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California Supreme Court Upholds People’s Right to Vote on Gay Marriage
Newlyweds Sharon Papo (L) and Amber Weiss toast each other outside of San Francisco City Hall after exchanging wedding vows on the first full day of legal same-sex marriages in California on June 17, 2008 California voters will have the chance to vote in November on whether to end gay marriage after the state’s top court declined on Wednesday to remove an initiative on the issue from the ballot.
The California Supreme Court, meeting in closed session today, denied a petition to remove Proposition 8, the California Marriage Protection Act from the November ballot.Today the California Supreme Court rejected the case brought by same-sex “marriage” advocates, who intended to prevent California voters from voting on the California Marriage Protection Act (“Amendment”) in November. The court’s decision means the Amendment will stay on the ballot. It also allows the Secretary of State to print voter information pamphlets on the issue.
Last month Liberty Counsel filed a motion to intervene in this lawsuit, asking the court to allow the people to vote on the Amendment. Liberty Counsel represents the Campaign for California Families, Randy Thomasson, and Larry Bowler. The lawsuit against the Amendment was filed on behalf of three voters and the National Center for Lesbian Rights, Lambda Legal, the ACLU and Equality California against California Secretary of State, Debra Bowen, who certified the Amendment.
On June 2, 2008, the Amendment was certified by the Secretary of State for the November ballot. The Amendment states: “Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.” If passed, the Amendment would nullify the 4-3 ruling of the California Supreme Court issued on May 15 that allows same-sex “marriages” to go forward in California, and would ban same-sex “marriage” in the state.
The same-sex “marriage” advocates were seeking to remove the Amendment from the November ballot, arguing that “the rules for revising the California Constitution were not properly followed.” Their brief claimed that an initiative was not enough to put the Amendment on the ballot, since it must also be approved by two-thirds of the legislature. The suit also alleged that petitions for the initiative, which were circulated prior to the ruling legalizing same-sex marriage, were misleading because they stated the Amendment would not change existing law and would not have a financial impact on the state. Liberty Counsel’s motion to intervene disproved these claims.
Polls show that most Californians want the Amendment. A poll conducted on May 30, 2008, by ccAdvertising shows that 56% of California residents support marriage as being between one man and one woman. Another poll by the Los Angeles Times similarly revealed that 54% of those polled supported the Amendment and only 35% opposed it.
The California Supreme Court rarely intervenes in the electoral process PRIOR to an election. This is NOT to say that the same court who approved gay marriage could later overturn this vote of the people in November. But, on the face of it, this would be a judicial reach as well.
Let the expensive media campaign begin.
Since the latest polls show Barack Obama blowing out John McCain in the California Presidential race will there be much incentive for the LEFT to turn out for this initiative, Constitutional amendment?
Stay tuned……
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Barack Obama Supports California Gay/Same Sex MarriageGay Marriage Activists Try to Block California Initiative Vote
Technorati Tags: Gay Marriage, California Marriage Protection Act
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Laura Ingraham Watch: Don’t Come In My Ear
Apparently embedding of the video has now beendisabledre-enabled or you can watch it hereOuttakes from Laura Ingraham’s short lived Fox News Television Show, Just InFlap has always enjoyed Laura Ingraham’s radio show. Radio is definitely a better venue for her talents than television.Flap’s recommendations to Ingraham:
1. Less caffeine
2. Eat regularly to avoid low blood sugar
3. Lose the condescending attitude toward your staff
Technorati Tags: Laura Ingraham, Fox News
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Barack Obama Watch: Playing the McCain “CONFUSED” Card
Michael Ramirez on “The Rookie” Barack ObamaJim Geraghty at National Review has Team Obama returning to play the McCain “Confused Card.”Let’s play a game of “detect the pattern.”
