Dreams Into Lightning 2

Morning Report: 2012-11-26

USA: New Obamacare challenge. Breitbart:

The Supreme Court has now reinstated a major challenge to Obamacare. Liberty University is challenging both the Individual Mandate and the Employer Mandate of the Affordable Care Act. (Of those two, the latter is even more damaging to the economy and job creation.) A liberal panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit had thrown out the case last year, saying that the Anti-Injunction Act (AIA) does not permit any federal court to rule on the merits of challenges to the Individual Mandate until that requirement goes into effect in 2014.

In its Jun. 28 opinion in NFIB v. Sebelius, the justices unanimously rejected this AIA argument. So Mat Staver, who is both dean of Liberty's law school and chairman of the law firm representing the university, filed a petition for rehearing.

The Supreme Court granted that petition today. ...

Israel / international: Jewish self-defense, widespread anti-Semitism. Tablet: 'Despite the ability of Israel to cobble together a pretty impressive base of international support for its recent operation in Gaza, there were places where, almost by routine, the Israeli efforts were met by a surge of anti-Semitic reactions. ...' Atlas Shrugs has more.

Nigeria: Muslims blow up church, killing 11. Also from Atlas:

Two suicide attacks on a church in an army barracks in the northern Nigerian town of Jaji on Sunday left eleven people dead and 30 injured, the army said.

"Eleven people, mostly worshippers, were killed while 30 are in the hospitals with various degrees of injuries," national army spokesman Brigadier General Bola Koleosho told AFP.

A military officer who did not want to be named said the Protestant church was hit by two explosions.

"The first blast caused no casualties and curious worshippers gathered around the scene looking at the debris... and that was when the second blast happened," he said. ...

Egypt: Morsi becomes new Pharaoh. Michael Totten:

It makes no difference that he was elected. Democracy isn’t just about getting elected. A democratic election is not a one-time plebiscite on who the next tyrant is going to be. Democracy requires individual and minority rights and the separation of powers. Winners cannot oppress losers, nor do losers get to wage war on the winners.

Some of us are more surprised than others by this development, but the Muslim Brotherhood was never a democratic political movement. It's not even a close call. You don't have to be a cheerleader for Hosni Mubarak to recognize its inherent authoritarianism. ...

Read the rest for the experiences of some genuine liberals, who are isolated and outnumbered in this revolution.

Egypt's Morsi: Bridge for Sale

Or words to that effect:

Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi said on Sunday that the sweeping new powers he has assumed are only temporary and called for dialogue to find common political ground, as he faces a showdown with judges over the path to a new constitution.

"The presidency reiterates the temporary nature of the said measures, which are not meant to concentrate power, but... to devolve it to a democratically elected parliament... as well as preserving the impartiality of the judiciary and to avoid politicizing it," a statement from Morsi's office said, according to AFP. ...

Uh-huh.

Morning Report: 2012-11-25

Mexico: The other United States. Mexico's lame-duck president Felipe Calderon announced he will attempt to formally change the country’s name by taking “United States” out of it.

Egypt: Morsi's decree triggers new protests. Egypt's first democratically elected president asserted nearly unlimited powers, as rival crowds of demonstrators poured into the streets of Cairo. Egyptian opposition activists have vowed to stage a sit-in in Cairo in a protest against the president's move to grant himself extensive new powers.

UK: Girl, 11, victim in brutal sex assault. An 11-year-old schoolgirl was subjected to a "brutal" sex attack in a north London park after getting off her bus.

Israel / Hamas: UK officer says terrorists on the run. Israel achieved the goals it set for itself in Gaza, causing Hamas leaders to “run for their lives”, Britain's Colonel Richard Kemp told Arutz Sheva this week.

USA: Distributed costs, concentrated benefits favor Democrats nationally - analysis. John Hinderaker at Power Line:

At the national level, however, you can’t bring about good governance anyway, so you might as well elect Democrats who will bring home the bacon. Such thinking explains why the solidly-red Dakotas, among other states, have contributed a depressing number of Democrats to the Senate and, to a lesser degree, the House.

This is not to deny that the liberal media have a huge influence on national elections; of course they do. And it is also true, as Glenn says, that state and local issues don’t tend to be demagogued as relentlessly as national ones. But I think that what is mainly going on is that many voters are more concerned about fiscal responsibility at the state and local level than the national level, for the simple reason that the states can’t print money, and rely on sales and property taxes, along with, in most cases, relatively flat income taxes. Therefore, voters know that if they vote for more state spending, they will have to pay for it.

At the national level, we have seen an increasing disconnect between spending and payment. This is partly because most people pay either no, or very modest, federal income taxes, and partly because 40% of all federal spending is borrowed, so that our children will have to pay for it. To the average voter, federal money must seem to appear almost magically. ...

