Page 6 - Florida Sentinel 12-11-15 Edition

White House News
Justice Kennedy Is Swing Vote On Whether Affirmative Action On College Campuses Survives
Supreme Court Justice An- thony Kennedy has been li- onized as a liberal hero since his sweeping opinion author- izing same-sex marriage last summer. But Wednesday, the court will hear arguments in a case in which he may crush the hopes of his liberal fans.
Kennedy is expected to be the court’s swing vote deciding whether race-based affirma- tive action will survive on col- lege campuses. And on this issue, he’s been decidedly more skeptical.
The case, Fisher v. Univer-
Supreme Court Justice An- thony Kennedy
sity of Texas, could impact ad-
missions policies at nearly every college and university, and it’s coming before the court at a moment when cam- puses are awash in racial protests.
Indeed, some observers be- lieve a key turning point in the case will be whether Kennedy, whose same-sex marriage opinions took full note of the nation’s changing attitudes about homosexual- ity, will again be willing to consider evidence that race on campus continues to be a point of division.
Wow! I Got To Meet
The President And First Lady
A picture is worth a thousand words. Look at the faces of the Members of the Detroit Academy of Arts and Sciences Show Choir when they got to meet President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama in the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House, prior to a Christmas Holiday reception, Dec. 4, 2015. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
President Obama and Democratic frontrunner for president Hillary Clinton.
American Muslim Leaders Upset At Being Singled Out
President Obama's re- quest that Muslim Americans help "root out" and confront extremist ideology in their communities is getting mixed reactions. Muslim leaders say they want to help, but some are not happy that they are being singled out.
"We would never ask any other faith community to stand up and condemn acts of violence committed by people within their groups," said Palestinian-American activist Linda Sarsour, who has worked extensively with the Black Lives Matter movement and other minority groups. "The fact that this is only di- rected at the Muslim commu- nity is something that I
LINDA SARSOUR
personally can't accept." Homeland Security Secre- tary Jeh Johnson took that request personally Monday to the All Dulles Area Muslim
Society mosque in Sterling, Va.
"I will continue to speak out against the discrimination, vil- ification and isolation that American Muslims face in these challenging times," Johnson said.
But then came the appeal. "Now, I have an ask," he said. "It is an ask of the people in this room and all Muslims across the country. Terrorist organizations overseas have
targeted your communities. Muslim leaders have heard this before, and some find it a
little irritating.
The feeling among Mus-
lims that more is expected of them than of other religious groups seems to be wide- spread.
President Obama Has Lunch With Hillary Clinton
Hillary Clinton took a break from the campaign trail on Monday and visited her for- mer — and she hopes future — home: the White House.
White House press secretary Josh Earnest said Clinton had lunch with President Barack Obama, her 2008 rival and later boss once Clin- ton became secretary of state. Earnest said it wasn't all that unusual for the President and the current Democratic front-
runner to meet up.
“When their schedules per-
mit, President Obama and Secretary Clinton enjoy the opportunity to catch-up in per- son,” Earnest said, according to a pool report. “This after- noon they met privately for an informal lunch here at the White House for about an hour and a half. They discussed a wide array of topics, but this was mostly a social occasion.”
No Deal To Fund Federal Government In Sight
Right now, there's no deal in sight to fund the federal gov- ernment.
House leaders are bracing for a long week, a potential weekend session and more ne- gotiations next week as Re- publicans and Democrats have failed to come to an agreement on how to fund federal agen- cies until October 2016.
In all likelihood, the House will vote Friday on a short- term government funding measure to avoid a shutdown, giving Speaker Paul Ryan and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi more time to negotiate.
Still at issue are policy riders covering environmental is- sues, Western land concerns
House Speaker Paul Ryan is at the helm of the stalemate.
and how to address Syrian refugees seeking to come to the United States. One deal discussed included Democ- rats agreeing to lift a U.S. oil- export ban in exchange for Republicans dropping many of their environmental policy de- mands.
PAGE 6-A FLORIDA SENTINEL-BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY FRIDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2015