Barack Obama, appearing on Larry King Live, last night: “Where Senator McCain I think is confused is the difference between tactics and strategy.â€
The same day, Joe Biden on a campaign conference call: “As a consequence of their profound confusion [Bush and McCain] make profound mistakes.â€
The liberal blog The Carpetbagger Report uses the word “confused†in almost every post about McCain; same deal at ThinkProgress. At AmericaBlog, the words “McCain” and “confused” have appeared together 108 times. DailyKos.com, hundreds.
Obama surrogate John Kerry, on a conference call June 11: “McCain confuses who Iran is training, he confuses what the makeup of Al Qaeda is, he confuses the history going back to 682 of what has happened to Sunni and Shia,” Kerry said.
Also on that call, Obama adviser Susan Rice cited a “pattern of confusing the basic facts and reality that pertain to Iraq.”
Funny that the RIGHT is not playing the “ROOKIE CARD.”
Oh, it is too obvious, you say?
Technorati Tags: Michael Ramirez, Barack Obama, John McCain
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Michael Tenenbaum Watch: The California State Bar Flap Part 2
GOP Attorney Michael Tenenbaum with former Chairwoman, Leslie Cornejo of the Ventura County Republican Central Committee
Flap wrote yesterday that GOP attorney and twice defeated California 24th Congressional District candidate Michael Tenenbaum is being investigated by the California State Bar after his election to its Board of Governors.Now, Flap has obtained additional information that may shed some light on the FLAP.
The State Bar Board of Governors Friday authorized President Jeffrey Bleich to appoint a committee to inquire and to report back to the board as to whether Michael Tenenbaum, the newly elected board member from District 6, is eligible to serve.
The committee, which is to consist of one current and two former board members, will look into allegations—by persons who have not been publicly identified—that Tenenbaum’s principal office is not located in the district, as required by the State Bar Act.
The non-contiguous District 6 consists of Riverside, San Bernardino, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties. Tenenbaum, who defeated Redlands attorney Bryan C. Hartnell by a little over 100 votes, with Riverside lawyer A. Benjamin Aames a distant third.
Tenenbaum told the MetNews Friday that his office is in his home, in Thousand Oaks in Ventura County.
Hartnell and Aames both said they heard reports during the campaign that Tenenbaum actually practiced from an office outside the district, but that they did not investigate and were in no way involved in instigating Friday’s action by the board.
The board directed that none of the members of the committee that will look into the matter come from District 6 or from District 7, which is Los Angeles County. Tenenbaum is a member of the Professional Responsibility and Ethics Committee of the Los Angeles County Bar Association, a State Bar spokesperson said.
Hartnell and Aames both said it was unclear what the board would do if it determines Tenenbaum is ineligible. Aames said he hoped that it would order a new election between Hartnell and himself, but said it was also possible that Hartnell, as the second-place finisher, would be declared the winner.
Hartnell declined to speculate as to what action the board might take.
If Michael Tenenbaum is indeed practicing law from his home and uses The Mail Stop as a business address, separate from his home, then Tenenbaum appears to be good to go – assuming his seat on the California State Bar’s Board of Governors.
But, if it is discovered that he is ACTUALLY practicing law at an office outside the area, then he MIGHT be in some jeopardy.
Tenenbaum apparently used his Mail Stop Address as his Congressional Campaign Committe address as well.
Michael Tenenbaum for Congress’s Federal Election candidate information is found here.
Tenenbaum’s campaign contributions detail and an itemization of individual contributions are here.
Stay tuned…….
Previous:
Michael Tenenbaum Watch: The California State Bar FlapRepresentative Elton Gallegly Breezes to Easy Victory in CA-24 GOP Primary Race
Michael Tenenbaum to Challenge GOP Congressman Elton Gallegly in GOP Primary Election
Technorati Tags: Michael Tenenbaum, Elton Gallegly
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Election 2008 – Jib Jab Time
Send a JibJab Sendables® eCard Today!Don’t you love election time?