Morning Report: 2012-11-07

USA: Obama wins second term. According to CNN, the electoral vote count now stands at Obama 303 - 206 Romney. The President also holds a popular majority of 50 pct to 48 pct at last count. The Democrats have retained the Senate while the Republican Party keeps control of the House.

Egypt: Islamists in control. Reuters:

Four months since Egypt elected veteran Muslim Brotherhood politician Mohamed Mursi as president, human rights activists say hardliners are trying to impose Islamist ways on society.

Although reliable data on social trends is hard to find in Egypt, many people believe that cases of religious intimidation have increased. ...

Full article at the link.

Morning Report: 2012-08-14

Syria: Rebels claim to hold pilot. They say they shot his plane down. Reuters: 'Syria's rebels were jubilant on Tuesday, claiming to have shot down a jet and captured its pilot, an apparent victory against the overwhelmingly superior firepower of President Bashar al-Assad's forces. Video uploaded onto the Internet on Monday showed the jet bursting into flames as it streaked through the sky amid heavy gunfire. The rebels said they had hit it with newly acquired high-caliber anti-aircraft guns. ...'

Syria / China: China hosts Assad regime aide Bouthaina Shaaban. BBC: 'A senior aide to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad has flown to China for talks on the crisis, officials say. The Chinese foreign ministry said Bouthaina Shaaban would meet Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi later. The ministry said it was part of its effort to implement the UN's six-point peace plan. ...'

Egypt: Meet the new boss, etc. The Arabist on SCAF: 'I agree with [Accidental Occidental's] take and put it in a different way in a Guardian piece yesterday — i.e. that talk of Morsi's triumph overshadows that generals (just different generals) were still kingmakers. ...'

Morsy Un-Dissolves Parliament

'Cairo (CNN) -- Egypt's newly elected president announced Sunday that he's overriding a military edict that dissolved the country's elected parliament and calling on lawmakers back into session in defiance of the generals. ...'

YNet: 'Egypt's official news agency says President Mohammed Morsi has ordered the return of the country's Islamist-dominated parliament that was dissolved by the powerful military. ...'

A friend on Facebook comments: 'MB would never do this unless they were confident. Look to the Obama administration to have their back on this. It's inconceivable this could happen without a green light from the US.' I'm afraid he's probably right.

Obama invites Egypt's Islamist leader to US: 'President Barack Obama has invited Egypt's newly elected Islamist president, Mohamed Morsi, to visit the United States in September, an Egyptian official said on Sunday, reflecting the new ties Washington is cultivating with the region's Islamists. ...'

Morning Report: 2012-06-25

Morsi declared winner in Egypt elections. Fox: 'Egypt's new president-elect, Islamist Mohammed Morsi, moved into the office once occupied by ousted leader Hosni Mubarak and started consultations Monday on forming his team and a new government, an aide said. Morsi was declared on Sunday the winner of Egypt's first free presidential election in its modern history, following a tight race with Mubarak's last Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq. ...' Ryan Munro:

The results of Egypt’s presidential election have been officially announced and the Muslim Brotherhood and its Palestinian wing, Hamas, are in a state of jubilation. Mohammed Morsi won with 51.7% of the vote, while the secularist former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq came in a close second with 48.2%. The Islamists shouldn’t get too excited. The fact remains that the Supreme Armed Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) remains in control of the country.

Protests in Egypt swelled as it was reported that Shafiq was going to be declared the winner. By all accounts, it was a close election but the preliminary tally showed Morsi ahead. If Shafiq became president, the population would have understandably seen it as a decision of SCAF and not the voters. By permitting a legitimate election, SCAF has avoided a confrontation with the Egyptian population while maintaining its hold on power. ...

The Glazov Gang hosts video discussion at FrontPage.

Syrian official: Turkish plane violated airspace. 'Syrian air defenses had to react immediately to a Turkish jet flying at 100 meters altitude inside Syrian airspace in what was "a clear breach of Syrian sovereignty", Foreign Ministry spokesman Jihad Makdissi said on Monday. ...'

Morning Report: 2012-06-24

Mary Cheney, Heather Poe tie the knot. 'Mary Cheney, the openly gay daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, has married her long-time partner Heather Poe, The Daily Caller has learned. Cheney spokeswoman Kara Ahern confirmed to TheDC that the couple married Friday morning in Washington, D.C. ...'

Egypt on alert in advance of election results. 'Egypt's ruling armed forces were on alert on Sunday as fears of violence mounted in the final hours before the state election committee is to name the winner of last weekend's presidential election at 3 p.m. local time (9 a.m. ET). Mohamed Morsy of the long-oppressed Muslim Brotherhood has already claimed to be the successor to the ousted Hosni Mubarak. Millions of his Islamist loyalists may react with fury if the run-off goes to Ahmed Shafik, a former general and Mubarak ally. ...'

