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The Nonsense Attempt To End Birthright Citizenship… Is Dead: SCOTUS.

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The obviously plain language of the Fourteenth Amendment was never in doubt, despite the MAGA sophistry suggesting otherwise. Even so, this is good news. Barrett, Kavanaugh and Roberts agree with the usual three making it a 6-3 decision. If you are born here — you are a citizen, if you want to be. Full stop — just as we repeatedly said, for over a year.

More problematical, though was the morning’s decision on student athletes. It seems the 3/5ths of a person compromise (for now) is to say trans-athletes in red states must move into blue states, and change schools, in order to compete. That is just political posturing, not legal reasoning. The supposed Supremes’ “conservative” majority is more a mini-Congress, than a caller of balls and strikes now, it seems. Ugly.

Here is a bit of the unsurprising birthright case:

…To understand the Citizenship Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, it is first necessary to understand the context in which it arose — and the opinion of this Court, Dred Scott v. Sandford, 19 How. 393 (1857), that it rejected….

[The full text of the Tangerine 2.0 (now enjoined) Sharpie scribble] declares that “the privilege of United States citizenship does not automatically extend to persons born in the United States: (1) when that person’s mother was unlawfully present in the United States and the father was not a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident at the time of said person’s birth, or (2) when that person’s mother’s presence in the United States at the time of said person’s birth was lawful but temporary… and the father was not a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident at the time of said person’s birth….” [Obviously this violates the plain meaning of the 14th Amendment, which ended Dred Scott.]

In a Nation of immigrants — an “asylum for mankind,” in Thomas Paine’s words — jus soli’s broad scope took on particular importance. Common Sense (1776), in 1 Writings of Thomas Paine 101 (M. Conway ed. 1894). The young Republic attracted tens of thousands of émigrés from the Old World—Scotch-Irish, French, German, Welsh, and many more, some of whom hoped to stay only a short time, others of whom hoped never to leave….

That is what the lady in the harbor promised — and still promises — with her torch aloft. There is much more in the reasoning — do go read it all. It is a fabulous civics lesson — one Tangerine 2.0 obviously slept, and sleeps… through.

Onward, into the steamy end-of-June air — and baby grrls. Smile… with a Moderna update next, as it is finally starting to approach its fair value.

नमस्ते

Well, This Is… Decidedly Thick-Headed. The Fitton-Shills Argue That Judge Kness Should NOT Decide A Statute Of Limitations Issue — Thus Openly Wasting Judicial Resources.

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The goofy Fitton-hired lawyers never even mention tonight the fact that their proposed approach will require at least two sets of factual hearings, on “who all knew what, and when did they know it” — if the able USDC Judge waits until later, to consider the fact that these five private plaintiffs did not file the original suit in a timely fashion.

They ignore it, because they know focusing on this… makes them a pure loser. And that is exactly why the City of Evanston asks the Judge to conserve resources — and bifurcate discovery — closing this all out once, and for all.

I will not quote from their stupid filing, and I link it solely for a complete record, here.

Obviously, if the Tangerine 2.0 Department of Justice believes it can prove it made timely suit-filings, here (Hah!) — it may bring that suit. But nothing compels Judge Kness to let the five private plaintiffs get a free ride, between now and then. And nothing permits the DoJ to “cure” statute of limitations problems in private (albeit federal) suits — by simply intervening.

The proper course, under the clear federal Rules of Civ. Pro., is for the Judge to decide whether the whole suit is untimely, and not waste his precious deliberative resources on noodling about intervention. The Tangerine DoJ may bring its own suit some other day, if it (preposterously) thinks it too might be able to avoid a timeliness (and standing) problem.

Hilarious. That is all for tonight — out.

[My lil’ ladies are here tomorrow — baking banana bread and grilling various veggies and steaks and brats… and sweltering in the park — before a fresh but iced lemonade cooler, in the blasting A/C, inside. Heh. Then Wed. evening is US Men’s World Cup Soccer / FIFA uner the stars… Onward.]

