Category Archives: Liberal

SEATTLE The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which is weighing the appeal concerning President Donald Trumps executive order on immigration, is the federal appeals court conservatives have long ridiculed as the nutty 9th or the 9th Circus.

But some legal scholars say the 9th Circuits liberal reputation is overblown and that the court has moved to the middle as some of President Jimmy Carters appointees who were considered extremely liberal have taken semi-retired senior status or passed away. A Democratic Congress nearly doubled the number of judges on the court during Carters tenure, and his appointees faced easy confirmation in the Senate.

President George W. Bush appointed six of the courts 25 active judges, but 18 have been appointed by Democrats, though the seven appointed by President Barack Obama are generally considered moderate, said University of Richmond Law School Professor Carl Tobias.

Tobias called the notion that the 9th Circuit is liberal dated. Arthur Hellman, a federal courts scholar at University of Pittsburgh Law School, said the picture of where the court stands in relation to other circuits has become muddier.

The reputation is certainly deserved based on the history of the last 40 years or so, Hellman said Monday. Its been more liberal, by which we mean more sympathetic to habeas petitioners, civil rights plaintiffs, anti-trust cases, immigration cases. But its less of an outlier now than it was.

That history has prompted repeated, unsuccessful efforts to split the 9th Circuit most recently in proposals filed this year by Arizonas congressional delegation. A bill introduced last week by Sens. John McCain and Jeff Flake would put Arizona in a new 12th Circuit with Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Nevada and Washington while leaving California, Hawaii and Oregon plus Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands in the 9th Circuit.

A House version previously introduced by Reps. Andy Biggs and four other Arizona Republican representatives would leave Washington in the 9th Circuit.

In a news release, Biggs said his aim was to free Arizona from the burdensome and undue influence of the 9th Circuit Court.

As a promise to my constituents last year, I introduced this bill to protect Arizona from a federal circuit court that does not reflect the values nor laws of our state, he said. The Ninth Circuit cannot handle the number of states currently entrapped within its jurisdiction, causing access to justice to be delayed.

Tobias said that while the 9th Circuit could use more judges, it makes little sense to split the circuit. California generates so many cases that the 9th is always going to have a heavy workload it handled 11,888 of the 56,244 cases handled by all federal appeals courts in the 12 months ending last June. And Tobias said he doesnt consider the sort of judicial gerrymandering Biggs seeks as a valid reason to split the court.

Judge Alex Kozinski, the circuits former chief judge, once joked in a New York Times interview that far from splitting the 9th, he was hoping to acquire more territory. He had his sights on Utah, for the good skiing, he said.

The three judges weighing Trumps travel ban are on the case by virtue of having been randomly assigned to the circuits motions panel for this month. Senior Circuit Judge William C. Canby Jr. was appointed by Carter in 1980; Senior Circuit Judge Richard R. Clifton was appointed by Bush in 2002; and Circuit Judge Michelle T. Friedland was appointed by Obama in 2014.

Canby, who is based in Phoenix, was a first lieutenant in the Air Force in the 1950s before becoming a Peace Corps administrator in Ethiopia and Uganda in the 1960s. Clifton, who keeps his chambers in Honolulu, came to the bench from private practice, as did Friedland, who is based in San Francisco.

They were scheduled to hear arguments by phone Tuesday on whether to maintain a temporary restraining order issued by Seattle U.S. District Judge James L. Robart that blocked enforcement of the travel ban concerning seven majority-Muslim nations.

Originally posted here:

How 'liberal' reputation of 9th Circuit Court of Appeals is overblown, scholars say - The Mercury News

The NDP will ask Thursday that the House of Commons call on the government to apologize for breaking its promise to implement electoral reform.

The motion, which MPs will spend Thursday debating, suggests that "in the opinion of the House, the government misled Canadians on its platform and Throne Speech commitment 'that 2015 will be the last federal election conducted under the first-past-the-post voting system,' and that the House call on the government to apologize to Canadians for breaking its promise."

Democratic Institutions Minister Karina Gould announced last week that the Liberal government would no longer pursue its commitment to replace the current electoral system in time for the 2019 election.

The minister cited a lack of consensus on the issue, but the prime minister and a senior Liberal subsequently pointed to concerns about moving to proportional representation and holding a referendum.