Technorati Tags: Jib Jab, Barack Obama, John McCain
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Barack Obama Watch: Take THAT You Lowly White Hicks
Political Cartoon by Barry BlittChristopher Hitchens FISKS the satire of the Barry Blitt New Yorker cartoon.Oh the humanity……
Technorati Tags: Barry Blitt, New Yorker, Barack Obama, Michelle Obama
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Iran Nuclear Watch: Back Channel American Nuclear Negotiations with Iran?
US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs William Burns and Iran’s top nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili
In an apparent major shift in United States foreign policy, William Burns, Undersecretary of State and the United States State Department’s number three official will meet with top Iranian nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili this weekend in Geneva at talks on Iran’s nuclear program.President Bush has authorized the most significant American diplomatic contact with Iran since the Islamic Revolution in 1979, sending the State Department’s third-ranking official to Geneva for a meeting this weekend on Iran’s nuclear program, administration officials said Tuesday.
The decision appeared to bend, if not exactly break, the administration’s insistence that it would not negotiate with Iran over its nuclear programs unless it first suspended uranium enrichment, as demanded by three resolutions of the United Nations Security Council.
Still, after months of accusations and counteraccusations from the United States and Iran, the meeting raised the prospect of an intensified diplomatic push to resolve concerns over Iranian nuclear activity, not unlike the lengthy and painstaking talks that resulted in a deal last month with North Korea.
William J. Burns, the under secretary of state for political affairs, will attend a meeting on Saturday with the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, and Iran’s nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili, a senior administration official said, speaking on condition of anonymity ahead of an official announcement on Wednesday.
The Bush Administration has NOT been successful in restraining Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Is this a last minute gambit in order to give cover to Israel, pending a military attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities?
Should Israel attack Iran, the United States will be blamed anyway and suffer the consequences of another war and disruption of oil importation. So, could it be said then to the world community, “Hey America tried
to negotiate with Iran but they refused?”Or is this a change in the long-standing policy that the United States will NOT negotiate with Iran until they completely suspend uranium enrichment?
A change in this policy would be foolish in that Iran would continue to spin their centrifuges at Natanz, enrich enough uranium to produce a nuclear bomb and reach “BREAKOUT CAPABILITY” while negotiations drag on for another few months/years.
But, this is an interesting development.
Previous:Iran Nuclear Watch: Iran Will NOT Stop Uranium Enrichment
Iran Nuclear Watch: A Deal to Halt Uranium Enrichment?
Iran Nuclear Watch: The Two Red Lines; Update: Israel is Bluffing?
Technorati Tags: Iran, William Burns, Saeed Jalili
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Day By Day by Chris Muir July 16, 2008
Day By Day by Chris MuirThe folks who want to disassemble the second amendment will continue to try before sympathetic judges and courts.The fight to protect oneself will continue for decades with AS(S)inine regulations of guns and ammunition.
In the meantime, there WILL be doubt for home and business intruders that there MAY very well be an assembled and loaded gun in the premises where they hiope to committ a crime. Then, there is always the “ILLEGAL” use of firearms – you know, like the California driver cell phone prohibition law – which nobody obeys.
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Technorati Tags: Day By Day, Guns, Second Amendment
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links for 2008-07-16
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“The Iraq war is over. Wars don’t come to an end the way they used to. It ended as best it can end about last December. The front has shifted to the Afghan-Pakistan border.
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On the very day that Obama is speaking on Afghanistan, South Carolina Sen. Jim DeMint (R) has penned a letter to Obama, noting that the Illinois senator has yet to hold a subcommittee hearing on Afghanistan — which repeats a charge Hillary Clinton made
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Alaska Governor Sarah Palin is the best choice for Vice President
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He’s never been to Afghanistan, he’s never been briefed on Afghanistan personally by the commanders,” he said, adding that Obama has oversight over NATO operations through the subcommittee he chairs on Foreign Relations. “He’s never had a hearing….
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“If John (McCain) wants to know where the bad guys live, come back with me to Afghanistan. We know where they reside. And it’s not in Iraq.â€