After explaining the meaning of "clear and unambiguous" as used in his memorandum he went on to say that "no State can authorize violations of federal law" which is, of course, exactly what medical marijuana legislation does.
But the Lavelle incident has a special resonance: in the midst of a disastrous and unpopular war, a President and his closest confederates authorized actions in violation of both the rules and their own stated policies.
"This report provides yet more damning detail of some of the human rights violations that were authorized by the highest authorities in the U.S.A. after 9/11," said Amnesty International's director for the Americas, Erika Guevara Rosas.
In 2011, they broadened the rule to ban most hits to the head, strengthened rules against boarding and charging, and authorized stricter suspensions for violations.
Beginning in 1967, the commission was explicitly authorized to deal with violations of human rights, and shortly thereafter it set up elaborate mechanisms and procedures to investigate alleged human rights violations and otherwise monitor compliance by states with international human rights law.
Holder said the investigation would be headed by U.S. Attorneys Ronald Machen Jr. of Washington and Rod Rosenstein of Maryland, who would be "fully authorized to prosecute criminal violations discovered as a result of their investigation".
In response to prior complaints about APHIS's low fines not deterring violators, Congress authorized penalties of up to $10,000 per violation in 2008.
So maybe it should not surprise us that President Obama seems poised to authorize American military action against Syria, in clear violation of international law.
The American Association of Health Plans, a trade group for H.M.O.'s, said its members and their business partners would have faced "significant new legal liability" if the federal government had authorized patients to sue for violations of their privacy rights.
According to the State Department's website, anyone who stays in the U.S. longer than authorized may be found in violation of U.S. immigration laws and may be arrested and deemed ineligible for a future visa.