"We know that Mr. Trudeau was elected on the promise to alleviate and diminish cynicism in our politics," NDP critic Nathan Cullen told reporters on Wednesday."Well, he's in fact made the promise worse by conducting himself so casually with his promises."

New Democrats have since directed supporters to a petition, filed with the House of Commons, that has now received more than 80,000 signatures.

One Liberal MP, Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, has publicly criticized the government's decision. Mark Gerretsen, another Liberal MP, has expressed disappointment.

The NDP motion would likely come to a vote next week.

Read this article:

NDP wants Liberal government to apologize for dropping electoral reform - CBC.ca

Strategies for Saving the Liberal Arts Inside Higher Ed (blog) The challenges facing the liberal arts are well-known. Humanities departments, in particular, struggle to attract students. A loss of enrollments at the freshman level, as a result of Advanced Placement and dual degree-early college credits, has ...

Read more:

Strategies for Saving the Liberal Arts - Inside Higher Ed (blog)

5467100

Liberal men spent Tuesday crying out that newly confirmed Education secretary Betsy DeVos is unqualified for the job.

Immediately after DeVoss confirmation, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer took to Twitter to slam the new cabinet member as unqualified.

Rolling Stone columnist Jesse Berneysimilarly tweeted, This is your drained swamp, America. A billionaire GOP donor gets a Cabinet job shes utterly unqualified for.

Betsy DeVos testifies before the Senate Health, Education and Labor Committee confirmation hearing to be next Secretary of Education on Capitol Hill in Washington, January 17, 2017. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler called DeVos fundamentally unqualified to lead the Department of Education.

Nadlers colleague, Mass Rep. Jim McGovern, said America has never had a cabinet nominee so unqualified as DeVos.

Democratic Sen. Al Franken said in a statement that he voted against Devos because she is the most incompetent cabinet-level nominee I have ever seen.

Shortly before DeVoss confirmation, Chad Griffin, president of the left-wing Human Rights Campaign, asked Republican senators to block this unqualified nominee.

Alex Morash, a researcher for left-wing nonprofit Media Matters, claimed DeVoss confirmation proves that its possible for anyone to be confirmed by the GOP Senate, anyone no matter how unqualified!

Some liberals have argued that men putting down women as unqualified is an instance of sexism in the workplace.

In his bookMicroaggressions in Everyday Life, Columbia University professor Derald Wing Sue concludes that many women now recognize the phrase I think the most qualified person should get the job as a gender microaggression that communicates women are not as qualified as men, so when a male candidate is selected, it has nothing to do with bias but concerns his qualifications.'

Similarly, after Bernie Sanders called Hillary Clinton unqualified last April, FiveThirtyEight ran an article portraying his remarks as sexist.

Sanderss remarks and their interpretation play into discussions of the subtle, pernicious forms of sexism that women in positions of power must deal with, authors Clare Malone and Julia Azari wrote. They titled the article, Thinking Theyre Unqualified Is A Big Reason More Women Dont Run For Office.

An article in Womens Agendalast October arguesthat Everyday sexism is perhaps best defined as the reminders women receive from other men and women, that they are unqualified or fragile.

Follow Hasson on Twitter @PeterJHasson

Here is the original post:

Liberal Men Lash Out Against 'Unqualified' Woman Betsy DeVos - Daily Caller

It's been a recurring theme the past few months:

Liberals simply cannot accept the fact that Donald Trump is president and are doing everything in their power to depose him.

And now, the non-acceptance has turned to sports.

Following the New England Patriots' victory in Sunday's Super Bowl, the hashtag#NotMySuperBowlChampsshot to the top of Twitter's trending section.

MN Police Dept. Tweets Unique Punishment for Super Bowl Drunk Drivers

Google Home Super Bowl Commercial Sets Off Existing Customers' Devices

It Looks Like Tom Brady's Super Bowl Game Jersey Was STOLEN!

A play on #NotMyPresident, the hashtagwas used to slam the Patriots -- especiallyquarterback Tom Brady, head coach Bill Belichick and owner Robert Kraft -- for their friendships with Trump.

Not all Patriots are on the Trump train though. Tight end Martellus Bennett said last weekhe might skip the team's customary visit to the White House.

Thehashtag has since evolved into more of a joke targeting the refusal of liberals to accept the election results.

