There are times when the leading intellectual lights of the Right get so cocky of their own victory that they unleash an ideological stinkbomb so rank that it will give pause to even the most enthusiastic Tea-Aid drinker. George Will tossed one of these out there yesterday with his column celebrating the infamous Lochner Supreme Court ruling that barred states from creating 60-hour work weeks:

Liberal certitudes continue to dissolve, the most recent solvent being a robust new defense of a 1905 Supreme Court decision that liberals have long reviled — and misrepresented. To understand why the court correctly decided Lochner v. New York and why this is relevant to current arguments, read David E. Bernstein’s “Rehabilitating Lochner: Defending Individual Rights against Progressive Reform.”

Since the New Deal, courts have stopped defending liberty of contract and other unenumerated rights grounded in America’s natural rights tradition. These are referred to by the Ninth Amendment, which explicitly protects unenumerated rights “retained by the people,” and by the “privileges or immunities” and “liberty” cited in the 14th Amendment. Progressivism, Bernstein argues, is hostile to America’s premise that individuals possess rights that preexist government and are not fully enumerated in the Constitution. This doctrine stands athwart liberalism’s aspiration to erase constitutional limits on government’s regulatory powers.

An 1895 New York law limited bakery employees to working 10 hours a day and 60 hours a week. Ostensibly, this was health and safety legislation; actually, it was rent-seeking by large, unionized bakeries and the unions. Corporate bakeries supported the legislation, which burdened their small, family-owned competitors. The bakers union hoped to suppress the small, non-unionized bakeries that depended on flexible work schedules.

I must admit that I find it surprising that an entire ideological movement exists that pines for a past time that none of its adherents were alive to see, but that's pretty much how modern conservatives feel about late-19th Century America. They're sort of like people who go to Renaissance Fairs, except they celebrate Social Dawrwinism instead of swords and sorcery. I wonder if Will dresses up as Andrew Carnegie or J.P. Morgan when he attends his little Gilded Age Reenactment Society gatherings?

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The Affordable Care Act won a big round today in the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals when a court with two Republican appointees and one Democratic appointee ruling it constitutional. For anyone keeping score, that means 4 out of 6 appellate courts have upheld its constitutionality. But what makes this decision particularly significant is that it broke the partisan chokehold around it during its journey through the courts.

Adam Serwer:

Martin's decision rejected the notion that going without health insurance constitutes an "inactivity" that can't be regulated under the Commerce Clause, noting that, "The uninsured cannot avoid the need for health care, and they consume over $100 billion in health care services annually." Martin adds that "Self-insuring for the cost of health care directly affects the interstate market for health care delivery and health insurance. These effects are not at all attenuated as were the links between the regulated activities and interstate commerce in Lopez and Morrison."

That last point is key, because Republican appointees concocted the "inactivity/activity" distinction as a rhetorical loophole to appeal to Justice Antonin Scalia. Scalia argued in a recent medical marijuana case that " "where Congress has the authority to enact a regulation of interstate commerce, it possesses every power needed to make that regulation effective."

This is a big win and a big deal, assuming that certain justices on our current Supreme Court can be trusted to actually be intellectually honest about how they rule in certain cases. But before it gets there, two more circuit courts need to rule on it -- the Fourth and Eleventh Circuit Courts, who have similar cases pending.

Hoffmania!

Wow. Bill Frist is getting a lesson on what happens to a wingnut who decides to take just one independent stand on just one issue. They're turning on him like a rabid dawg. If it's not becoming painfully obvious to Frist now, it will. When he runs for preznit in 2008 (and he will - it explains his jumping on this populist issue), how many of his GOP opponents will sic the 527s on him? You can hear it now.
"Bill Frist supports the mutilation of human embryos for speculative science. Human embryos which are completely capable of becoming a son or daughter to a good Christian family like your own. Is this the sort of man YOU want making YOUR moral and ethical decisions for your country? Bill Frist. Wrong on embryos. Wrong for America."

Frist won't tolerate losing this valuable hillbilly vote. And the flip-flop clock is counting down. 
Read on...

