Posts for September 2, 2015
These are the posts that are accumulated in our
newsletter which goes out every 4-6 days during the school year. The posts are
organized by the major units in our Con Law (5th ed.) student textbook.
New report reveals that teacher professional
development is costly and ineffective
[Hechinger Report, 8/4/15]: Only 30 percent of teachers improve substantially with the
help of district-led professional development, even though districts spend an
average of $18,000 on development for each teacher per year, according to a new
report.
I.
Introduction to Law, the Constitution, and the Supreme Court [See TOPICS 1-10 in the 5th edition of Constitutional
Law] Here are some recent articles that are relevant to
this unit:
The
Coming Liberal Disaster at the Supreme Court [Jeffrey Toobin in The New
Yorker, 9/1/15]: The beleaguered
liberals on the Supreme Court had a great deal to celebrate in the term that
ended in June. Don’t expect the streak to last.
II.
Defining the Political System: Federalism and Checks and Balances [See TOPICS 11-15 in the 5th
edition of Constitutional Law] Here are recent articles that are
relevant to this unit:
The
American Presidency
[TOPIC 15]
10 Questions for President Obama About Iran [The Atlantic, 8/27/15]: It appears likely, as of this writing, that Barack Obama will be victorious in his fight to implement the Iran nuclear deal negotiated by his secretary of state, John Kerry. Republicans in Congress don’t appear to have the votes necessary to void the agreement, and Benjamin Netanyahu’s campaign to subvert Obama may be remembered as one of the more counterproductive and shortsighted acts of an Israeli prime minister since the rebirth of the Jewish state 67 years ago.
III. The Political System: Voting and
Campaigns [See TOPICS 16-20 in the 5th edition of Constitutional
Law] Here are some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:
Romney Is Horrified by
Trump — and That’s Restarting ‘Mitt 2016’ Talk [NY Mag, 9/1/15]: As Donald Trump continues to dominate the
Republican presidential race, frustration and panic have become high enough to
make some inside the party Establishment pine for a candidate they roundly
rejected as recently as January: Mitt Romney.
http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2015/09/romneys-horror-at-trump-renews-mitt-2016-talk.html
CNN changes debate
criteria, clearing path for Fiorina [Politico,
9/1/15]: CNN announced on Tuesday that it has changed the criteria for its
upcoming debate, making space for Republican presidential candidate Carly
Fiorina on the primetime stage.
http://www.politico.com/story/2015/09/cnn-changes-debate-criteria-clearing-path-for-fiorina-213237
California Hikes Ballot Initiative Fee to $2,000 [CNS, 9/2/15]: Hoping
to ward off future misguided efforts to cure California of its ills - including
the gay scourge - through the electoral process, Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill
Tuesday raising the fee to circulate ballot petitions from $200 to $2,000.
http://www.courthousenews.com/2015/09/02/california-hikes-ballot-initiative-fee-to-2-000.htm
Legislation and the Legislative Process (TOPIC 20)
California assisted death
bill passes first Assembly committee [AP,
9/1/15]: A contentious proposal that would allow doctors to prescribe lethal
drugs to terminally ill patients cleared its first hurdle on Tuesday, advancing
from a special Assembly health committee by a bipartisan vote of 10-2.
IV. Criminal Law and Procedure (4th,
5th, 6th, and 8th amendments) [See TOPICS 21-28 in the 5th edition of Constitutional Law] Here are some recent
articles that are relevant to this unit
California agrees to
sharply cut use of solitary confinement [Reuters, 9/1/15]: California will release hundreds of inmates confined
for years in solitary confinement into units where they will live with others,
in a sweeping settlement announced Tuesday to reform the practice of keeping
prisoners in near-isolation for decades.
V. 1st
Amendment (Speech, Religion, Press and Assembly) [See TOPICS 29-33 in the 5th
edition of Constitutional Law] Here are
some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:
Are you a First Amendment junkie? Subscribe to the Newseum Institute’s free newsletter,
First
Five:
Subscribe here:
D.C. principal will no longer exercise prior review
of student newspaper, after backlash
[SPLC, 8/31/15]: The new principal of Woodrow
Wilson High School, Kimberly Martin, will soften her announced prior review
policy for the student newspaper, after an intense outcry from student
journalists and the larger community.
Justice Kagan & the future of
Abood, the strength of stare decisis, & the relevance of Garcetti [Concurring Opinions, 9/2/15]:
Soon, the Court will schedule oral arguments in Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association,
et al., the latest public employees union case involving a
First Amendment challenge to an opt-out requirement in a union-fee case. Among
other issues, Justice Kagan has previously flagged two points that could
prove to be important in Friedrichs. (1) how will the Court finesse
the stare decisis question? And (2), how much
latitude will it give to what it ruled in Garcetti v. Ceballos (2006).
Federal district court rules student
has stated valid claim for violation of his First Amendment free speech rights
by school officials who disciplined him for an off-campus online comment about
a teacher [NSBA
Legal Clips, 9/1/15]: A federal district court in Minnesota has ruled that a
high school student has stated a valid claim for violation of his First Amendment
free speech rights against the school district based on school officials
disciplining him for an online comment he posted off-campus about a teacher.
However, it dismissed the free speech claim against the police defendants. The
court concluded that the school defendants were not entitled to qualified
immunity from the First Amendment claim.
The case is
Sagehorn
v. Independent Sch. Dist. No. 728 and the decision can be found at:
VI. 14th
Amendment, Discrimination, Privacy, Working, Citizenship & Immigration [See TOPICS 34-41 in the 5th edition of Constitutional
Law]
Here are some recent articles that are
relevant to this unit:
Clerk in gay marriage fight once unlikely
to wage moral war [AP, 9/2/15]: Kim Davis sat in a church pew on a Sunday morning
about four years ago, listening as the man in the pulpit preached of
forgiveness and God's grace. Davis until then might have seemed an unlikely
candidate to wage a moral war over the institution of marriage.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_GAY_MARRIAGE_KENTUCKY
Uber loses round in legal
battle with drivers [SF Chron,
9/1/15]: A federal judge Tuesday dealt a blow to Uber's efforts to neutralize a
major legal challenge to its business model, finding that a lawsuit against the
growing ride-booking company can proceed as a class action on behalf of most
California drivers who have worked for the Bay Area outfit since 2009.
http://www.sfchronicle.com/business/article/Calif-Uber-drivers-get-class-action-status-in-6479042.php?t=a020ccc04ef294ee0d&cmpid=twitter-premium
International Law, Citizenship and Immigration [TOPIC 40-42]
The Sunni-Shia Divide: A CFR InfoGuide Presentation [CFR, 8/15/15]:
Sectarian conflict is
becoming entrenched in a growing number of Muslim countries and is threatening
to fracture Iraq and Syria. Tensions between Sunnis and Shias, exploited by
regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran, could reshape the future Middle East.
Trial of Congo war crimes suspect begins at ICC [Jurist,
9/2/15]: The trial of Bosco Ntaganda, former Congolese military leader also known as "The
Terminator," began at the
International Criminal Court (ICC) on Wednesday. The rebel leader has pleaded innocent to the 18 charges levied against him, including rape, murder, recruitment of child
soldiers and sexual slavery of civilians.
No comments:
Post a Comment