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Conservative Leaders Come Out Against Harold Koh
A group of leading conservatives released the following statement opposing the State Department nomination of Harold Koh:
Obama Chooses Radical Transnational Ideology Over US Interests With Koh State Department Nomination
President Obama’s nomination of left-wing academic Harold Koh to be the top lawyer at the State Department represents a choice based on ideology instead of national interest. Koh is a terrible pick for this important position.
Koh is a radical transnationalist who, based on his writings and statements, aims to use international and foreign law to deprive Americans of our rights as American citizens.
KOH FAVORS FOREIGN LAW OVER AMERICAN LAW
Koh wants the Supreme Court to misinterpret the Constitution to embody rules of foreign and international law. He objects to America’s “distinctive rights culture,” which he complains gives “First Amendment protections for speech and religion … far greater emphasis and judicial protection in America than in Europe or Asia.” He also wants to invent new constitutional rights favored by leftist elites—for same-sex marriage and against the death penalty, for example. Under our Constitution, these are matters for us citizens to decide through our elected representatives. But Koh wants to impose on us the views of foreign and international bureaucrats.
KOH FAVORS TREATIES + UN CONFERENCES THAT UNDERMINE AMERICAN SOVEREIGNTY
Koh also favors an aggressive misuse of treaties to impose social and economic policies on American citizens. For example, he strongly supports a treaty that has been interpreted by the treaty’s own committee to create rights to abortion and prostitution, to have the government determine the pay scale of every job, and even to require the abolition of Mother’s Day.
Koh also believes that United Nations conferences and even international meetings of left-wing activists have the authority to create rules of so-called customary international law that are binding in the United States as federal law.
KOH’s POSITIONS HANDICAP AMERICA’s EFFORTS TO DEFEND ITSELF
Koh favors a flat ban on the United States government ever taking action to prevent American citizens from severe and imminent threats to national security. Koh opposes the very idea that American government officials should act to promote what they perceive to be our national self-interest.
KOH’s POSITIONS WOULD HARM AMERICAN BUSINESSES
Koh supports imposing massive liability on American businesses—and massive costs on their employees, customers, and shareholders—for their entirely lawful commercial transactions with foreign regimes that did bad things to their people. This threatens a massive redistribution of wealth from American citizens to international left-wing activists.
As the State Department’s top lawyer, Koh would be well positioned to advance his dangerous views on all these matters. President Obama’s choice of Koh demonstrates a preference for ideology over the national interest and the Senate should reject his nomination.
The statement was released by:
Edwin Meese, former Attorney General
Alfred Regnery, Publisher, American Spectator
Grover Norquist, President, Americans for Tax Reform
Wm. Bradford Reynolds, former Assistant Attorney General
Tony Perkins, President of the Family Research Council
Brent Bozell, President of the Media Research Center
T. Kenneth Cribb, former Counselor to U.S. Attorney General
Wendy Wright, President, Concerned Women for America
Phyllis Schlafly, founder and President, Eagle Forum
Richard Viguerie, Chairman ConservativeHQ.com
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Pingback| 5.5.09 @ 2:20PM
Conservative Leaders Come Out Against Harold Koh | But As For Me links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
Deborah D| 5.6.09 @ 8:10AM
Wow! Quite an amazing set of facts laid out by some very important conservatives. Good for them that they've checked into this guy's background.
The more this administration does the more obvious it is that the left-wing has taken over the Democrat Party. Who in the world, other than someone who hates his own country (and wants to "change" everything about it) would welcome such a radical into his government.
Of course he didn't listen to Jeremiah Wright while he sat in his pews for 20 years either...yeah, right.
Timothy L. Pennell| 5.6.09 @ 8:37AM
Why bother? He's not gonna listen. He 'won'. Remember? Let him have his pick. Everything he does, is DIGGING HIS HOLE DEEPER. Every BOW to the Muslim King. Every SLAP, to the face of our ALLIES. Every NEW TAX. Every extra TRILLION he spends. Every little LEFT WING FREAK that he chooses. If the 'Independents', are independent, and if the Republicans can WAKE UP, and clean their house of ALL of the OLD FOOLS that are in their ranks, then the pendulum will swing back. It's gonna be a Looooooooooooong 4 years. Let him cut his own throat. This ARROGANT son of a MUSLIM, can't help himself. You'll see.
wolf| 5.6.09 @ 10:08AM
Anybody figure out yet that Zerobama is just a ghetto hustler in fancy clothes, dancing and spinning, faster and faster, just to keep ahead of the latest exposure of incompetence and malfeasance in office?
rebb| 5.6.09 @ 10:28AM
Harold Koh is a brilliant scholar and a capable individual who will serve his country with distinction. Just because a few conservatives disagree with him on the substance does not make him anything other than an asset to the US government.
Emily| 5.6.09 @ 11:41AM
If any of the above arguments about Harold Koh were true then I would be very concerned. The problem is that the "facts" as stated here are not facts at all, but faulty and unfair claims laid out by staunch conservatives who disagree with Koh's politics and care more about their own right-wing agenda than the truth or what is BEST for this country. While everyone has the right to voice opposing views, it is not acceptable to slander a man who has served this country with distinction before under both Republican and Democratic governments. Anyone who knows Harold personally or professionally, as I do, would know that he is a true patriot who is deeply committed to upholding the rule of law and the American Constitution. Just because he is interested in studying international law and its implications on our legal system does NOT mean that he would do anything but uphold the law of THIS LAND if confirmed.
Nick in Virginia| 5.6.09 @ 12:45PM
Rebb,
You ARE kidding aren't you?
Please be sure to indicate ahead of time that your posting is a sarcastic one. Otherwise, we might believe that some far-left whack-job has been monitoring this site (probably paid by the Democratic party to do so) and is trying to pretend that he is really "one of us" with a diverging opinion.
JP| 5.6.09 @ 2:18PM
Rebb, Emily,
Are the following all "brilliant" picks too - which only conservatives refuse to see?
Thomas "the porn king" Perelli nominated for associate attorney general, the No. 3 position in the Justice Department (http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/mar/18/obamas-porn-king-at-justice/);
Kathleen "partial birth abortion queen" Sebelius for Human and Health Services - the department that overviews the killing industry which sponsored Sebelius political career;
John P. "compulsory abortion proponent" Holdren for science adviser (http://frontpagemagazine.com/Articles/Read.aspx?GUID=1FDD71E4-B9E4-4FAD-9868-2936193BF8F1);
Harry "Catholic Basher" Knox, gay activist nominated for the board of the Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships (http://drivethrupolitics.blogspot.com/2009/04/obama-names-pope-basher-to-faith-based.html);
Rosa "Bush is torturer in chief" Brooks - "principal adviser" to Undersecretary of Defense Michele Flournoy, the Pentagon's No. 3 official and top policymaker. (http://www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=325726274818507);
Ronald "Corruption R US" Sims - deputy secretary of Housing and Urban Development (http://www.sfexaminer.com/opinion/Sims-nomination-mocks-transparency-claims-44109647.html)
Emily| 5.6.09 @ 3:12PM
I, for one, was only commenting on Harold Koh's nomination.
fernando Munoz| 5.7.09 @ 2:23PM
These guys are nothing but radical conservative republicans. Being totally out of touch with the country and lacking academic credentials, I don't see why someone should pay attention to them.
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