Attorney General Merrick Garland should pay attention to what the United States Supreme Court said on Monday in a landmark ruling on Colorado’s decision to remove former President Trump from that state’s primary ballot.
In a unanimous 9-0 verdict, the Supreme Court overturned Colorado’s decision and ruled that states cannot kick Trump off the ballot over his alleged “insurrectionist” actions on January 6. The ruling said:
Because the Constitution makes Congress, rather than the states, responsible for enforcing Section 3 against all federal officeholders and candidates, we reverse.
The decision immediately nullified similar bans on Trump by Maine and, recently, Illinois. Regardless of party, all future presidents will no longer be subject to the humiliation of being denied ballot access by overzealous state officials. States are still at liberty to disqualify candidates from holding or seeking state office.
The 9-0 decision is a stern reminder to lawfare-loving Garland and the Left that using laws to settle disputes with political opponents stifles democracy, and interfering in elections by using the state’s judicial power is a firm no-no. Every justice, from the far left of the spectrum to the far right, felt that it was critical to say so.
The decision couldn’t have come at a better time. Over the weekend, AG Garland was at it again. Having unleashed Jack Smith as a Special Prosecutor to viciously go after Trump in friendly Washington DC courts and in Florida, on a skimpy obstruction of justice charge regarding the handling of classified documents, Garland turned to a favorite topic of his: “Fighting discriminatory, burdensome, and unnecessary voter ID election laws.”
Speaking to a predominantly African-American crowd at Black Selma church service, he said:
The right to vote is still under attack, and that is why the Justice Department is fighting back. We are challenging efforts by states and jurisdictions who implement discriminatory, burdensome, and unnecessary restrictions on access to the ballot, including those related to mail-in voting, the use of drop boxes and voter ID requirements.
No, AG Garland, the right to vote is NOT under attack. Georgia, which passed its reform laws after the 2020 election and invited a boycott of woke companies, including Major League Baseball (which canceled the All-Star game in Atlanta), reported that more voters and more minority voters participated in the 2022 elections than at any time in Georgia history. Even Stacey Abrams, the losing candidate for governor in 2018, who never conceded her defeat and became a media darling, accepted that she lost her rematch against Brian Kemp.
In Garland’s world, it should be easy for people to vote even if they do not provide convincing proof that they are American citizens. He believes that requiring voters to obtain a voter ID to present on Election Day is so burdensome that poll workers should not insist on such proof and let people in to vote anyway.
Garland’s position is so left-wing that it does not make any sense to most Americans. Presenting some form of picture identification is required on a daily basis in numerous life circumstances, including opening a bank account, receiving a welfare check, buying cigarettes, or entering a federal building.
An American citizen’s most storied privilege and right is to participate in our democracy. Unlike citizens of many countries, an American’s choice can be profoundly consequential, given the country’s global standing. For a voter to gain entry to a polling booth, most states require voters to present some form of photo identification where the photo matches the face, and the name and address on the identification match official records. According to Garland, requiring this photo identification is ‘discriminatory, burdensome, and unnecessary.’
Texas has one of the most stringent voter rules in the country—a state that is constantly on Garland’s radar. Even Texas allows voters to present just one of seven IDs to prove citizenship. And do you know, AG Garland, how much the Texas ID costs? $6 for citizens 60 and older, valid for six years (that’s $1 a year). If you’re 59 or younger, it costs $16, again, good for six years. This is burdensome?
Suppose a voter does not have even one of the seven IDs mentioned above? In that case, they can still fill out a Reasonable Impediment Declaration form, show one of six other documents, such as a utility bill, bank statement, or paycheck, and vote. The ballot is later verified by the county and counted if the document presented is valid. How, pray Garland, is any of this discriminatory, burdensome, and unnecessary?
The only reasonable conclusion we can draw is that Garland is OK with people casting their votes even if they’re not eligible to vote – that is, cheating – demeaning the very nature of American participatory democracy. It is a preposterous position for the chief law enforcement officer of the United States to take.
