The Day of Reckoning
Berg v. Obama: The Day of
Reckoning
Thomas J. Latino, Esq.
Thomas.latino@biotechcapitalgroup.com
The deadline has come and gone. At 5pm Eastern Standard Time, yesterday, December 1st, 2008 the case of Berg v. Obama reached a seminal moment. Yesterday was the deadline for the Obama legal team to file their response to the Berg Petition for a Writ of Certiorari. There was nothing. According to the Supreme Court's docket for the case nothing was filed overnight. Mr. Obama has done what hasn't been done before, he has made history twice, Mr. Obama has blatantly ignored a request from the Supreme Court of the United States—our highest and most revered legal institution; Mr. Obama, quiet frankly has thumbed his nose at the highest court in our land.
Being an attorney, I know full well that Rule 11 of the United States Supreme Court does not specifically dictate a Respondent file a reply brief "unless specifically ordered by the Court"—and to be fair we have no evidence to show that Mr. Obama was indeed ordered by the Court to produce such a reply. However, it is out of sheer reverence and respect for the institution, if not to underscore the merits of your case and the lacking of your opponents' that almost ALL Respondents file some sort of reply with the court. Mr. Obama's actions yesterday reek of a type of arrogance that even I as an attorney never displayed to any court nor have I ever witnessed such flippant behavior during my legal career.
This is not some low level circuit court; this is the United States Supreme Court. Why would the Obama legal team find it necessary to work so diligently in the Federal Court in Pennsylvania filing Motions to Dismiss and Protective Orders and not even file a Waiver of Rights with the Supreme Court? One can surmise two logical possible explanations for Mr. Obama's strategy: (1) Mr. Obama is putting all his chips on the hopes that 4 justices will view Mr. Berg's petition as laughable and deny his Petition for the Writ and (2) Refer to #1.
Thomas J. Latino, Esq.
Thomas.latino@biotechcapitalgroup.com
The deadline has come and gone. At 5pm Eastern Standard Time, yesterday, December 1st, 2008 the case of Berg v. Obama reached a seminal moment. Yesterday was the deadline for the Obama legal team to file their response to the Berg Petition for a Writ of Certiorari. There was nothing. According to the Supreme Court's docket for the case nothing was filed overnight. Mr. Obama has done what hasn't been done before, he has made history twice, Mr. Obama has blatantly ignored a request from the Supreme Court of the United States—our highest and most revered legal institution; Mr. Obama, quiet frankly has thumbed his nose at the highest court in our land.
Being an attorney, I know full well that Rule 11 of the United States Supreme Court does not specifically dictate a Respondent file a reply brief "unless specifically ordered by the Court"—and to be fair we have no evidence to show that Mr. Obama was indeed ordered by the Court to produce such a reply. However, it is out of sheer reverence and respect for the institution, if not to underscore the merits of your case and the lacking of your opponents' that almost ALL Respondents file some sort of reply with the court. Mr. Obama's actions yesterday reek of a type of arrogance that even I as an attorney never displayed to any court nor have I ever witnessed such flippant behavior during my legal career.
This is not some low level circuit court; this is the United States Supreme Court. Why would the Obama legal team find it necessary to work so diligently in the Federal Court in Pennsylvania filing Motions to Dismiss and Protective Orders and not even file a Waiver of Rights with the Supreme Court? One can surmise two logical possible explanations for Mr. Obama's strategy: (1) Mr. Obama is putting all his chips on the hopes that 4 justices will view Mr. Berg's petition as laughable and deny his Petition for the Writ and (2) Refer to #1.