The New Confederation
US v Arizona
- Controversial Arizona Law Reaches Supreme Court--NPR
The U.S. Supreme Court takes up another incendiary election issue Wednesday [April 25] when it hears arguments on a controversial Arizona law that targets illegal immigrants. - Immigration Brings High Drama To The High Court--NPR
A majority of Supreme Court justices showed they will likely uphold at least part of Arizona's controversial immigration law. . . - Tucson Police Chief On Ariz. Immigration Law--NPR
. . . Melissa Block talks with Tucson Police Chief Roberto Villasenor about the implications for his department should the Supreme Court uphold the law. . . .
The Koch Confederacy
While so much attention has been put on the legal challenge to the "Individual Mandate" provision of the Affordable Care Act. A case heard by the Supreme Court last week might have greater ramifications in terms of precedent. The challenge to Arizona's SB1070, the State's immigration law.
What is surprising is that the challenge is not on grounds that many of the provisions could be seen as "Ethnic Profiling". The basic argument is what powers states have.
The idea of "States Rights" is as old as the United States. The Civil War was essentially a war fought over the notion that the Confederacy had a right to hold African-American's in bondage. It took a federal act to finally integrate America, at least under the law.
So why has the idea reared it's head again, at least when it suits the right. I am sure the same people that seem to think it fine for states to define marriage as a union between a man and woman, or give law enforcement the right to demand papers from someone who looks "illegal", would be likely to take the opposite side should a progressive-minded state decide to pass a living wage law.
There could be two reasons. The first is that the American Right actually does realize that their views do not resonate with America as a whole. Their notion of creating outgroups; women, homosexuals, Muslims, African-Americans, etc, may be out sync with an America growing more diverse and tolerant. The American Right might realize that it's base is located in smaller, more homogeneous states. Even in larger states like Pennsylvania, the right seems to draw much of it's strength from areas dominated by the White, Male, Fundamentalist Protestants that make up the American Right's base.
The second reason might have to do with a strategy to build the corporate state that folks like ALEC, the Kochs', etc seem to be trying to build. We've seen this strategy in Wisconsin, Ohio and Florida. They locate states that they know will have pliant legislatures and apparently lack the grass-roots opposition.
Of course, all of this brings the importance of the Courts into focus, and the need to have legislators that are committed to moving the Nation forward. This is, in my opinion, an area that progressives have been behind in for almost 40 years,