Breaking: Jill Stein announces demand for a re-match because Russia hacked the football. Send her lots of money. #NotMySuperBowlChamps

Paul Joseph Watson (@PrisonPlanet) February 6, 2017

#NotMySuperBowlChamps I just heard that Starbucks is hiring 10,000 Falcon fans. #safespace

Hillary Hates Me GWM (@pinepilot) February 6, 2017

Since the Falcons led for the most time, shouldn't they be the winners? #HIllaryLogic #NotMySuperBowlChamps

Joe Kelly (@JoeKelly1073) February 6, 2017

Where are all the protesters at for the Pats Super Bowl Parade?!? #NotMySuperBowlChamps

RP Walsh (@rp_walsh) February 7, 2017

I'm not gonna say Putin hacked the Superbowl, but I had never seen this ref before until last night. #NotMySuperBowlChamps pic.twitter.com/ZTypGrjXag

sqx (@nonsequitur20) February 6, 2017

"So, i'm going with your strategy to make it look like I have no chance, then win." #SuperBowl #SB51 #TomBrady #NotMySuperBowlChamps pic.twitter.com/oK7k7Z3i2v

Tea Party News (@tpartynews) February 6, 2017

#NotMySuperBowlChamps Not your President, Not your Country, Not your Constitution, Not your flag. Not your way, Why are you here?

Bill Periman (@BillPeriman) February 6, 2017

I hope liberals never, ever stop tweeting lol #NotMySuperBowlChamps "Election Night All Over Again"#SuperBowl Tom Brady pic.twitter.com/Q7fNVBdXqR

Tracy (@GigiTracyXO) February 6, 2017

Cry baby leftists are tweeting #NotMySuperBowlChamps & blaming "white supremacy" for the Patriots' Super Bowl win. Liberals are insane

Makada (@_Makada_) February 6, 2017

Winning against all odds is now a conservative thing, while Whining after losing is officially a liberal thing, #NotMySuperBowlChamps

Elijah Okon (@ElijahDbliss) February 6, 2017

Maybe an Atlanta federal judge will reverse the score. #NotMySuperBowlChamps

Ron Waltman (@avnsgm) February 6, 2017

VP Pence Takes Wounded Warriors to Super Bowl

President Trump Tweets Congratulations to Super Bowl Champion Patriots

O'Reilly Presses Trump on Travel Ban, Views on Putin in Super Bowl Interview

See the original post here:

Liberal Hashtag #NotMySuperBowlChamps Protests Patriots' Support of Trump - Fox News Insider

A lot has been said aboutDonald Trump fulfilling his campaign promise to nominate a conservative Supreme Court judge for consideration by the Senate, but theDaily Mail has an exclusive running that tells a very different story than Neil Gorsuchsunearthed yearbooks.

From being cool with gay people to specific programs for Muslim outreach, hisreported church, St. Johns Episcopalin Boulder, Colorado, is extremely liberal. The head pastor even proudly attended an anti-Trump march.

Rev. Susan Springeris in favor of gay marriage and offers blessings to same-sex couples. Rev.Ted Howard put his name on a list of people concerned about the rhetoric being directed at Muslims right around the time Trump suggested a total and complete shutdownon Muslims entering the United States in December of 2015.

The church even has solar panels on the roof and officials cite climate change as the reason. Click here to see just how liberal the church reportedly is.

This may not sit well with those who were delighted over the appointment of someone they saw as a youngerAntonin Scalia.

[image: screengrab]

Lindsey: Twitter. Facebook.

Have a tip we should know? tips@mediaite.com

See original here:

Supreme Court Nominee Gorsuch Reportedly Goes To a Very Liberal Church - Mediaite

AUGUSTA, Maine Gov. Paul LePage tore into liberal political opponents in a State of the State address Tuesday that sought to delegitimize the Legislature and accuse special interest groups of preying on needy and elderly Mainers.

In one of the most aggressive speeches of his tenure, which lasted more than an hour, LePage spared none of his political opponents while turning up the volume on a conservative populist message based on his belief that hes the last line of defense for hardworking Mainers.

Our economy and our way of life are under attack, said LePage early in the speech. The taxes Mainers have paid all their lives fund the organizations that throw them on the street. It has to stop. We owe it to our elderly to protect them.

Many of the governors statements echoed comments hes been making for weeks: How his budget seeks to counteract the effects of two referendums that passed in November a minimum wage hike and a 3 percent surtax on income over $200,000 per year to benefit education.