नमस्ते

Gatherings Of 50 Or More People Are Now Banned In The DRC Capital City: Kinshasa — Perhaps An Over-Reaction, To Ebola, ~1,000 Miles Away?

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No doubt, as to North and South Kivu, and Ituri — obviously — this mass gathering ban makes solid public health sense, since there are certainly now over 300 “missing” cases of Ebola positives, roaming the countryside in the far Eastern regions.

I am not so sure about Bas Uele, and certainly more than a bit skeptical… about the capital city of Kinshasa — on the opposite end of the nation (~1,000 miles from Ituri). See my remarks after the pull quote, for context.

In any event — here is the latest, from Reuters reporting:

…The order, issued on June 27 by the interior minister, covers Kinshasa, Tshopo, Haut-Uele and Bas-Uele provinces, none of which has recorded cases so far.

It ⁠cited proximity to affected provinces as a key transmission risk, and required authorities in the four provinces to monitor anyone presenting symptoms and submit daily surveillance reports.

The outbreak, declared on May 15, has infected 1,274 people and killed 360 across three eastern provinces, Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu, according to government data released on Monday….

There is — to be fair — some concern that this is political, as the current Administration there seeks a Constitutional amendment, to allow its president a THIRD consecutive elected term. [Gee, who does that remind us of?!]

And stopping rallies in the capital city of Kinshasa (with ~18 million voting souls) would mightily aid that effort, in entrenchment of power. Hmmmm… and there have been no cases, this time around, in Kinshasa. Hmmm, indeed. Onward.

नमस्ते

“Racist Haters… Gonna’ Hate” — Scott Johnson & Miranda Devine Edition. Yawn.

~ condor ~ 2 Comments

Today, Johnson beclowns himself anew, by quoting Miranda Devine (at length) in the New York Post.

The endless obsession with Mr. Obama‘s origin, race and citizenship resurfaces, from both of them as about the one-billionth testimony to both their jealousy and mindless hatred.

I suppose the one upside of this is to get both of them on record — now, decrying what will no doubt be the best Presidential library and inspirational museum — in over a century. And this, long before the Tangerine 2.0 “tribute to fat orange crayons” (and Sharpies) appears — some years hence.

Every word the two of them uttered about a President intentionally dividing the nation will certainly be self-evident at whatever monument to hisself Trump finally puts up. But if he’s asked to pay for it, he probably will never have a library. And it could well be by the time 2028 rolls around, none of his moron followers will want to pay — either.

As ever, we shall see.

The only thing that is certain at this juncture is that Scott Johnson is a racist. And so is Miranda Devine.

Out.

Fourth Circuit Sets July 9 As Due Date, For Tangerine 2.0 — To Oppose Mr. Abrego Garcia’s Motion To End Trump’s Appeal Of His Complete Loss…

~ condor ~ 1 Comment

The tight time frame imposed by the federal appeals court is a fair indicator that the panel agrees — this appeal should likely never have been docketed, by a disingenuous AUSA — for Trump.

Again, Abrego will win out, here:

…The motion to suspend briefing is granted. . . .

[Separately,] RESPONSE TO MOTION TO DISMISS APPEAL DUE: 07/09/2026

Response is required to the motion to dismiss appeal in part on or before the due date above….

Onward, resolutely.

नमस्ते

The Only Bright Spots, From The Last Seven Days, At A Now Very Political Supreme Court…

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First, E. Jean Carroll’s $5 million is safe. Trump owes it, personally. Even so, he will doubtlessly soon seek cert., from the Supremes, on the other $83 million he owes here — but that too will fail. It is encouraging that from this correct decision, there were no dissents. Pay up, dotard — you are a serial sexual predator. That is simply a fact, beyond contestation now. The Supremes were your last avenue. Period.

It is encouraging also, that “geo-fence” warrants are now clearly “searches” under the Fourth Amendment. Many states’ highest courts had so held, but now the Supremes make that federal precedent, as well. This means all such warrant requests must be evaluated as to reasonablness, given the individual circumstances, under the Fourth Amendment’s long-standing jurispridence.