Turkish jet issue heading for NATO. 'Ankara: Turkey said on Sunday Syria had shot down its military aircraft in international airspace on Friday without warning and declared it would formally consult its Nato allies on a reaction. Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, speaking some 48 hours after the jet was shot down near both countries’ sea borders, told state broadcaster TRT the plane had been clearly marked as Turkish and dismissed Syria’s earlier statement it had not known the plane belonged to Turkey. ...' Belmont Club:

In that context the shootdown of the Turkish jet provides yet another vector for the involvement of outside powers in the Syrian conflict. If Turkey gets more deeply involved the question will be what its goals are and who will ride in on its coat-tails

The New York Times, citing sources in Israel, write that Israeli officials now believe that a Third Intifada is imminent because the Palestinian Authority itself was at a dead-end. “The root cause of this instability is that Palestinians have lost all hope that Israel will grant them a state.” ...

The desperation of the Palestinian Authority is another way of saying that the Israeli-Arab conflict is no longer the dominant narrative of the Middle East. The Arab Spring has now shifted the basic fault line to the Sunni-Shia schism, with the conflict between old line strongmen and newly restive populations as the undercard. ...

Morning Report: 2012-06-18

Israel's southern border fence near completion. YNet: 'The defense establishment is pushing for the expedited completion of the new Israel- Egypt border fence and expects that the "dune sector" – through which many illegal migrants infiltrate Israel – will be completed in three weeks time. The southern border project stretches across hundreds of kilometers. So far, 180km of the border's 229km have been completed and military sources said Wednesday that the fence will be completed by October. ...'

Arabist on Egypt elections, SCAF. The Arabist: 'Morsi’s apparent win means more short-term uncertainty. I don’t think he’s capable of ushering in the Caliphate any more than Shafiq is capable of bringing back the Mubarak era (more on that below). The Islamist’s narrow victory, following the five-way split of the first round, means that his only popular mandate will be that he’s not Shafiq. He’ll be a president with only limited, temporary constitutional powers, facing off against a military who’s quite capable of vetoing whatever he does by means administrative, judicial, and now legislative. He will have very little of either moral or institutional power to shape the drafting of the constitution, and he will live under the Sword of Damocles of another court ruling. ...'

Russia's anti-Georgian moves. Stratfor (subscription) covers Russia's threats to deport illegal Georgian migrants, in the context of increasing US-Georgian defense ties.

Morning Report: 2012-06-15

Egypt: Court voids vote. CNN: 'The court's decision dissolves parliament, and the military was quick to say it now controls legislative affairs in Egypt, actions that raised the prospect of renewed mass street protests. ...'

In one ruling Thursday, the Supreme Constitutional Court found that the rules governing January's parliamentary elections were invalid, triggering the dissolution of parliament.

In the second, the court rejected a law barring former regime members from running for president, clearing the way for Ahmed Shafik, the last prime minister under former Mubarak, to run in this weekend's runoff election. He faces Mohamed Morsi, an Islamist candidate favored by many in the Muslim Brotherhood and their allies and supporters.

BBC:

The court said last year's parliamentary vote - the first free and fair poll in decades - was unconstitutional, and called for fresh elections.

The decision effectively puts legislative power into the hands of the ruling Supreme Council of Armed Forces (Scaf), who were tasked with overseeing Egypt's transition after the toppling of President Hosni Mubarak in February 2011.

The court also upheld the right of [former PM Ahmed] Shafiq to run for president.

MEI Editor's Blog:

It is possible that Egypt's Supreme Council of the Armed Forces will go back to the barracks at the end f the month, as frequently promised, but since SCAF seems to have been given the powers of both Parliament and the Constitutional Assembly, I wouldn't hold my breath.

In fact, right now, SCAF seems to have more power than the Egyptian military has held at any time since the 1950s. Nasser, and after him Sadat and Mubarak, always kept a balanee between the Army and the Interior Ministry with its police, State Security, Central Security, and other forces, so each counterbalanced the other. Now Mubarak's Interior Minister, Habib al-Adly, is in prison, and Mubarak's Defense Minister, Field Marshal Tantawi, is in charge. In fact, with SCAF appointing the judges and controlling the Interior Ministry by naming the Minister, and with Parliament dissolved, SCAF seems to be in charge of virtually all the instruments of the state, at least for the moment. And yesterday's ruling allowing Military Police to arrest civilians — by an astonishing coincidence introduced the day before today's court rulings — seems to have re-introduced the recently ended State of Emergency through the back door.

The last time the Egyptian Army wielded this much power was probably in 1954 ...