Echoing a statement he made on the radio Tuesday morning, LePage took a swipe at outside groups making each and every one of you in the Legislature irrelevant by going straight to referendum, while calling for changes. He has already backed legislation to force signature gatherers to collect proportional numbers of signatures from both congressional districts.

As written, the law to raise the minimum wage will wreak havoc, LePage said.

It was the Republican governors first time in front of the Legislature since rolling out a January budget proposal that would shift Maine to a flat income tax by 2020, broaden the sales tax and expand on past welfare cuts to trim another 18,000 people from MaineCare and potentially 1,500 children from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program.

LePage also seeks to provide financial incentives and penalties designed to prompt school district consolidation and wants to trim at least 500 state government positions and launch a study of how to cut more.

But the budget must pass with a two-thirds majority a difficult threshold with Republicans and Democrats narrowly controlling the Senate and House of Representatives, respectively. LePages last two biennial budget proposals havent gone far, with the Legislature passing compromises over gubernatorial vetoes in 2013 and 2015.

That may well happen again by the time the next budget is finalized in June, with Democrats already taking stances against his tax proposals and countering his assertions that he wants to help older Mainers with criticism that he has not released a $15 million senior housing bond approved by voters in 2015.

On Tuesday, Democratic leaders said LePage told only half of the story and didnt address issues such as austere budgets that have put too much pressure on municipal property taxes, saying homeowners deserve a tax cut before upper-income earners.

Theyre the ones that lived here all their lives, said Senate Minority Leader Troy Jackson, D-Allagash, whom LePage mentioned several times as someone he has been working with this year. Theyre loggers, theyre fishermen, theyre farmers, and they feel like theyre going to lose their homes. An income tax cut for the wealthiest is not going to help them.

House Speaker Sara Gideon, D-Freeport, said LePage brought up several initiatives that lawmakers can agree on but that negativity tinged the speech.

The governor really did bring up a lot of issues based on that negative frame and based on a very partisan divide instead of really introducing conclusive ideas that would move us forward as a state, she said.

Republicans had a different interpretation. Senate President Mike Thibodeau of Winterport and Senate Majority Leader Garrett Mason of Lisbon said that despite a gruff tone, LePage succeeded in laying out accomplishments of his tenure.

But they were less sure about specifics in the budget: Mason said LePages budget will take time to consider, but that he appreciated the governors comprehensive vision.

This is a huge document. Were learning new things from it every day, he said. As for the governors vision tonight, it was nice to hear how positive he was about some of the work weve accomplished.

As LePages speech went on, he veered further off script, and his tone became at times more gentle and populist. He repeated a prior pledge to propose legislation that would prevent cities and towns from seizing elderly Mainers property for unpaid taxes, calling it unethical and immoral to take away a senior citizens home.

Yet he was also harsh. He said the Legislature should expect tough bills aimed at deadbeat dads. Rather than taking away drivers licenses, he said the state should monitor them to make sure they work and pay child support.

If they dont, he said, Lets bring them in to house them in our care for a couple of days, implying that they should be jailed.

The speech illustrated a conservative vision for Maine, but it also suggested that liberals which was a label he used many times would not support him or give him credit for his accomplishments.

He closed with one of his most common themes this year telling the Legislature do no harm to Maines economy. But its likely that theyll have a different definition than he does.

Read this article:

LePage uses State of State to rip 'liberal' attack on Maine way of life - Bangor Daily News

Countless interviews, a lengthy press conference, a resignation speech in the Senate and Cory Bernardi still can't convince some people why he quit the Liberal Party.

The newly minted independent clashed with Today host Karl Stefanovic on Wednesday, challenged over what took him so long to "man up" and announce his plans to form a new Australian Conservatives party.

Play Video Don't Play

Play Video Don't Play

Previous slide Next slide

The Senator has had a tough time on morning TV, grilled by Karl Stefanovic over his decision to quit the Liberal Party and start his own conservative party. Courtesy Today Show.

Play Video Don't Play

Malcolm Turnbull once led the push for Australia to become a Republic, but now as PM, he's praised the Queen, having to do it over jibes from the Labor Party.

Play Video Don't Play

A near neighbour of Malcolm Turnbull in one of Sydney's most exclusive suburbs expresses her shock at the sinkhole which has opened up near the PM's house.

