Judge slaps Ashcroft upside the head

Post #35,785 by Silverlock 4/17/02 4:04:14 PM Reply	Judge slaps Ashcroft upside the head Metaphorically speaking that is. Judge tells Ashcroft he doesn't have the authority to overturn laws because he doesn't like them. Says that Oregon's assisted suicide law can't be voided by decree. I think this may have interesting repercussions regarding medical marijuana laws. Excerpt- "To allow an attorney general -- an appointed executive whose tenure depends entirely on whatever administration occupies the White House -- to determine the legitimacy of a particular medical practice without a specific congressional grant of such authority would be unprecedented." From [link\|http://www.cnn.com/2002/LAW/04/17/oregon.assisted.suicide/index.html\|CNN] Don't blame me. I voted with the majority.
Post #35,810 by Brandioch 4/17/02 5:51:36 PM Reply	Oh my God! A judge who understands the concept of three branches of government. does the happy dance There is still hope for this country!
Post #35,914 by jb4 4/18/02 2:42:39 PM Reply	Digest THIS! "We're digesting the opinion," Ashcroft said at a Wednesday Justice Department news conference. "The opinion will be evaluated in the department. The course of action to be taken by the department will be determined upon our complete reading of the opinion and evaluation of the circumstances." While yer at it, digest the fact that there is the small inconvenience called the Constitution; you might try digesting some of its contents as well. (And I agree w/ Silverlock, that this doesn't portend well for attempts at overturning state marijuana-use laws! If NORML has any sense (and any balls left), they'll hop right on this as the analogue to Calif.'s marijuana-use laws is quite clear.) jb4 (Resistance is not futile...)
Post #35,946 by Brandioch 4/18/02 7:31:22 PM Reply	Force. While yer at it, digest the fact that there is the small inconvenience called the Constitution; you might try digesting some of its contents as well. The problem is, that it very much COULD be an inconvenience ONLY. We NEED more judges like this that will stand up to unlawful acts by our own government. Ashcroft will get away with whatever unConstitutional acts that the other two branches allow him to.
Post #35,954 by Ashton 4/18/02 8:23:10 PM Reply	Remember too, at the first impeachment hearing of a US President: ONE vote cancelled the foray. It seems we are often.. saved from embarrassment by the very-occasional gutsy individual, speaking in the vernacular of the times, and despite veiled threats of "never working in this town again". In These times, that might well be - Go Fuck Yourself, Bubba.. (It may be "the 2-5%" who own most of the shit under current Corporate rule - but it's a different 1-2% who will risk a sinecure for just plain Honesty. No ?) Ashton Anti- Murican-cupidity \ufffd\ufffd\ufffd
Post #36,084 by mmoffitt 4/21/02 9:42:51 PM Reply	What happens if Congress passes a law making it illegal? IANAL, but I'd guess that federal law trumps state law.
Post #36,087 by a6l6e6x 4/21/02 10:56:17 PM Reply	Re: What happens if Congress passes a law making it illegal? INAL, but the Constitution needs to allow that. US Constitution, Amendment X: The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people. Alex "Never express yourself more clearly than you think." -- Neils Bohr (1885-1962)
Post #36,089 by JayMehaffey 4/21/02 11:15:07 PM Reply	Interstate commerce This is the catch-all that Congress uses to justify anything they want. The way this is interpreted by the courts lets Congress rule on anything that involves money that has passed over a state border at some point. Jay
Post #36,092 by ben_tilly 4/22/02 7:09:50 AM Reply	Correction This is the catch-all that Congress uses to justify anything they want. The way this is interpreted by the courts lets Congress rule on anything that involves money that has passed over a state border at some point. Change "has passed" to "might pass". Until you start viewing divorce settlements as "interstate commerce", you have no idea how broad this grant has become. All that it says is that Congress has the power To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;. Here is [link\|http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/data/constitution/article01/28.html\|how it is interpreted]. Cheers, Ben "... I couldn't see how anyone could be educated by this self-propagating system in which people pass exams, teach others to pass exams, but nobody knows anything." --Richard Feynman
Post #36,122 by orion 4/22/02 1:21:20 PM Reply	Oooout! Woo woo woo! Time for Ashcroft to learn that he does not have absolute power. *I am free now, to choose my own destiny.*

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