Posts for June 30, 2016
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:
Kennedy's swings, Scalia's death define volatile Supreme
Court term
[CNN, 6/28/16]:
The Ideal Allies [Slate, 6/28/16]: Abortion was saved with a dry, wonky,
emotionless opinion from a man. Which was perfect.
How Supreme Court's Texas decision may affect
Pa.'s abortion law (and many other states) [Phil.
Inquirer / AP, 6/28/16]:
Justice Kennedy Turns Into
a Liberal
[Bloomberg / The Atlantic / Reuters / “Law and Liberty” blog / LA Times,
6/30/16]: Supreme Court Justice Anthony
Kennedy’s vote to reaffirm the validity of affirmative action in higher
education admissions and to give bite to abortion rights mark the endpoint of
his near-complete transformation into a constitutional liberal.
http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/06/what-is-on-justice-anthony-kennedys-mind/489218/
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:
Symposium: The constitutional law of abortion
after Whole Woman's Health -- What comes next? [Kevin Walsh in SCOTUS blog, 6/28/16]: Whole
Women’s Health v. Hellerstedt began with the potential to be a big case
in a big Term. It has ended as a doctrinally insignificant but ideologically
ominous case in a transitional Term.
How goes the legislative attack on abortion rights? [Nat. Const. Center, 6/28/16]:
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:
Political Science
Forecasts of the 2016 Presidential and Congressional Elections: Part One [Sabato’s
Crystal Ball, 6/30/16]: Normally around this
time in a presidential election cycle -- the “interregnum,” as it has come to
be known -- we would be waiting for the dust from the nomination campaigns to
settle before moving on to the conventions and to considerations of the general
election race. As you may have noticed, however, this is not a normal year. It
has been anything but.
Republicans Can Save
Their Party if They Can Admit to Themselves That Clinton Is Tolerable [Justia,
6/30/16]: Professor Buchanan explains why it is
in the best interests of Republican leaders for them to admit that Hillary
Clinton would be a tolerable president, rather than to support Donald Trump.
Buchanan argues that for them to continue to support Trump is to risk putting a
dangerous loose cannon in the White House, who at best will render the
Republican party unrecognizable, and at worst could tear apart the country.
Legislation and the Legislative
Process (TOPIC 20)
California bill extending teacher probation dies in committee
[EdSource, 6/29/16]: The latest legislative effort to extend the
probationary period for teachers faltered Wednesday in the Senate Education
Committee when the bill’s author failed to find the votes to move the bill
forward.
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
A Potential Landmine in Waiting in Utah v. Strieff [Justia,
6/28/16]: Professor Colb discusses the U.S.
Supreme Court’s recent decision in Utah
v. Strieff, holding that evidence found in that case as a result of a
Fourth Amendment violation was not the direct consequence of the violation and
was therefore properly admitted into evidence against the defendant under the
attenuation doctrine. Colb explains how one throwaway line in the opinion, if
taken to its logical conclusion, could potentially spell the death of the
exclusionary rule.
A Professional Bounty
Hunter Who Likes the Bail System Just the Way It Is
[The Marshall
Project, 6/29/16]: A star of reality TV,
Beth Chapman takes on those who say money bail is unfair.
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:
Newseum Partners with Amazon on a New Resource for
Teachers [Newseum, 6/28/16]: Amazon
Inspire will shape the future of K-12 education by helping teachers easily
discover and share free, quality educational resources.
2015 Term: What Happened to the Big Cases? — Equally Divided or
Cert. Denied [Concurring Opinions, 6/29/16]: The big First Amendment news of the 2015 Term was the
cases the Court declined to hear. But even in
the one case the Justices actually decided (4-4 cases don’t count), they
were of two minds. The result: no blockbuster opinion like last Term.
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:
The Procedural Issues in
the Texas Abortion Case [Justia, 6/29/16]: Professor Dorf
comments on the procedural issues the U.S. Supreme Court recently addressed in
the Texas abortion case, Whole
Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt. Dorf explains why the majority’s
reasoning on the procedural issues is reasonable (and in his view, correct),
notwithstanding the criticism by the dissent.
No comments:
Post a Comment