Play Video Don't Play

Everyone has met one, but what does it really take to provide the perfect learning environment? We asked an expert.

Play Video Don't Play

Find out how the government's changes to childcare rebates, paid parental leave and family tax benefits affect you. Courtesy ABC News 24.

Play Video Don't Play

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull believes Australia Post CEO Ahmed Fahour is overpaid, saying his $5.6 million salary is "too high" for running the government-owned company. Courtesy ABC News 24.

Play Video Don't Play

Tony's tech talk looks at the latest gadgets and what's hip in tech lifestyles. This week he looks at keeping your iPad screen clean

The Senator has had a tough time on morning TV, grilled by Karl Stefanovic over his decision to quit the Liberal Party and start his own conservative party. Courtesy Today Show.

Stefanovic's questions echoed those of many in Canberra and Australia this week, as Senator Bernardi was unable to explain personality or policy differences that led him to leave the Liberal Party after 30 years, including 10 years in the Senate.

"I've come to the realisation that party politics, major party politics, is failing the Australian people and you just have to look at the evidence all around us," he said.

"We've got to do a better job. So I've come to the conclusion there's a better way and it's a way built around enduring principles that have stood us in good stead and will stand our children in good stead. We need to see more of it."

Stefanovic pushed back, challenging the South Australian to name a piece of government legislation he was opposed to.

"People were talking about this for months. Again, what took you so long to man up," the host demanded to know.

Senator Bernardi said he'd hoped to rebuild and strengthened the Liberal Party from within but had reached the conclusion it was on "a spiral downwards".

"I've been joined at the hip with the Liberal Party for 30 years. This is a very tough call for me, it's tough for my colleagues and my friends and supporters in the Liberal Party. I know that it's difficult."

After the new crossbencher nominated the government's dumped plans to consider of a market-based emissions reduction scheme in late-2016 and any increase in taxes, Stefanovic tried again, asking why he couldn't name a single policy he was opposed to and why the outspoken critic of Malcolm Turnbull wouldn't quit the Senate.

"Ideas matter in politics," Senator Bernardi said.

"What I have realised ultimately I've been battling within the party against the very forces that try and subdue the real principles.

"Why has it been left to me to say that tax rises are wrong? Big government spending programs are wrong? Against the philosophy of the party. I shouldn't have to go into battle against the very ideas that the Liberal Party was founded upon all the time. That's the real challenge."

Challenged over his dislike of Prime Minister, Senator Bernardi said he would not play "the personality game" or reveal details of his conversations with Mr Turnbull on Tuesday.

"I'm happy to work with anyone," he said.

"I understand full well the disappointment that many people feel in this space. I have got to do what is in the best interests of the nation in the long run."

For his part, Mr Turnbull called on his former colleague to quit the Senate and allow the seat to remain with the Liberals.

"The honourable thing for Cory todois to resign from the Senate and then run again at the next electionas an independent or under his new party," he said on Wednesday.

Emboldened by Donald Trump's stunning victory in last year's US presidential election,Senator Bernardihas confirmed he plans to recruit candidates to stand at the next federal election.

Just how much of a role ego and vision played in his long anticipated defectionis yet to be seenbut the South Australian is already positioning himself as outside the Canberraestablishment and political class.

He's outside the tent now, and a very complicated 2017 just got more difficultfor the Coalition.

Follow us on Twitter

Here is the original post:

'What took you so long to man up?': Cory Bernardi unable to explain why he's quit the Liberals - The Sydney Morning Herald

Dear RD Readers:

The last time I wrote to you, a little over a year ago, I was serving a small congregation trying to resettle a Syrian refugee family in the face of opposition from governors like Mike Pence. Ive since moved to another small congregation, about thirty-five miles from the old one. You know what they say, though: same stuff, different location. Were having problems with the government andimmigration.

More properly, some of our community is having trouble with visas. (I write anonymously not to protect my own reputation, but to give them privacy.)

A member of the congregation, born in the neighborhood and raised on her parents farm, married an Iranian man almost forty years ago. She was there for the tail end of the revolution and its aftermath, and says she was never treated poorly in Tehran, even in the days of mass street protests against the Great Satan. She and her husband have stayed married all this time, through all the ups and downs of Iranian-American relationships, splitting their time between Tehran and the small city near our church. Eventually, he applied for and received a green card, and they began to make plans to retire to the U.S.

