July 19, 2019

Adam Schiff Demands Investigation Into AG Barr's Role in Halting SDNY Investigation Into Trump

https://www.politicususa.com/2019/07/19/adam-schiff-barr-cover-up.html

"Adam Schiff Demands Investigation Into Barr’s Trump Felony Cover-Up"
. . . .
"There are still a great many questions unanswered by the documents made public [ by the United States District in Manhattan on 7-18-19], including Trump’s legal exposure when he leaves office, but the one of most immediate concern to me [Schiff] is the involvement, if any, of Attorney General Barr. Barr testified that he believes it was within the President’s power to stop any investigation into his own potential criminality if he felt an investigation was unfair. Barr has demonstrated there are no lengths to which he will not go to protect the President, and I believe it is of paramount importance to determine if he had any involvement in the SDNY’s investigation or sought to bring it to a close."

July 13, 2019

Child Slave Labor Is Against the Law... even in a concentration camp.

Note: I originally posted this entry in the DU lounge - It belongs in general discussion, where I among posting it.

The following is the beginning of a post on Daily Kos:

There are legal avenues to explore in regard to the treatment of children in the Trump concentration camps. (Note: I didn’t say death camps, I said concentration camps. There’s a difference.)

Now, what follows may sound like pettifoggery or a ridiculous distraction from the core inhumanity of our modern GOP… BUT, courts like to see a clearcut violation of a law. What follows are grounds for what look to me like instantaneous court orders, if lawyers in the states impacted can find plaintiffs amongst the children.


These grounds concern the use of minor children as unpaid labor in day care, but keep reading: this really is useful stuff.

1. SLAVERY:

Is the employment as childcare workers truly voluntary and not coerced? Those in favor of closing their eyes to an abuse are able to find all sorts of example of “voluntary” labor, but courts have (in better times) been pretty strict about the unequal power situations. If a child is brought from their home country to the US, ripped from their parents arms, incarcerated, and then told by a large armed man that they should take care of an even younger child… is this voluntary labor?

Oddly enough, to the best of my knowledge only the state of Colorado has outright banned penal slave labor (a citizens’ initiative won in 2018). BUT at present the DOJ claims that these children are NOT being punished for any crime. (I’m not even sure the DOJ admits that they’re being incarcerated indefinitely.) They’re just being held separated from their parents because it’s not legal to incarcerate a child with an adult accused of a crime. Thus, the kids are innocent of any crime under US law, and NON-penal slave labor was pretty comprehensively abolished by the 13th Amendment shortly after the Great War of Southern Treason.

Section 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

Section 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

The children in the camps have not been duly convicted of any crime. They cannot be forced to work.

Read the rest at the following link; https://m.dailykos.com/stories/1871526

July 13, 2019

Child Slave Labor Is Against the Law... even in a concentration camp

The following is the beginning of a post on Daily Kos:

There are legal avenues to explore in regard to the treatment of children in the Trump concentration camps. (Note: I didn’t say death camps, I said concentration camps. There’s a difference.)

Now, what follows may sound like pettifoggery or a ridiculous distraction from the core inhumanity of our modern GOP… BUT, courts like to see a clearcut violation of a law. What follows are grounds for what look to me like instantaneous court orders, if lawyers in the states impacted can find plaintiffs amongst the children.


These grounds concern the use of minor children as unpaid labor in day care, but keep reading: this really is useful stuff.

1. SLAVERY:

Is the employment as childcare workers truly voluntary and not coerced? Those in favor of closing their eyes to an abuse are able to find all sorts of example of “voluntary” labor, but courts have (in better times) been pretty strict about the unequal power situations. If a child is brought from their home country to the US, ripped from their parents arms, incarcerated, and then told by a large armed man that they should take care of an even younger child… is this voluntary labor?

Oddly enough, to the best of my knowledge only the state of Colorado has outright banned penal slave labor (a citizens’ initiative won in 2018). BUT at present the DOJ claims that these children are NOT being punished for any crime. (I’m not even sure the DOJ admits that they’re being incarcerated indefinitely.) They’re just being held separated from their parents because it’s not legal to incarcerate a child with an adult accused of a crime. Thus, the kids are innocent of any crime under US law, and NON-penal slave labor was pretty comprehensively abolished by the 13th Amendment shortly after the Great War of Southern Treason.

Section 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

Section 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

The children in the camps have not been duly convicted of any crime. They cannot be forced to work.