The Department of Justice has the power to litigate against states and counties leading up to Election Day to scare poll workers into allowing ineligible voters to cast their ballots. An aggressive DOJ could paralyze elections by going to federal court and seeking injunctions against polling stations, confusing voters’ when concern regarding election integrity is at the top of people’s minds. Indeed, Garland boasted that he would do precisely that. He said he has doubled the staff of the office within the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division focusing on elections.
Our latest TIPP poll shows that President Biden is leading former President Trump by only one point, well within the margin of error. Americans are deeply concerned about the country’s direction, with 67% in the RealClearPolitics average saying the country is on the wrong track.
Garland’s plan is clear: Unleash the incredible power of the DOJ to neutralize common-sense election integrity laws across the Red states and deliver the White House back to Biden.
TIPP Takes
Geopolitics, Geoeconomics, And More
1. Mediators In Cairo Push For Ceasefire On Second Day Of Gaza Truce Talks – Al Arabiya
Qatari and Egyptian mediators met with U.S. and Hamas envoys – but no Israeli delegates so far – in Cairo, aiming for a halt in fighting before the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan starts on March 10 or 11.
The plan on the table aims for a six-week truce, the exchange of scores of remaining hostages for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, and for more aid to enter Gaza – but sticking points remain.
2. Ukraine Is ‘Definitely Russia,’ Former President Dmitry Medvedev Says – Reuters
In a bellicose speech, Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council and an ally of President Vladimir Putin, said Russia would prosecute what it calls its “special military operation” until the other side capitulated.
He said that historical parts of Russia should “return home.”
He ruled out peace talks with the current Ukrainian leadership led by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. He said any future Ukrainian government that wanted talks would need to recognize what he called the new reality on the ground.
3. Kremlin: Leak Shows West’s ‘Involvement’ In Ukraine – AFP
The Kremlin said the content of leaked conversations between German officials discussing potential strikes on the Crimea Peninsula proved that Western countries were participating in the war in Ukraine.
The leaks were an embarrassment for Berlin, which is under pressure to supply Taurus missiles to Kyiv and is struggling with ammunition shortages. The conversations “once again highlight the collective West’s direct involvement in the Ukraine conflict,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
4. Ukraine Military Official: Half Of All North Korean Shells Are Duds – RFA
Russia imported more than 1.5 million artillery shells from North Korea to cover its insufficient arms production, but about half of the shells are duds, a Ukrainian military official said.
South Korean military analysts also told Radio Free Asia that the shells that do fire cannot be aimed precisely and sometimes even cause casualties among the Russian ranks.
South Korea said last week that the number of artillery shells North Korea has sent to Russia could be as high as 3 million.
5. German FM Pushes For E.U. Enlargement To Include Western Balkans – RFE/RL
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock wants to accelerate E.U. enlargement to include Western Balkan countries such as Montenegro and Bosnia-Herzegovina in the face of Russian and Chinese attempts to exert influence in the region.
“The faster we become stronger as a European Union in these geopolitical times, the better,” Germany’s top diplomat said at a meeting with Montenegrin colleague Filip Ivanovic in the capital, Podgorica.
6. National People’s Congress: China Sets Ambitious 2024 Economic Target – BBC
China has set an ambitious growth target of around 5% this year, outlining measures to boost its flagging economy.
Premier Li Qiang announced the opening of the annual National People’s Congress (NPC). Mr Li acknowledged that China’s economic performance had faced “difficulties,” adding that many of these had “yet to be resolved.” It comes as China struggles to reinvigorate its once-booming economy.
7. China Cancels Premier’s Annual News Conference – RFA
China announced that it was canceling an annual news conference by Premier Li Qiang, which had offered journalists a rare opportunity to pose questions to a senior Chinese leader for years.
The move would shield Li from having to answer questions deemed too politically sensitive for a live televised event, current affairs commentator Johnny Lau said.
The traditional news conference at the close of the annual parliamentary session has happened every year since 1993.
8. China Defense Budget Grows 7.2% Despite Other ‘Belt-Tightening’ – Nikkei Asia
China’s annual defense spending is set to grow well above the country’s economic growth target of “around 5%,” amid high tensions with the U.S. and festering disputes over Taiwan.