You probably know where this is going. They were back in Iran for their yearly visit when the Trump administrations Muslim ban was handed down. Suddenly, they had no idea if or when the husband would be able to return.

This is not a theoretical concern. He has a job in the U.S., which can only be held for him so long. They set money aside to pay for the bills while they were gone, but no job, no more income. She could have returned without him, but she doesnt work, and splitting up would have put his immigration status in jeopardy. Worse yet, the Iranian government threatened to take retaliatory measures limiting the stay of American visitors. After all this time, having their marriage broken up by governments became a real possibility.

By Monday, the administration had backed off a bit, lifting the outright ban on green card holders from the affected nations. This still would have required the husband to undergo the extreme vetting. Since there is no American embassy in Iran, that would in turn mean setting up an appointment in another nation, then shelling out for airfare, food and housing, all the while hoping that he could be processed in whatever time he had available.

In the meantime, I got in touch with some of our elected officials. One of our senators staff took an interest in the situation, and graciously agreed to do what they could for the family. The office of our US Representative declined to intervene until the family tries to return to the country, but at least took our information and agreed to help if needed. The other senator? Never called back.

I told the congregation about the situation lastSunday. Id intended to talk about it during the prayers, but ended up using it to introduce the sermon. It was all about Gods foolishness confounding the wisdom of the wise, Jesus blessings on the poor and humble, and how we need to find hope and meaning not in our own successes, but in serving those same people Jesus blessed.

You could have heard a pin drop. On carpet.

Issues like this have to be approached carefully in a setting like this. Small churches dislike anything that seems even remotely divisive, which typically means checking your politics at the door. Small rural churches dont appreciate being lectured to about social justice or speaking truth to power. They tend to the conservative. I dont exactly do surveys, but the congregation is probably about two-thirds Trump voters, in line with the surrounding county. Theyre not necessarily fire-breathing radical right-wingersin fact, very few of them arebut they are reliable Republican voters. The Sunday before Election Day, a member expressed a concern during the prayers: For the first time ever, he said, we dont have an ethical candidate for president. My heart sank. They werent going to break against Trump.

The right play with a situation like this isnt to come in with guns blazing about the injustice of it all. A better call is to appeal to peoples natural instinct to help those in trouble and hope for an opportunity to suggest along the way that things didnt have to be this way. Our couples story makes a natural peg for that kind of approach, so I took it. With any luck, Ill get my chance to help my people see how many others were harmed by this cruel and absurd policy, and that there is something they can do about it.

But the main thing they pay pastors to do is to watch out for the members of the flock. So I asked, politely and hesitantly, if anyone would agree to come with me to see our member of Congress. Hes a bit behind on the subject of immigration, shall we say. He might need some convincing.

One or two people volunteered, which is about what youd expect from an open invitation. I resolved to ask a few people individually. So it goes.

But then, during the last hymn, the same guy who had denounced both candidates on the eve of the election came up front and motioned to speak to me. He wanted to say something before we all departed.

He spoke about his mother, who died last week, and her relationship with the mother of our woman in Tehran. Catholics ask their departed relatives to help them, he said with a catch in his throat. And we Protestants put that down. But if there was ever a time to ask my mother for some help, this is it. He paused, as if to return to his pew. But then he looked back at me and said, I will go with you to see the congressman.

Like many liberals since the election, I have been swinging between absolute terror and despair and bits of hopefulness among the flames. I was thrilled to hear the ban on green card holders had been lifted, and terrified to hear of the ill-treatment many were still receiving. I was lifted up when Sally Yates refused to defend the executive order in court, and crushed again almost immediately when she was fired.

Ive never doubted the hearts of my congregation, never regretted coming to a conservative setting. I do wonder sometimes if people like them will be able to stand up to the authoritarian drift of this administration. Or will they buy into the same politics of white resentment that got them hoodwinked into voting for Trump the first time? I dont know. I just know that like that time with the Syrians, the extremists running the show these days make it hard to live my faith sometimes. They make it hard to stand up for the right thing. Pretty ironic, considering all their rhetoric on religious freedom.

