Friday, December 11, 2015


Posts for December 11, 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.

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:

In hot-mic moment, Supreme Court justices laugh at protesters [CNN, 12/10/15]: The microphones were on, and the Supreme Court justices kept talking. A recording of Supreme Court proceedings unearthed Wednesday revealed Justice Antonin Scalia and two other conservative justices laughing when five protesters interrupted a hearing with a message about campaign finance on April 1. At one point, Scalia hoped aloud for the protestors to receive "stiff, stiff sentences" for their activity.

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:

Guns and Thunder on the Supreme Court's Right [Linda Greenhouse in the NY Times, 12/10/15]: The Court turns down new cases at the rate of 150 a week, and only rarely does one of those denials break through the fog to become news. It happened this week with the court’s refusal to hear an appeal challenging a Chicago suburb’s ban on the sale and ownership of assault weapons. 

The American Presidency [TOPIC 15]

Senate and Obama's Final Round Over Judges [The Hill, 12/10/15]: To predict how the judicial wars between this Republican Senate and President Barack Obama will end, keep an eye on labor lawyer Waverly Crenshaw Jr.

Obama's executive actions could open a door for successors [AP, 12/11/15]: While the White House has condemned Donald Trump's call for a ban on Muslim immigrants as 'disqualifying' and 'toxic,' President Barack Obama may have only himself to blame if a President Trump ever succeeds in putting his plan, or some version of it, into action.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_OBAMA_TRUMP_EXECUTIVE_POWER

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:

Constitution Check: Finally, a test of partisan gerrymandering? [Constitution Daily, 12/10/15]: Lyle Denniston, of the National Constitution Center, says a Tuesday Supreme Court decision court may eventually allow the Court to consider the constitutionality of partisan gerrymandering.

GOP preparing for contested convention [Wash Post, 12/10/15]:  Republican officials and leading figures in the party’s establishment are now preparing for the possibility of a brokered convention as Donald Trump continues sit atop the polls and the presidential race.

What Trump’s Call to Ban Muslims Is Telling Us About Authoritarian Politics [Justia, 12/11/15]: John Dean argues that Donald Trump’s campaign is showing to the national public what authoritarian politics is all about.

In Trump's Muslim ban, Clinton sees an opportunity [Politico, 12/10/15]: Hillary Clinton and her allies have seized on Donald Trump’s call for a ban on Muslims entering the country to define the 2016 election as an existential battle between the Democratic front-runner and the dangerous forces of “prejudice and paranoia” as epitomized by Trump — but also echoed by the rest of the Republican field.

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


Colorado Supreme Court hears case of man freed 90 years early [AP, 12/10/15]:
Colorado's highest court is considering whether to free a convict who was sent back to prison after being mistakenly released from a 98-year sentence decades early and reforming his life.

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:

Oregon district’s board votes to ban school choirs from in Christmas festival held at local Catholic shrine [NSBA Legal Clips, 12/8/15]: Portland Public Schools’ (PPS) board has banned school choirs from performing the annual Festival of Lights held at the Catholic shrine known as “The Grotto.” The issue became very public and very divisive in October when PPS ordered choirs to stop performing at The Grotto, after the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) filed a complaint based on the separation of church and state.
On this topic, also see a report on Freedom From Religion Foundation v. Concord Cmty. Sch. [Indiana]
You can read the court’s opinion at:

Closing down ‘Free Speech’ is no joking matter – really [Newseum, 12/10/15]: The free flow of information and communication of ideas – even repugnant ones – is a hallmark of American democracy. Even “hate speech” has constitutional protection when it offends, insults or attacks. Only when speakers cross over into use of so-called “fighting words,” or make true threats, which must be realistic, intentional and likely to produce imminent harm, does criminal law apply.

School Settles With Suspended Tweeter [CNS, 12/10/15]: A Minnesota honors student will receive a $425,000 settlement after he was suspended for a tweet implying he "made out" with one of his high school teachers.
http://www.courthousenews.com/2015/12/10/school-settles-with-suspended-tweeter.htm
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:

Will Fisher II Produce Any Judgment At All? [Dorf on the Law, 12/10/15]: At a number of points, Justice Kennedy suggested that perhaps the right result would be to remand to the district court either to supplement the summary judgment record or to hold a trial.

Is Affirmative Action Finished? [The Atlantic, 12/10/15[: For the second time, the justices of the Supreme Court are struggling with Fisher v. University of Texas -- and the divisive questions it raises.

 

Five (Somewhat) Unpredictable Aspects of this Week’s Oral Argument in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin [Justia, 12/11/15]: The always-thoughtful Professor Amar describes five unusual aspects of this week’s oral argument in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, in which the Supreme Case is considering the role of affirmative action in university admissions. 


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