The Ministry of Finance submitted its annual budget plan to the National People’s Congress on the same day Premier Li Qiang delivered his government work report. The defense increase will bring the budget for 2024 to nearly 1.67 trillion yuan ($232 billion).
9. U.N. Rights Chief Calls On China To Protect Human Rights In Tibet And Xinjiang – RFA
U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk commented while delivering an address to the Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland, updating its members on various themes and country situations.
Activists criticized his comments as weak and not backed up by action. Sophie Richardson, former China director of Human Rights Watch, called Türk’s address “a weak performance,” saying he seemed “completely unmotivated by the agony and the pressure and the abuses that people across China are enduring.”
10. Ships Entering Yemeni Waters Must Obtain A Permit: Houthi Minister – Reuters
The territorial waters affected by the Yemeni order extend halfway out into the 12-mile-wide Bab al-Mandab Strait, the narrow mouth of the Red Sea through which around 15 percent of the world’s shipping traffic passes on its way to or from the Suez Canal.
Houthi militants have repeatedly launched drones and missiles against international commercial shipping in the Gulf of Aden since mid-November, saying they are acting in solidarity with Palestinians against Israel’s offensive in Gaza.
11. At Least Four Submarine Internet Cables ‘Cut’ In Red Sea, Houthis Deny Role – WION
Cables belonging to four major operators have been cut, which might also impact internet traffic in India, Pakistan, and parts of East Africa.
None of the operators have yet disclosed the reason behind the cuts. Yemen also denied its role in the suspected sabotage. However, the West-backed Yemeni government in previous weeks had warned that Houthi rebels might seek to disrupt these cables. Yemeni rebel leader Abdel Malek al-Houthi denied the allegations.
12. North Korea Hacks S. Korean Semiconductor Equipment Firms: Spy Agency – Yonhap
North Korea has conducted cyber attacks against South Korean semiconductor equipment companies since last year, Seoul’s spy agency, advising the local chips industry to take caution.
According to the National Intelligence Service (NIS), a North Korean cyber group attacked two South Korean semiconductor equipment companies in December and February, aiming to obtain blueprints of their products and photos of facilities.
13. “Reckless”: North Korea Slams South Korea-U.S. Drills, Warns Of Consequences – Reuters
North Korea’s defense ministry called on South Korea and the United States to stop military drills, saying they are rehearsals of war and warning of consequences, KCNA reported.
An unnamed spokesperson of Pyongyang’s defense ministry said it strongly denounces what it called “frantic, reckless” military drills, urging them to stop, KCNA said.
14. Abortion Is Enshrined As A Constitutional Right In France – RFI
French lawmakers overwhelmingly approved a bill that will enshrine a woman’s right to an abortion in France’s constitution. The historic move is designed to prevent the kind of rollback of abortion rights seen in the United States in recent years.
The vote makes France the first country to have a constitutional right to abortion since the former Yugoslavia inscribed it in its 1974 constitution. Serbia’s 2006 constitution carries on that spirit, stating that “everyone has the right to decide on childbirth.”
15. Apple Facing €1.8bn E.U. Fine For Breaking Music Streaming Competition Law – RFI
The European Union issued its first antitrust penalty against Apple on Monday, fining the U.S. tech giant €1.8 billion for breaking the bloc’s competition laws by unfairly favoring its own music streaming service over rivals.
Apple banned app developers from “fully informing iOS users about alternative and cheaper music subscription services outside of the app,” said the European Commission, the 27-nation bloc’s executive arm and top antitrust enforcer.
16. Fermented Foods Are Good For You – Yahoo Life
Fermented foods continue to get attention for their health benefits since they’re rich in antioxidants and are anti-inflammatory. They’re also an excellent source of probiotics.
Researchers found that people who ate a diet high in fermented foods, averaging six servings daily for ten weeks, experienced an increase in microbiota diversity — think good gut health — and a decrease in markers of inflammation compared to those who ate a high-fiber diet, with no fermented foods.
Also worth noting: Given that salt is important in fermentation, dietitian Edwina Clark recommends eating fermented foods in moderation if you’re on a salt-reduced diet.
Republished with permission from TIPP Insights
