COVID regulations – USA Gov Policy

This article, (Part 1 opened the discussion yesterday on the civil rights implications of some government reactions to COVID) was provided exclusively to the New York Analysis of Policy and Government by the distinguished Judge John H. Wilson (ret.)

Maybe you have noticed that with the exception of Governor DeWine of Ohio, the vast, overwhelming majority of those governors involved in violating the first amendment rights of their residents are Democrats. We could speculate on the reasons for this – a belief in totalitarianism that usually pervades the left, or an elitist conception that as leaders of society, they inherently know what is best for the rest of us, or even possibly justifiable, yet cynical fears of being blamed politically if the virus causes too many illnesses and deaths “on their watch” – but such speculation is unnecessary. It is a matter of empirical evidence that in most instances, Republican state and local officials are more likely to be protective of individual rights than are Democrats.

To put as fine a point on this proposition as possible, witness recent events in Texas. There, the owner of Salon A in Dallas, Shelley Luther, dared to open her business in violation of the stay at home order of the local Dallas County Commission. Dallas County had extended their order past the deadline set by Governor Greg Abbott (Republican) for reopening businesses across the state of Texas. Ms Luther found herself charged with the violation of that local order. Judge Eric Moye’, who is described by the Dallas News as “a Democrat elected to the 14th District Court in 2008,” issued both a $7,000 fine and a temporary restraining order against Ms Luther. When Ms Luther opened her business anyway, Judge Moye’ demanded she apologize for her “selfishness.” When she refused, Ms Luther was found in contempt, and sentenced to 7 days in jail.

During her refusal to apologize, Ms Luther described her reasons to violate the judge’s order – “I have to disagree with you, sir,” she said, “when you say that I’m selfish because feeding my kids — is not selfish. I have hair stylists that are going hungry because they’d rather feed their kids. So sir, if you think the law is more important than kids getting fed, then please go ahead with your decision but I am not going to shut the salon.”

Local Democratic officials were quick to support Judge Moye’. Texas State Representative Rafael Anchia, for instance, said Judge Moye’ was fair, but “he also leans into doing his job.” (Quick aside – when was the last time a Republican was described as “leaning in” to their work? Isn’t that just another way to say, “activist judge?”) But Republican legislators were just as quick to side with Ms Luther. Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton stated, “I find it outrageous and out of touch that during this national pandemic, a judge … would jail a mother for operating her hair salon in an attempt to put food on her family’s table,” while Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott “issued a statement saying he disagreed ‘with the excessive action‘ by the judge — and suggested that ‘there are less restrictive means’ than jailing Luther while ensuring public safety during the outbreak.”

While discussing Ms Luther’s treatment, Governor Abbott also made a very important point on the Sean Hannity Show – While Ms Luther was incarcerated by a Dallas County judge, “The Dallas County district attorney announced a policy that he is not going to prosecute any thief who steals things valued at less than $750. At the same time, authorities in Dallas are talking about releasing inmates from prison or jail because of the possibility of contracting COVID-19.”

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The Dallas County District Attorney? John Creuzot – a Democrat.

Within a day of Judge Moye’s order, Ms Luther was freed by order of the Texas Supreme Court. At the same time, Governor Abbott issued another Executive Order removing incarceration as a penalty for violations of social distancing orders, whether his or those issued by local authorities.

We, as citizens and residents of the United States, must be ever vigilant, and ever ready to assert and protect our rights. Like Ms Luther, we must be willing to stand up to petty tyrants and their authoritarian overreaches. In most cases, from the evidence gathered here, one party is more likely to stand with us – the Republican party.

John H. Wilson is a former Criminal Court Judge from New York City. He currently works as a Mediator for First Court.

Illustration: Pixabay

This article was provided exclusively to the New York Analysis of Policy and Government by the distinguished Judge John H. Wilson (ret.)

Every day, we are witness to the battles being fought between the authorities and the citizenry. The cause of this conflict? The on-going violations of the Constitutional Rights of US citizens and residents by state and local authorities.

In my last article, I described the emergency powers held by the states to guard the health and welfare of their residents. I also noted that these powers do not supersede the rights we hold under the United States Constitution – we still have the right to freedom of speech and peaceful assembly guaranteed under the First Amendment. Unfortunately, too many state and local governments continue not to know where the powers of the state end and the rights of the individual begin.

Worst of all for our Republic, it appears that one political party in particular does not show respect for our God-given rights as free people.

In New Jersey, where Governor Phil Murphy (Democrat) has publicly admitted that taking the Bill of Rights into account during his exercise of authority is “above his pay grade,” the “public health emergency” has been extended until the middle of June. In response to a peaceful protest numbering in the hundreds, Murphy’s state police brought a criminal charge against the protest’s organizer, 48 year old Stephanie Hazelton, claiming she violated the Governor’s Executive Order prohibiting large gatherings during the pandemic.

Clearly, a governor who admits he is not familiar with the Bill of Rights can’t be expected to understand that the right to peacefully assemble is enshrined in the very first of those amendments. But why extend the emergency in New Jersey at all? As of early May, 2020, the number of coronavirus cases in New Jersey is on the downswing. All counties show decreased growth in new cases, with many counties showing less than 100 deaths per 100,000 people (0.1 percent).

