McCrory’s Executive Order 93: Hoist By His Own Petard

[jpak]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/harold-lloyd/mccrorys-executive-order_b_9680722.html

Governor Pat McCrory’s Executive Order 93 doesn’t fix or even put a band aid on HB 2. It does, however, address the man himself with words from the man himself. It tells us beyond any doubt that McCrory isn’t now, and hasn’t been, truthful.

First, McCrory claims that “With this Executive Order, the State of North Carolina is now one of 24 states that have protections for sexual orientation and gender identity for its employees.” This press release can be found here. Sadly, not only is this statement just not true on a close reading of the actual order, but papers like the Charlotte Observer quickly came out with reporting saying that the executive order gave “new” and “historic” protections for state employees. That article can be found here. Rather than the “he said, she said” journalism that we see too much of today, journalists need to read the actual language of the order. The text of that order can be found here. Here is what it actually says:

I hereby affirm that the State of North Carolina is committed to administering and implementing all State human resources policies, practices and programs fairly and equitably, without unlawful [emphasis added] discrimination, harassment or retaliation on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, political affiliation, genetic information, or disability.

Assuming “committed” has teeth in it (which I don’t see), there is an obvious sleight of hand here. Sexual orientation and gender identity are only protected against discrimination, harassment or retaliation to the extent “unlawful.” There is no state law making that discrimination unlawful and HB 2 took away powers of local governmental to outlaw such discrimination. Perhaps McCrory is referring to federal protections that might apply from time to time but if so they already existed or would apply apart from the order. Therefore, there is nothing at all new here. The executive order thus does nothing to expand such rights despite any reporting to the contrary. (Nor does it fix the new lack of a state court remedy for religious or other previously-protected classes. Similarly, where would the state remedy be for discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity?)

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[Ford_Prefect]

1. McCrory is the fully vetted shill of Art Pope and the Kochs. If he said it they wrote it for him.

They also wrote the state law that inspired today's "statement". They have been using the HB2 law and others like it to persecute, punish and intimidate not only LGBT people but anyone who has faith in Justice for All. It is their desire and plan that Americans look on each other with suspicion, fear and anger. They intend to use these divisions among us to further their control of our lives , our country, our varied cultures and our government so that they can reap ever more profit without the possibility of any intervention, or regulation by Federal, State, or Local authorities.

The laws passed in North Carolina, Indiana, Mississippi and Tennessee are intended as tests of the Federal response to the gross infringement of Civil Rights. Like a bully drawing a line in the playground dirt they challenge Federal ability and authority to protect American citizens by pitting state government against Constitutional authority in an attempt to undermine the reach of that authority. It is a ruthless and carefully crafted plan to disassemble Federal legal authority to administer Justice for all Americans. The RICO act was put in place to answer this kind of criminal action and has been used to prosecute the KKK for very similar behavior.

The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, commonly referred to as the RICO Act or simply RICO, is a United States federal law that provides for extended criminal penalties and a civil cause of action for acts performed as part of an ongoing criminal organization. The RICO Act focuses specifically on racketeering, and it allows the leaders of a syndicate to be tried for the crimes which they ordered others to do or assisted them in doing, closing a perceived loophole that allowed a person who instructed someone else to, for example, murder, to be exempt from the trial because he did not actually commit the crime personally.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Racketeer_Influenced_and_Corrupt_Organizations_Act

It is well past time that the Kochs and their affiliates were arrested and prosecuted for this criminal activity. But the DOJ would rather chase small fry dealers, retirees who need pain relief, and protect the big banks, than pursue the real architects of this ongoing cancer on our Republic.