But it always seems like when Im in a truly black mood about the future of the American project, a bit grace drops in like a sunbeam to restore my confidence. Today it was a few dozen people gathered on the main corner of our little city to protest the executive order, waving signs saying MUSLIMS WELCOME and JESUS WAS A REFUGEE. The darkness can only last so long before the light comes again. Were going to be okay, I think.

But Im still going to call the ACLU and give them my congregants exact flight information. Just in case.

Read this article:

Dear Readers: Letter From an Anonymous Liberal Pastor in Trump Country - Religion Dispatches

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which is weighing the appeal concerning President Donald Trump's executive order on immigration, is the federal appeals court conservatives have long ridiculed as the "nutty 9th" or the "9th Circus."

Covering a huge swath of territory nine western states plus Guam the San Francisco-based court handles far more cases than any other federal appeals court, including some rulings that have invoked furor from conservatives over the years. Among them: finding that the phrase "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance is unconstitutional, that the "don't ask, don't tell" policy on gays in the military was problematic long before President Barack Obama's administration ended it, and that states can force pharmacies to dispense emergency contraceptives.

But some legal scholars say the 9th Circuit's liberal reputation is overblown and that the court has moved to the middle as some of President Jimmy Carter's appointees who were considered extremely liberal have taken semi-retired "senior" status or passed away. A Democratic Congress nearly doubled the number of judges on the court during Carter's tenure, and his appointees faced easy confirmation in the Senate.

President George W. Bush appointed six of the court's 25 active judges, but 18 have been appointed by Democrats, though the seven appointed by President Barack Obama are generally considered moderate, said University of Richmond Law School Professor Carl Tobias.

Tobias called the notion that the 9th Circuit is liberal "dated." Arthur Hellman, a federal courts scholar at University of Pittsburgh Law School, said the picture of where the court stands in relation to other circuits has become muddier.

"The reputation is certainly deserved based on the history of the last 40 years or so," Hellman said Monday. "It's been more liberal, by which we mean more sympathetic to habeas petitioners, civil rights plaintiffs, anti-trust cases, immigration cases. But it's less of an outlier now than it was."

That history has prompted repeated, unsuccessful efforts to split the 9th Circuit most recently in proposals filed this year by Arizona's congressional delegation. A bill introduced last week by Sens. John McCain and Jeff Flake would put Arizona in a new 12th Circuit with Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Nevada and Washington while leaving California, Hawaii and Oregon plus Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands in the 9th Circuit.

A House version previously introduced by Reps. Andy Biggs and four other Arizona Republican representatives would leave Washington in the 9th Circuit.

In a news release, Biggs said his aim was "to free Arizona from the burdensome and undue influence of the 9th Circuit Court."

"As a promise to my constituents last year, I introduced this bill to protect Arizona from a federal circuit court that does not reflect the values nor laws of our state," he said. "The Ninth Circuit cannot handle the number of states currently entrapped within its jurisdiction, causing access to justice to be delayed."

Tobias said that while the 9th Circuit could use more judges, it makes little sense to split the circuit. California generates so many cases that the 9th is always going to have a heavy workload it handled 11,888 of the 56,244 cases handled by all federal appeals courts in the 12 months ending last June. And Tobias said he doesn't consider the sort of judicial gerrymandering Biggs seeks as a valid reason to split the court.

Judge Alex Kozinski, the circuit's former chief judge, once joked in a New York Times interview that far from splitting the 9th, he was hoping to acquire more territory. He had his sights on Utah, for the good skiing, he said.

The three judges weighing Trump's travel ban are on the case by virtue of having been randomly assigned to the circuit's motions panel for this month. Senior Circuit Judge William C. Canby Jr. was appointed by Carter in 1980; Senior Circuit Judge Richard R. Clifton was appointed by Bush in 2002; and Circuit Judge Michelle T. Friedland was appointed by Obama in 2014.

Canby, who is based in Phoenix, was a first lieutenant in the Air Force in the 1950s before becoming a Peace Corps administrator in Ethiopia and Uganda in the 1960s. Clifton, who keeps his chambers in Honolulu, came to the bench from private practice, as did Friedland, who is based in San Francisco.

They were scheduled to hear arguments by phone Tuesday on whether to maintain a temporary restraining order issued by Seattle U.S. District Judge James L. Robart that blocked enforcement of the travel ban concerning seven majority-Muslim nations.

See the original post here:

Scholars: 'Liberal' Reputation of 9th Circuit Overblown - ABC News