Tag: criminal penalties

The President Can Now Assassinate You, Officially

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Under this new standard, a president can go on a four-to-eight year crime spree and then retire from public life, never to be held accountable.

The President Can Now Assassinate You, Officially

Related:

Immunity for Me but Not for Thee

President Obama ordered a drone strike in Yemen to kill Anwar al-Awlaki, an American citizen and Islamic Imam critical of American foreign policy in the Middle East. Before releasing the drones that killed al-Awlaki and two others, the White House sought and received a Memorandum from the Department of Justice providing legal justification for the attack.

Several questions come to mind.  Should the memo from DoJ authorizing the killing of an American citizen abroad without judicial due process immunize President Obama for violating the federal criminal statute that imposes criminal penalties for the extra territorial killing of an American citizen?

Could a subsequent President, a member of the opposing political party, direct a new Attorney General to investigate whether the killing of the U.S. citizen by drone attack in Yemen violated federal criminal law? If an indictment is returned against the now former President for that killing, should President Obama be allowed to claim immunity or be forced to stand trial?

Bill to Ban Tik Tok Would Give Government Sweeping Powers to Crackdown on Tech

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Bill to Ban Tik Tok Would Give Government Sweeping Powers to Crackdown on Tech

A person who violates the act could be fined up to $1 million or punished with up to 20 years in prison. The broad and vague definitions in the legislation caused many to wonder if people could be handed such harsh punishments for using Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) to get around future government censorship that could come as a result of the bill.

A spokesperson for Warner insisted that the legislation wasn’t designed to target individual users and pointed to the language that says someone “must be engaged in ‘sabotage or subversion’ of American communications technology products and services, creating ‘catastrophic effects’ on US critical infrastructure, or ‘interfering in, or altering the result’ of a federal election, in order to be eligible for any kind of criminal penalty.”

But the bill will give the Commerce Secretary the authority to deem what is considered “sabotage or subversion” or any of the other threats listed above. The legislation has grave implications for civil liberties and could be used against any individuals or tech and media companies the Biden administration, or any future administration would want to target.

Previously:

Tik-Tok bills could dangerously expand national security state

Biden pardons thousands for ‘simple possession’ of marijuana

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Biden pardons thousands for ‘simple possession’ of marijuana

According to the White House, no one is currently in federal prison solely for “simple possession” of the drug, but the pardon could help thousands overcome obstacles to renting a home or finding a job.

…

It remains to be seen whether governors follow Biden’s lead. Erik Altieri, executive director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, said extending the action to states could help millions of Americans.

Related:

NORML:

While District of Columbia residents have passed Initiative 71 legalizing the possession and home cultivation of marijuana for personal use under DC law, those provisions only apply when one is on DC property; not federal property. (Federal land comprises 18 square miles within the District of Columbia.)

If no one is in prison, for federal possession, then this is basically a nothingburger! It doesn’t mean that Governors will do the same, as he is only encouraging them to! Democrats will make a big deal, out of it, while Republicans will freak out!