Yet Another Question For Judge Roberts         Old Fashioned Patriot

The Supreme Court will soon be asked to rule on the legality of depriving brown men with beards who aren't Christian or Jewish the legality of suspending constitutional guarantees like trial by jury, habeas corpus and other long standing American judicial principles. What are your thoughts on this issue?
If it's not becoming painfully obvious to Frist now, it will. When he runs for preznit in 2008 (and he will - it explains his jumping on this populist issue), how many of his GOP opponents will sic the 527s on him? You can hear it now.
"Bill Frist supports the mutilation of human embryos for speculative science. Human embryos which are completely capable of becoming a son or daughter to a good Christian family like your own. Is this the sort of man YOU want making YOUR moral and ethical decisions for your country? Bill Frist. Wrong on embryos. Wrong for America."

Frist won't tolerate losing this valuable hillbilly vote. And the flip-flop clock is counting down.
Read on...

Old Fashioned Patriot

The Supreme Court will soon be asked to rule on the legality of depriving brown men with beards who aren't Christian or Jewish the legality of suspending constitutional guarantees like trial by jury, habeas corpus and other long standing American judicial principles. What are your thoughts on this issue?

Digby has this on Roberts: "In case anyone is wondering if Roberts really is a partisan hack or not, Jeffrey Toobin's book "Too Close To Call" sheds some light on that subject:

The president's first two nominations to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia curcuit --- generally regarded as the stepping-stone to the Supreme Court --- went to Miguel Estrada and John G Roberts Jr., who had played important behind-the scenes roles in the Florida litigation."

By the way, it's a great book.

DOWNING STREET: WAKE ME WHEN THE LIBERATION IS OVER

via The Heretik: When Will We Wake Up from the Nightmare? Our past revealed true in the Downing Street Memos leaves us yet ruled by still present false prophets who speak of last throes like Cheney. Wake me when the liberation is over, for real work must then be done.

We all could profit from some truth about the future seen by only honest eyes. Where can they be found? Our national scribes, royal court stenographers all, tell us the Downing Street Memo past they forgot to write about in its present time, when lies were boldly told and dutifully written down, is something best cowardly forgotten. Wake me when the liberation is over, when I may wake from the sleep where truth and reporters are embedded with lies and power... read on

Stem Cell Research Living Will

The Culture of Life Pledge

I hereby certify that neither I, nor any member of my family, including but not limited to: children, grandchildren, cats, dogs, etc. and any "after acquired" family will never, ever, under any circumstances (even with my fingers crossed) take or ingest any form of drug treatment or medical breakthroughs that are in any way associated with or connected to Stem Cell research. I am morally opposed to this type of medical malfeasance that our lord and Savior and Dr. Dobson most assuredly rebuke. I declare that I am of sound mind and body (as so it is hence with respect to the aforementioned family members) as we execute this irrevocable document and thusly said, this document shall not be challenged in a court of law. This is so despite the fact that I or said parties, would either now or in the future, be the beneficial recipient of such a repugnant life enhancing treatment . Only the Devil's greatest tool, i.e. "temptation" could lead us into sinful thoughts of partaking of this reprehensible policy.

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XXXXXXXX

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Rest of Family

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Pets

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Notary Public

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Witness

via Digby:

James Dobson is quoting Thomas Jefferson right now, a man who would never stop PUKING if he knew what these religions extremists were trying to do.

The delusion is so extreme that he just said that the ultra conservative Rehnquist Court is out of control --- because they aren't conservative enough.

And the Supreme Court caused the civil war...read on

The Right Is Wrong and Small As Well

With every national poll (83% opposed) condemning government interference in the Terry Shiavo matter you would think by the immense media presence of supporting talking heads that the reverse was actually true. In fact, no case in recent memory (possibly Elian Gonzales) has demonstrated the enormousimbalance between the vocal pundits of the lunatic fringe right wing and their actual lack of support bymainstream Americans.

All week long, pundit after pundit from the Right, followed politician after politician from the Right, by inundating the national media with twisted rationale and downright lies and smears of the innocent people just doing the civic jobs in a fully functioning Democracy. From one court loss to the next, the panicking pubescent pundits of the Right leaped from one cable news show to the next. An uninformed observer might believe by viewing these manic media performances that this group represented a gigantic swath of the voting populace in America. But when the dark star dust settled, there was simply no one home. In fact, no poll number in the recent history of Red State/Blue State divisive battles has reached as high as the 80% region. Clearly, the American people have spoken.

The problem is, the lunatic fringe on the right couldn't care less.

emailed by Mark G