Baldwin Stakes Out Health, Tax Positions for Fall Senate Campaign

Two major policy differences between Tammy Baldwin, the only major Democratic candidate for the open US Senate seat, and any of the Republican candidates were clear when Baldwin sat down with Mike Gousha in an “On the Issues” session at Eckstein Hall this week. Both issues are almost certain to be in the spotlight when the race to succeed Democrat Herb Kohl heats up in several months. The two:

Health insurance. Baldwin, who represents south central Wisconsin, including Dane County, in the House of Representatives, supports the Affordable Care Act, while her opponents all want to see the law they call “Obamacare” repealed or overturned by the US Supreme Court. Baldwin told Gousha, the Law School’s distinguished fellow in law and public policy, “It’s not perfect, but it’s a step in the right direction that will lead to far greater coverage and, I hope, drive incredible improvements in quality, too.” She said that the plan for overhauling Medicare proposed by Republican Rep. Paul Ryan would be “a catastrophe” because it would eliminate guaranteed coverage for senior citizens. She said that as a child who was raised by her maternal grandparents and who had a major childhood illness that was not covered by their insurance, she learned early on the value of programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security.

Tax reform, including the “Buffet Rule.” Baldwin said she was one of the first members of Congress to propose passage of what has come to be known as the “Buffet Rule” which would require people who make more than $1 million a year to be taxed at at least a 30% rate. The term comes from statements from billionaire Warren Buffet that he pays a smaller percentage of his income in taxes than his secretary does. The proposal has become a hot issue, with President Barack Obama campaigning for it in recent days. Baldwin said she wanted members of Congress to take a straight up or down vote on whether they support the idea.

Asked by Gousha how she responds to those who say she is one of the most liberal members of Congress, Baldwin said she would describe herself as a fighter who is not afraid to take on big, powerful interests. She said she is an advocate for the middle class and for those with lower income.

As for how to cut the deficit, she said she advocated steps such as ending the American military involvement in Afghanistan, which would save large amounts of money, as well as tax reform that goes beyond the Buffet Rule proposal.

Baldwin appears to be on her way to an effectively uncontested path to getting on the November ballot. On the Republican side, four candidates are aiming to be on the a primary ballot in August. They are former Gov. Tommy G. Thompson, former Rep. Mark Neumann, State Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald, and businessman Eric Hovde.

Baldwin said she knows Thompson the best of the four – she served in the Legislature while he was governor –and worked well with him in those years. But, she said, she sees him now moving to the right in his positions. “The gulf is getting wider” between her and candidates such as Thompson, she said.

In 2010, incumbent Democratic Sen. Russ Feingold was defeated by Republican Ron Johnson. Asked by Gousha what that said about her chances in 2012, Baldwin said she thinks the electorate in 2012 is going to be very different than the electorate two years ago.

Video of the one-hour session may be viewed by clicking here.

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Haiku, Anyone?

April is National Poetry Month.  As Marquette University President Scott Pilarz, S.J., noted, poetry is “one of life’s pleasures – a gift to our spirits.” Poetry surely can speak to us and for us in beautiful ways.

You don’t have to be a “professional” to create poetry that’s fun to read.  One of the guilty pleasures of many a legal writing professor is to craft haiku.  Occasionally, the legal writing professors’ listserv lights up with people exchanging haiku on topics from serious to silly, on legal education, on law, and on life.

Haiku is a form of Japanese poetry. There are certain specific qualities that make a poem a haiku, but among the legal writing professors the only quality is that the poem adhere to the 5/7/5 structure, a fitting requirement for professors who encourage precision and concision in writing. That is, the haiku contains three lines. The first line contains five syllables; the second, seven syllables; and the third, five syllables.

I’m sharing one my haikus, written a year or so ago at the tail end of a long conference period. I used only the magnetic words on my office filing cabinet, so I was a bit limited with my choices.  Nonetheless, I suspect many in the law school community can relate, especially at this time of the year.

Wild thoughts wandering

From the morning through the night

I could use some sleep.

Celebrate National Poetry Month and share a haiku of your own.  It’s good practice in writing concisely.

 

 

 

 

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The Self-Defense Argument for Intervention in Syria

News media are reporting today that the strife in Syria has, for the first time, spilled across international borders, with Syrian government forces firing into Turkey last night, killing two people and injuring three others, and also firing into Lebanon. The New York Times suggests that a “large number of reinforcements for the government troops, backed by tanks and helicopters,” may have arrived “close to Turkish territory.” And of course Turkey is already sheltering a large number of refugees from the conflict—over 24,000, by the Turkish government’s estimate.

All of which raises the question of what, if anything, can be done. For the past year, the answer has been very little: Russia and China blocked effective measures in the Security Council; the legitimacy of humanitarian intervention on the basis of the responsibility-to-protect (“R2P”) principle has been contested; and neighboring states seemed to lack a persuasive argument for intervention on the basis of self-defense.

But yesterday’s events suggest that the self-defense argument is strengthening. Article 51 of the UN Charter recognizes an “inherent right of individual or collective self-defense if an armed attack occurs against” a member state, “until the Security Council takes measures necessary to maintain international peace and security.” There is at least a reasonable argument that by firing bullets across the border, amassing troops nearby, and forcing Turkey to cope with a significant influx of refugees, Syria is violating Turkey’s territorial integrity and creating justification for an armed Turkish intervention on the basis of a Turkish right of self-defense.

To be clear, I’m not necessarily advocating the legality of intervention; I’m saying simply that the argument for a self-defense-based intervention is getting stronger. And, of course, whether intervention makes sense as a policy matter is another issue altogether.

Cross-posted at PrawfsBlawg.

Continue ReadingThe Self-Defense Argument for Intervention in Syria