Without any serious doubt, the Supremes held off on announcing these two rulings (that would enrage Tangerine 2.0) — until they could hand down the cases expanding his powers, and overruling Humphrey’s Executor — departing from a long line of cases that hold Congress must act, if an independent agency head is to be fired by the executive branch, for political reasons.

This is nonsense, of course. Alito and Thomas have literally created / made law, from whole cloth, here — despite the late Justice Scalia’s insistence that truly conservative Justices would do no such thing.

One final silver lining was that the Supremes held the Fed still remains a “truly untouchable” agency. Lisa Cook wins. But this only serves to underscore the sophistry deeply embedded in the other firings holdings from Alito and Thomas.

All I can say to the MAGA/Tangerine folks is… be careful what you wish for. When a Democratic President takes office — all of your BS will be wiped clean, from the face of the Earth — a new clean slate. Bank on it. Your wins here are entirely pyrrhic. Damn. Out.

नमस्ते

Now Exactly 60 Years After Gemini Astronaut Ed White “Took A [First] Space Walk”, We Will Conduct Our 280th ISS EVA, Tomorrow…

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The image at right appeared in countless pop art installations (including my brother’s) from 1966 through the late 1970s. It is truly iconic, of the early US “Space Age”.

And now, counting space walks at ISS alone (not counting Space Shuttle or Apollo or later Gemini walks), we will see this as the two hundred and eightieth extra vehicular activity, or space walk — if you like. Very cool — here’s tomorrow’s expected web-cast schedule, and some more narrative background info, on the walk:

…NASA astronauts Chris Williams and Jessica Meir will exit the station’s Quest airlock to replace a wrist joint that malfunctioned during normal Canadarm2 operations on May 27 after the arm drew elevated motor current and did not move as expected.

Watch NASA’s live U.S. spacewalk 95 coverage beginning at 7 a.m. EDT on NASA+, Amazon Prime, Netflix, and the agency’s YouTube channel. The spacewalk is expected to last roughly six-and-a-half hours.

NASA worked alongside CSA to understand the issue and determined a spacewalk was required to replace the joint using a spare already aboard the space station. Repairs to robotics, like Canadarm2, are normal and expected after more than 25 years of continuous operations, as the system was designed with replaceable components and planned maintenance in mind.

This spacewalk will be the second for Williams and the fifth for Meir. Williams will serve as spacewalk crew member 1 and will wear a suit with red stripes. Meir will serve as crew member 2 and will wear an unmarked suit. It will be the 280th spacewalk in support of space station assembly, maintenance, and upgrades….

Excellent, as essentially all of us in Middle to Southern America will see (Super El Niño induced) scorching temps over the next three days, but for our part, we will remain hydrated — even with another US Men’s Soccer match / Jumbotron evening picnic, in the park, for Wed. night @ 7 pm, locally.

Meanwhile, climate change ALSO means various wild-fires are burning very near my various Rocky Mountain family homes. Dammit — but onward, just the same.

नमस्ते

Was Tangerine 2.0 Treated As Though He “Wasn’t Capable Of Paying For” The New Lilly Weight Loss Drug, In April 2026?

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At a minimum, if the “79 year old patient” is/was who we all suspect s/he is… it would suggest he is not being honest with the American people — about how serious his related (and unrelated) health challenges are.

This is not something an otherwise very healthy (to say nothing of well-heeled) person would do — they would have their specialist MD enroll them in one of a dozen studies underway, to get access to these experimental meds.

In any event, we saved this tidbit for a Sunday — as it is not really Earth-shattering news: the rich and powerful in the US regularly get very special health care treatment. But in this case, the American people are entitled to know if the guy at 1600 Penn is far more frail than he is letting on. [Where are his actual physical results — from an unaffiliated MD — not his stupid press-bites… and, while we are at it… his… tax returns?!]