Read the rest at the following link; https://m.dailykos.com/stories/1871526

July 11, 2019

My E-Mail today to Speaker Pelosi Concerning Her Failure to Act

Dear Speaker Pelosi,

On June 15 I sent you a note, which I copy below, concerning your utter failure up to that time to undertake strong actions against the egregiously criminal activities of the Trump administration. What have you done since then? I’ll tell you. NOTHING! You still have not authorized the commencement of impeachment proceedings against Trump, and his henchman. You can’t even bring yourself and the Congress to take real and stern steps regarding the enforcement of subpoenas. All you do is stand by while Trump and his criminal gang thumb their noses at what is to all intents and purposes a Do Nothing Congress.

Time is running out in this country, further inaction on your part and on the parts members of Congress is extremely dangerous and totally unacceptable. Every day Trump is taking illegal (unconstitutional) steps to wrongly appropriate powers that belong to Congress or to the Judiciary. He claims the power to grant complete testimonial immunity, not only to current White House and administration operatives, not only to people who were involved in his campaign or his transition, but also to people who are civilians and never had a formal connection with government – and he does this without the slightest hint of a justification in law or under the Constitution. Now he is about to disregard and override the clear decision of the Supreme Court regarding the 2020 census with a totally illegal “executive order.” If the Congress – that means you as Speaker of the House – does nothing to counter these power grabs, they will constitute a fait accomplish and the Constitution and our nation will be a dead letter. This massive and outrageous Abuse of Power by Trump must be stopped NOW!

Below is the text of my June 15 note to you:

Email to Speaker Pelosi sent 6/15/2019

Dear Speaker Pelosi

There is no longer any excuse not to commence impeachment proceedings against Donald Trump and against at least two members of his cabinet -- AG William Barr and Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin.

We have been served-up by you and by other weak willed Democrats various grounds for not immediately moving expressly toward impeachment. This week, as a result of the release of portions of George Stephanopolous's interview of Trump, we have seen Trump openly invite violation of Federal Election Campaign Act (e.g., 52 USC Sec. 30121 et al) by stating that he would look at and consider what he calls Oppo Research provided by a foreign government and would not report such proffer to the FBI. This policy is one he has already acted upon during the 2016 election. He has thus committed actually completed crimes in this regard in the past and he sees nothing wrong with committing them again. This behavior is plainly impeachable. Trump's conduct in this regard is notorious and out in the open; it needs no evidentiary hearing to support the drafting and approval by the House of an Article of impeachment. And there are numerous other acts of open and notorious behavior by Trump warranting their own Articles of impeachment. (For example, his egregious and open flaunting misuse of the 'executive privilege - which amounts to Obstruction of Congress and Obstruction of Justice)

In addition there are Trump's numerous and egregious acts of Obstruction of Justice and Subornation chronicled in the Mueller report.

As to AG Barr - he has lied to congress; he has assisted Trump in concealing evidence from various House Committees and thus apparently committing obstruction of justice. Further, yesterday, he disgracefully authorized the release of a totally disingenuous memo purporting to justify the Treasury Secretary's and the IRS Commisioner's refusal to provide requested tax information concerning Donald Trump to Chairman Neal of the Ways and Means Committee.. This frivolous memo thus aides and abets the Secretary of the Treasury and the Commisioner of the IRS in their violation of 26 USC section 6103(f)(1) which is a crime under 26 USC 7214(a). It is simply not enough to cite AG Barr for civil contempt of Congress - he needs to be removed from office by impeachment.

As to the Treasury Secretary himself, as pointed out above, by failing to provide the requested tax information concerning Donald Trump as requested by Chairman Neal, Secretary Mnuchin (along with the IRS Commissioner) has violated section 6103 and is thus criminally liable under section 7214 which calls for a $10,000 fine and/or imprisonment for up to 5 years. This felony violation surely warrants the impeachment of Mr. Mnuchin.

But what do you to bring about the necessary impeachment proceedings. Actually, nothing! If we think of the United States Constitution as living body, then the impeachment clause is like one of its arms. Continued failure to use that clause when it is - as now - plainly warranted, will cause that "arm" to wither away - to atrophy - and never again be available no matter how plainly it is justified. Your continued failure to act - and act now - therefore cannot be justified by political considerations and will constitute a dereliction of your duty as a constitutional officer of the United States government.

The time has come - do your duty and save what's left of our great country.