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"The woman in charge of our immigration enforcement [Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano] said she 'doesn't know' what to do about the country's celebrity illegal alien, Nicky Diaz, former housekeeper for California gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman. Hang on -- it gets ditzier. Secretary Napolitano ... [said] that 'obviously this is ultimately a matter for California voters to decide.' I'm guessing the Arizona folks have a question for her: 'Madam Secretary, if it's 'ultimately a matter for California voters to decide' what to do about an illegal immigrant, why can't we? By the way, Gov. Jan Brewer loves your answer.'"
--columnist Jan LaRue
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Editorial Exegesis
Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo"The contrast between the Nobel Committee's choice for its Peace Prize a year ago and today couldn't be more stark. In 2009, the Norwegian group tapped President Obama for its prestigious award. On Friday, they chose a genuine hero: Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo. Mr. Obama was nominated within days of taking office, and the committee ridiculously claimed it awarded him the prize not for his accomplishments, but for the promise of what he might achieve. Mr. Liu was selected 'for his long and nonviolent struggle for fundamental human rights in China.' Such is the distinction between style and substance.
Mr. Obama has performed on the world stage with an audience of billions. Mr. Liu's stage is a lonely Chinese prison cell, where he's serving an 11-year sentence for his role as co-author of 'Charter 08,' a human rights manifesto published to coincide with the 60th anniversary of the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 2008. ... The 1989 Tiananmen Square protests brought him home to Beijing, where he was instrumental in persuading student demonstrators to vacate the square prior to the start of violence on June 4. Mr. Liu was imprisoned following the crackdown and released in 1991 after he 'repented,' according to state media. He was rearrested five years later for signing a letter calling for the impeachment of then-President Jiang Zemin and spent three more years in prison. Mr. Liu's persecution calls attention to Mr. Obama's thin record as a peacemaker. ... Mr. Liu's persistent acts of defiance in the name of freedom have the power to inspire real change in China and elsewhere. Evidently, the Nobel Committee learned a lesson from its poor choice last year and took pains to rectify the mistake by honoring a real hero this time around."
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