Ostensibly, Governor Murphy claims that long-term facilities, such as nursing homes, are still a concern. Yet, in one of the better examples of talking out of both sides of his mouth, according to CBS News, the Governor claimed “the extension of the emergency declaration does not mean the restarting of the economy will be delayed, though no hard date for when business can open has been announced.”

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Then, there is Raleigh, North Carolina, where police arrested one out of 100 protestors for violating the Executive Order of Governor Roy Cooper (Democrat). In most states, you don’t need to be at a protest to feel the long arm of the law on your shoulder. In Colorado (Governor Jared Polis – Democrat), a man called the police and reported his roommate for having two friends over – the roommate and two friends were arrested for violation of “the self-quarantine order.” In Hawaii (Governor David Ige – Democrat), nine people were arrested for violating “stay at home” orders, / and in California (Governor Gavin Newsom – Democrat), as described by the LA Times, “a paddle boarder was arrested Thursday after ignoring lifeguards’ orders to get out of the ocean near the Malibu Pier despite beach closures.”

Yes, you read that last one right. One person, alone on a paddleboard in the ocean, was arrested for violating social distancing orders. Did I mention the paddleboarder was by himself?

In Brooklyn, New York, you can get arrested for going to the barber shop, but that rule seems to only apply to African Americans. If you are Jewish, you can’t go to funerals. And in other jurisdictions, you can be a crime victim and still be arrested for violating social distancing rules. In Lorain, Ohio, a man who was shot in the leg by an unknown assailant was himself charged with violating Governor Mike DeWine’s (Republican) stay at home order.

In Pennsylvania, you can also be arrested for violating social distancing rules if you crash your car, but to be fair, in that case, the man involved “was found to be in possession of 14 cans of baby formula, 3 cases of Red Bull and 2 cases of bottled water which were later determined to be stolen from a Weis Markets in Manheim Township, Lancaster County.” Nonetheless, a charge for violating Governor Tom Wolf’s (Democrat) Executive Order was added by the local police.

The Report Concludes Tomorrow

Illustration: Pixabay

Quick Analysis

Why the Electoral College is Vital

Proposals for radical alterations in the way Americans vote are dangerous concepts that would have dramatic consequences for the nation and its Constitution. Some, such as ranked choice voting, are an unblushing bid to prop up fringe, leftist candidates. Others. if adopted, would essentially disunite the nation and overturn its Constitution. As they consistently have after each election loss, Democrat spokespeople have flooded the airwaves with complaints about the Electoral College. Why, they ask, can’t we have a “popular vote,” and let it be done with. Since the Electoral College process is part of the original design of the U.S. Constitution, it would be necessary to pass a Constitutional amendment to change this system. The National Archives notes that over the past 200 years more than 700 proposals have been introduced in Congress to reform or eliminate the Electoral College. There have been more proposals for Constitutional amendments on changing the Electoral College than on any other subject. The answer is as simple as the name of the country: The United States of America. The incredibly successful nation created almost two and a half centuries ago was a union of separate states. Fresh off of dealing with a monarch, it was intentionally set up that way to both prevent the possibility of having an all-powerful dictator, and to prevent larger states from bullying smaller ones. Abolishing the electoral college would essentially disenfranchise smaller states from having any say in the presidency. Indeed, even less populated areas of large states would lose influence. A collection of large cities, (New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Phoenix, Philadelphia, San Antonio, San Diego, Dallas, Austin, Jacksonville, etc.) would decide the outcome in who gets the White House. Considering how badly many of those urban centers are run, that would not bode well for the future of the country! Beyond the practical policy implications, it would alienate the populations of those not living in California, Texas, New York, Florida, Pennsylvania, Illinois, who would, for the most part, be reduced to bystanders in the race for the only nationally-elected position. A Heritage study analyzed the concept of a “National Popular Vote” (NPV) this way: “The National Popular Vote (NPV) plan is the latest in a long line of schemes designed to replace the Electoral College. Imbued with the ideals of this nation’s Founders, the Electoral College has proved itself to be both effective in providing orderly elections for President and resilient in allowing a stable transfer of power of the leadership of the world’s greatest democracy. Therefore, while it would be a mistake to replace the Electoral College, replacing this system with the NPV would be a disaster. The NPV would devalue the minority interests that the Founders sought to protect, create electoral administrative problems, encourage voter fraud, and radicalize the U.S. political system. It also would likely violate the U.S. Constitution’s Compact Clause while directly contravening the Founders’ view of federalism and a representative republic. In an age of perceived political dysfunction, effective policies already in place—especially successful policies established by this nation’s Founders, such as the Electoral College—should be preserved.” Trent England, writing for the National Conference of State Legislatures outlined key reasons for the institution: “At the Constitutional Convention, the primary concern of delegates opposed to direct election was that big states would dominate presidential politics. By using a two-step election process, the Electoral College prevents one region, or a handful of major metropolitan areas, from controlling the White House. Support must be geographically distributed around the country in order to win enough states to capture an electoral vote majority. This was particularly important after the Civil War. The nation remained divided, and Democrats became dominant in the south. A combination of intense popularity with some voters and violent suppression of others allowed Democrats to receive the most popular votes in 1876 and 1888 even though they lost the Electoral College and thus those elections.” Eliminating the Electoral College would be a disaster for the United States/