Issue #92

by Art Kelly

1. Despite the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision, the Obama Administration’s National Park Service (NPS) is still refusing to allow a cross to be restored to the Mojave Desert Veterans Memorial.

This newsletter previously reported that, by a 5-4 decision, the Court ruled that the seven-foot cross, erected more than 70 years ago by World War I veterans, was constitutional.

The subsequent theft of the cross was also reported in a follow-up issue.

FOXNews.com says that Henry and Wanda Sandoz, the seniors who have watched over the World War I memorial since 1984, welded together an exact 7-foot replica of the cross to take its place.

But the NPS will not permit them to put the replacement cross back up.

The Supreme Court decision, while favorable to the memorial, remanded the case back to the district court “for further proceedings.” The NPS has taken the position that it will not permit the cross to be displayed until all of the court actions have been completed.

"The park service isn't going to allow anybody to put up a cross while the case is still in litigation," said NPS spokeswoman Linda Slater. "The Park Service doesn't allow memorials to be put up on Park lands."

The ACLU is contiuing to fight against restoration of the cross.

2. Confirmation hearings on President Obama’s Supreme Court nominee, Elena Kagan, have been scheduled to begin on June 28, according to the Associated Press.

Senator Pat Leahy (D-VT), the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC), said, “We will make sure that every senator on both sides of the aisle has ample time to ask the questions they want.”

Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL), the ranking Republican on the SJC, said, "We'll discuss judicial activism and faithfulness to the Constitution. I expect it to be a vigorous and important hearing.”

The Obama Administration sent the SJC thousands of pages of Kagan's speeches and writings, including her work as Solicitor General in the Justice Department.

Previously, Kagan worked in the Clinton Administration as a domestic policy advisor and associate White House counsel. Leahy, Sessions, and the White House have written to the Clinton Presidential Library to request 160,000 pages of files relating to Kagan’s work.

Abortion rights groups have expressed concern over a 1997 memo from Kagan urging Clinton to support a ban on late-term abortions except when the physical health of the mother was at risk.

Former White House Chief of Staff John Podesta pointed out that Kagan's work for Clinton related to the president’s policy agenda, not hers. “We had our marching orders," he said.