Here is the story from STAT+ that spread like wildfire last week — prompting Congressional inquiries:

…Millions of Americans with obesity are eagerly awaiting a powerful new drug from Eli Lilly called retatrutide, which has demonstrated bariatric-surgery levels of weight loss. Some aren’t even waiting for approval from the Food and Drug Administration, instead racing to acquire it through sketchy means.

But STAT has learned that Eli Lilly and the FDA have allowed one person to gain access to the drug through the FDA’s “compassionate use” program, a pathway that gives patients with serious and immediately life-threatening medical issues access to experimental treatments….

Ultimately, for the overall US health care narrative arc, this one case is perhaps trivial — but if the most powerful can access pathways that were supposedly reserved for the most dire, and needy cases… once again, we are compelled to point out that the US health care delivery system is… fundamentally flawed. Onward.

नमस्ते

Current Options Skews Suggest A 40% Chance SpaceX Will Be Trading Below $130, In September 2026… Grin.

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The odd-ball conglomerate flyer (almost exclusively on Muskian exuberance) posted a meteoric rise, immediately post-IPO pricing — ripping north from $135 — to just under $220.

But then… a cold harsh reality set in — and it fell back to Earth… now trading between $148 and $153 a share.

I think the options skews are pretty accurate here. It was very fully priced at its IPO — all the rest was just stupid FOMO buying, mostly by retail. Then the larger holders began selling at the over-inflated price — locking in huge gains, while still holding a fraction of their original allotments. It is the oldest hot IPO game on the planet — reserved for funds managing north of $2 billion. And it has played out according to Hoyle, yet again.

So — as the price more and more is dragged toward a “mean” / reality… the options skews look for a ~$130 price by September. I agree.

Here’s one of the auto-bot rags, on standardized options trading activity over the past week:

…[L]et’s consider what the options market is showing. This is where investors buy contracts that allow them to bet on whether a particular stock will rise or fall during a given time frame. A call option, considered bullish, offers the holder the right to buy a certain stock at a set price, while a put option, considered bearish, offers the holder the right to sell at a set price.

Options activity shows a 40% probability of SpaceX stock falling below $130 by the middle of September, Reuters reported this week, citing Susquehanna Financial Group strategist Christopher Jacobson. If this happens, IPO investors may see a loss of at least 3.7%.

Though options still are leaning in a bullish direction, the 40% I mentioned above is high enough to suggest investors might want to proceed with caution….

We just find it all… hilarious. Musk always over-promises, and under delivers. So too (again), here.

Onward.

नमस्ते

Community Ebola Transmission Rates Continue To Rise In Ituri — As At Least 300 People Carrying The Virus Are “Missing” From Health Centers…

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And that, in turn, portends a very alarming fall — for the sick, and dying — primarily in and around Ituri Province, DRC. Models developed by the African CDC predict the deaths will be over 1,400 by September — and the sickness levels will approach 8,500 cases. [The “unconfirmed” totals will be much higher — as entire areas will not have been adequately triaged, for the spread of the disease.]

Without USAID on the ground — it is simply not possible to turn health facilities into enforced stay / prisons — and traditional healers are still telling the afflicted that they may go home — and that they might cure it — with prayers, alone. That is effectively gasoline, on an already raging bonfire. Here’s the latest from the UK Guardian, reporting overnight:

…The whereabouts of almost 300 people who have tested positive for Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is unknown, according to Africa’s top public health official.

The humanitarian crisis amid the conflict in the affected areas means more than 1 million people are living in camps to which health workers have no access, Dr Jean Kaseya, director general of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said on Thursday.

His comments came as projections from the World Health Organization’s Africa regional office, published in the Lancet Infectious Diseases journal, predicted there will be about 8,210 cases and 1,420 deaths by mid-September….

The 300 may also be largely migrants — miners or sex workers that follow them — and thus may spread widely in DRC and into Uganda now. That is very very chilling — as potentials for epidemics go. Yikes. And still no approved vaccine for this Bundibugyo strain. Out.

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