Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Supreme Court and Jerusalem

King Davis establish Jerusalem as capital of Israel in 995 BCE, 1700 years before Islam, and 3000 years before anyone heard of phony Arab Palestinians. Jerusalem is mentioned 687 times in tanach, NEVER in Quran. Shamefully Israel is ONLY nation in the world US will not recognize declaration of its capital. Our embassy is in Tel Aviv, not Jerusaleme. Here is SCOTUS case about it.
Young Jewish boy will soon take center stage at the Supreme Court 

Menachem Binyamin Zivotofsky is a 12-year-old boy who has been at the forefront of what could become an international incident. 12 years ago, he was born in Jerusalem and his parents want his birthplace to be officially listed as “Israel” on his passport. U.S. policy since 1948 has been that Jerusalem is a city. Congress passed a law in 2002 stating that citizens born in Jerusalem "the Secretary shall upon request record the place of birth as Israel." However at the time President Bush signed it, included a signing statement opposing that provision, calling it unconstitutional. Zivotofsky’s case has created a tug of war between Obama and Congress. The question becomes who is responsible for recognizing foreign countries. These minor cases can lead to uproar in the Middle East; this issue has been unresolved for 238 years. As with all cases, someone must lose, that most likely will be young Zivotofsky.
Government officials claim this battle could "provoke uproar throughout the Arab and Muslim world." The State Department’s Foreign Affairs manual states

For a person born in Jerusalem, write JERUSALEM as the place of birth in the passport," "Do not write Israel, Jordan or West Bank for a person born within the current municipal borders of Jerusalem."
This case was previously brought to the Supreme Court and ruled that “it was not a political question best left to the other two branches to fight out.” Now it has returned. Zivotofsky’s ordeal began back in December 2002 when Zivotofsky’s mother applied for a passport and "consular report of birth abroad" for young Menachem. They first attempted to use “Jerusalem, Israel” but was shot down immediately. The courts originally ruled that the family lacked standin to challenge the policy.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled against them. "The status of the city of Jerusalem is one of the most contentious issues in recorded history," the court said. "For more than two millennia, the city has been won and lost by a host of sovereigns. The controversy continues today as the state of Israel and the Palestinian people both claim sovereignty over the city."
In their brief, the Department of Justice claimed that Jerusalem is a sensitive “flash point” in the Middle East conflict and that changing the passport would “critically compromise the ability of the United States to work with their Middle East allies and enemies to further the peace process. Harry Reid encouraged his fellow Senators to support the law.

The law does not alter the position of the United States on the status of Jerusalem," "Rather, it continues Congress's century-and-a-half-old exercise of legislative authority over the contents and design of identification documents, such as passports, held by U.S. citizens."
The Supreme Court began their latest session began October 5th focusing on cases involving First Amendment rights in the digital age and religious freedom behind bars

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