Durham, appointed by former Attorney-General William Barr to unearth Deep State corruption of historic proportion, has found virtually no wrong-doing and, as to the two minor cases he did bring, he has struck out each time. President Obama, Hillary Clinton and James Comey can now rest easy; they will not, as forecast, be going to jail.

The Latino Vote

 The apparent erosion of Latino support for Democrats, evidenced by the trend in recent polls, is most disturbing as that vote is likely to determine the direction and even the continued existence of our democracy for generations.

What is especially troubling is the indication that Latino men, whose reservations about Democrats had been rooted in their aversion to what they identified as socialist tendencies reminiscent of the policies their families fled, now seem increasingly attracted to the autocratic approach manifested by Republicans which mirrors the dictatorial evils they formerly rejected.
Republicans have been promoting this tendency by appealing to racial differences between Black and Brown and focusing on the influx of new immigrants which, they suggest, threatens the economic well-being and social acceptance of Latino-Americans.
How Democrats respond to this phenomenon is likely to be of cosmic significance, and still to be developed, and will undoubtedly determine this country’s future.

Judge Overrules Special Master

 Judge Aileen M. Cannon has further demonstrated her lack of fitness to serve on the federal bench. First, she ruled that a special master must be appointed to review the documents seized at former president Donald Trumps's Mara Lago estate and stayed the Justice Department's investigation of their removal and retention, a decision that has been roundly criticized in legal circles and partially reversed by an appellate court. Judge Cannon appointed as special master Judge Raymond Dearie, the candidate recommended by Mr. Trump's lawyers.

When it became apparent that Judge Dearie, a senior federal district judge, was acting decisively and with dispatch, disappointing the Trump legal team's expectations and strategy for delay and obfuscation, Judge Cannon intervened to tether Judge Dearie and slow him down. By patently putting her thumb on the scales of justice, to advantage the man who appointed her, Judge Cannon is bringing disrepute to the federal judiciary and undermining the rule of law.

The Justice Department should consider appealing this latest travesty; failing that, Judge Dearie should consider issuing a noisy resignation as special master.

Republicans Eye a New Constitution

 

The American constitution, the world's oldest, is justly venerated as the touchstone of a democratic society. Together with certain of its amendments, it enshrines and protects many basic human rights and civil liberties. As a symbol, it remains a grand and inspiring work of political genius. As a working document, interpreted by an originalist Supreme Court, it is a straitjacket that impedes changes required by an evolving reality.

Oddly, the pressure to rewrite the constitution is coming from both the Left and the Right and many progressives and conservatives share a concern that a new constitution will wipe away the protection and advantages each side prizes. Recent legislative actions and inactions and decisions of the Supreme Court have made transparent the need for a major overhaul of our founding document. The dilemma posed is how to accomplish this without putting in jeopardy the bedrock principles of a democracy and risking the adoption of a document that is nationalistic, homophobic, gender-biased, religiously slanted and gun-centered.

The bottom line is that a new constitution must be adopted by a broad spectrum of the American people, not by a vote of states which may constitute a majority but represent less than a majority of the electorate. Indeed, the phenomenon of lightly populated states wielding disproportionate influence over national priorities is one of the defects of our electoral system that should be remedied by a new constitution.

Simmering Feud Peaks in Search of Trump's Home

 

The court-approved search of the estate used by former president Donald Trump as a home and backdrop for his political machinations, for documents belonging to the government and wrongfully taken by Mr. Trump has triggered a not unexpected backlash by his aroused base. Though the decision to conduct the search was striking it was perfectly lawful, consistent with actions taken by the Department of Justice in the past against other high ranking public officials who disregarded the law governing document handling and furthers the important principle that no one is above the law.
While the search certainly has political implications and is fair game for criticism on that score by Trump allies, what is especially troubling is the irresponsible rhetoric of Republican public officials, who use false assertions and unwarranted assumptions to fan the dangerous anger erupting within that segment of Trump’s following that perpetrated the assault on the nation's capital. These undisguised calls for war are bound to move the violent fringe to act out in ways that will wreak havoc and further strain the rule of law already close to breaking.