a shameful boehner posted:

Neat, I'm just over the highway. Ever been to Saigon Basil?

Acebuckeye13 posted:

Do... do you know what a coup actually is? Seriously, I'm not sure how you could pick out five events in US foreign policy and not stumble across one even by accident, but here we are.

Amergin posted:

No, not yet anyway! When I'm craving Vietnamese/pho I usually stop by the place next door to POM off 120th. Though there's no shortage of Vietnamese places around here, apparently (I've only been here since mid-2013).

Three Olives posted:

*a big-rear end magazine cover*

quote:

Rep. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) on Wednesday offered legislative language that would "automatically" punish family members of people who violate U.S. sanctions against Iran, levying sentences of up to 20 years in prison.

The provision was introduced as an amendment to the Nuclear Iran Prevention Act of 2013, which lays out strong penalties for people who violate human rights, engage in censorship, or commit other abuses associated with the Iranian government.

Cotton also seeks to punish any family member of those people, "to include a spouse and any relative to the third degree," including, "parents, children, aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, grandparents, great grandparents, grandkids, great grandkids," Cotton said.

"There would be no investigation," Cotton said during Wednesday's markup hearing before the House Foreign Affairs Committee. "If the prime malefactor of the family is identified as on the list for sanctions, then everyone within their family would automatically come within the sanctions regime as well. It'd be very hard to demonstrate and investigate to conclusive proof."

The amendment immediately sparked objections from several members of the Foreign Affairs Committee, who noted that the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees due process rights to anyone charged with a crime under American law.

"An amendment is being offered literally to allow the sins of the uncles to descend on the nephews," Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) said. "The amendment that's being offered doesn't even indicate a requirement of knowing violation. … I really question the constitutionality of a provision that punishes nephews for the sins of the uncles."

Article III of the Constitution explicitly bans Congress from punishing treason based on "corruption of blood" -- meaning that relatives of those convicted of treason cannot be punished based only on a familial tie.

Family members of people suspected to be political dissidents in North Korea frequently disappear or are punished by the North Korean government.

Cotton warned that some wrongdoers in Iran may shift financial assets to family members to avoid forfeiture under U.S. laws, so family members must automatically be guilty of sanction violations as well.

"Iranian citizens do not have constitutional rights under the United States Constitution," Cotton said. "I sympathize with their plight if they are harmless, innocent civilians in Iran. I doubt that that is often the case."

The Fifth Amendment reads "no person ... shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law," and makes no distinctions regarding citizenship. In Wong Wing v. United States, the Supreme Court found that noncitizens charged with crimes are protected by the Fifth Amendment, along with the Sixth and 14th Amendments. The case was decided in 1896.

Several members of the Foreign Affairs Committee acknowledged that stashing assets with family members can be a problem. But they noted that other provisions in the bill would ensnare family members who conspired with those who violate the sanctions. Chairman Ed Royce (R-Calif.) suggested that Cotton withdraw his amendment and narrow its language.

After some back-and-forth with Grayson and Royce, Cotton relented and withdrew the amendment.

Von Sloneker posted:

This is from 2013 but I've only now seen Radley Balko* tweeting about it.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/22/tom-cotton-corruption-of-blood_n_3322251.html


*e: fixed wrong attribution

ReidRansom posted:

His "personal photographer" is the pretty one.



i mean, I'm basically totally straight, but that's a handsome dude.

zoux posted:

That goes to a Playboy article so be careful!

quote:

"I sympathize with their plight if they are harmless, innocent civilians in Iran. I doubt that that is often the case."

Von Sloneker posted:

Well now I'm seeing a debate in Balko's twitter feed about the accuracy of the article. Supposedly that Popehat guy is trying to figure things out.

Von Sloneker posted:

This is from 2013 but I've only now seen Radley Balko* tweeting about it.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/22/tom-cotton-corruption-of-blood_n_3322251.html


*e: fixed wrong attribution

theshim posted:

Von Sloneker posted:

This is from 2013 but I've only now seen Radley Balko* tweeting about it.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/22/tom-cotton-corruption-of-blood_n_3322251.html


*e: fixed wrong attribution

Nonsense posted:

Essentially saying if you are at all negative towards Israel you are somehow worthy of being bombed.

Likud is a disease and Cheney being completely removed from Israel he still pimps the pathetic rhetoric.

zoux posted:

That goes to a Playboy article so be careful!

quote:

At different points, President Barack Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder have suggested that racism is a factor in criticism of them. Is there any truth in that?

I think they’re playing the race card, in my view. Certainly we haven’t given up—nor should we give up—the right to criticize an administration and public officials. To say that we criticize, or that I criticize, Barack Obama or Eric Holder because of race, I just think it’s obviously not true. My view of it is the criticism is merited because of performance—or lack of performance, because of incompetence. It hasn’t got anything to do with race.

A Winner is Jew posted:

My fellow Israelis, I'm pleased to tell you today that I've signed legislation that will outlaw D&D and LF forever. We begin bombing with white phosphorus in five minutes.

Joementum posted:

The cloture vote on S. 178 the Justice for Victims of Human Trafficking Act failed 55-43, so now we wait and see if Mitch is going to keep trying a la the DHS funding bill, if he'll agree to pull the Hyde amendment language, or if he'll move on to something else like the Lynch nomination (, no).

Nonsense posted:

LF is buried with Caro.

A Winner is Jew posted:

LF truly died as it lived then.

Making horrible choices since it wasn't on any medication.

McDowell posted:

Everything dies, but humans have always endeavored to leave something persistent - offspring, knowledge, ritual. But now we can make objects that can 'think' and 'talk', becoming a completely new kind of institution.

site posted:

Imagine how much will be lost when we go. The internet and all the electronics will be gone. We are gonna be the most easily forgotten era of human history.

site posted:

Imagine how much will be lost when we go. The internet and all the electronics will be gone. We are gonna be the most easily forgotten era of human history.

computer parts posted:

As if 99% of all proof of human existence didn't get erased within like 20 years of a people dying anyway.

Venom Snake posted:

The library of congress decided to catalog SA and 4chan so your shitposts will remain intact for all of eternity.

site posted:

lol okay true

Yeah like the LoC will be around still.

Fried Chicken posted:

This. It is actually shockingly easy to meet and get connected with politicians once you get involved.

Mo_Steel posted:

Conservatives are way ahead of you on that front:

Nintendo Kid posted:

unless nuclear war, it will.

if nuclear war, everything disappears

Scrub-Niggurath posted:

Please donate to my Kickstarter to chisel the entire SA archives into a massive slab of stone

Nintendo Kid posted:

unless nuclear war, it will.

if nuclear war, everything disappears

Joementum posted:

Quote of the day, “I’m looking forward to McConnell shoving his fist up Obama’s rear end. Although, he will, no doubt, like it.” ~ Jim Dornan, national field director of the Ben Carson Presidential exploratory committee.