Monday, November 7, 2016

Posts for November 7, 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:

Days Before The Election, One Place In Washington Rose Above Politics [Huff Post, 11/6/16]: It happened, as the Constitution would have it, at the Supreme Court of the United States.

OT 2016 #5 Podcast : 'Why Do We Wear Robes? [First Mondays, 11/7/16]: Justice Breyer's got theories about fashion, and the First Mondays team is on it.

Joe Biden: The Senate's 'Outrageous' Dysfunction Is Infecting The Courts [Huff Post, 11/7/16]:The vice president sounded the alarm as HuffPost shadowed him on the campaign trail for a day.


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:

When Courts and the Executive Branch Are in Charge of Appropriations [Justia, 11/7/16]: Professor Rotunda explains how courts and the executive branch are circumventing the absence of appropriations from Congress and points out that this can have negative unintended consequences.

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:

Exit polls under siege [Politico, 11/7/16]: Ever since Jimmy Carter’s early concession in 1980 was blamed for losses to down-ballot Democrats in Western states, both politicians and media outlets have been religious about not reporting the results until everyone’s voted. But that’s all about to change, starting early Tuesday morning. 

Clinton looks poised to lock it up [Politico, 11/7/16]: Pressing to lock in her electoral advantage in the final hours of the 2016 campaign, Hillary Clinton will summon the collective firepower of the last two Democratic presidents on Monday while Donald Trump scrambles furiously across state lines in a last-ditch bid to scale the blue wall of support she has built.

Trump hangs tough in battleground states [Politico, 11/7/16]: Donald Trump is still in the hunt. While Hillary Clinton remains consistently ahead of Trump in national, election-eve polling — the race is closer in the most populous battleground states, where Trump could still spring an upset.
http://www.politico.com/story/2016/11/trump-battleground-states-230875

FBI Chief: No Charges against Clinton after new email review [AP, 11/6/16]: FBI Director James Comey abruptly announced Sunday that Hillary Clinton should not face criminal charges related to newly discovered emails from her tenure at the State Department, lifting a cloud of uncertainty that has shadowed the final days of her presidential campaign.

Democrats ask SCOTUS to restore order barring voter intimidation in Ohio [Politico, 11/6/16]: Democrats made a last-ditch plea to the Supreme Court Sunday night, urging the justices to restore an injunction barring Donald Trump's campaign and its allies from Election Day actions that could intimidate voters looking to cast their ballots in the battleground state of Ohio.

How the Harry Reid Machine May Have Killed Trump’s Chances [Politico, 11/6/16]: By bringing Hispanics out in droves in early voting, the Senate minority leader is trying to turn Nevada into a bellwether for a Clinton win.

Our final map has Clinton winning with 352 electoral votes. Compare your picks with ours [LA Times, 11/6/16]: For this version, our goal was no toss-ups. We're giving you our best estimates, based on public polling, state vote histories and the reporting done by our campaign staff, on which way we think each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia will fall this year. 

Sabato’s Crystal Ball: Final 2016 Picks [Sabato’s Crystal Ball, 11/7/16]: Clinton 322, Trump 216; 50-50 Senate; GOP holds House. So says Sabato.


Final snapshot: Democrats slight favorites to win the Senate [Politico, 11/6/16]: Republicans are confident they'll keep the House and hope to limit their losses to a dozen seats.

2,000 Late Registrants Can't Vote in Arizona [CNS, 11/7/16]: Two thousand Arizonans who registered to vote the day after the Columbus Day deadline cannot vote on Tuesday, a federal judge ruled.

Supreme Court Chucks 11th-Hour Relief for Arizona Voter Advocates [CNS, 11/7/16]: Get-out-the-vote groups have used ballot collection since at least 2002, but if they do so Tuesday, they face up to a year in prison after the Supreme Court stayed an eleventh-hour injunction Saturday. Arizona criminalized the ballot collection earlier this year by revising section 16-1005 with enactment of House Bill 2023. The change makes anyone guilty of a class-6 felony if he "knowingly collects voted or unvoted early ballots from another person."

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

Texas Supreme Court case could clear hurdles for workplace rape victims [Dallas Morning News, 11/6/16]: One minute, she said, she was having a smoke with her boss in the employee bathroom during their overnight shift at a Steak 'n Shake in Plano. The next, he lunged.

Mending, not ending, stop-and-frisk [Wash Post, 11/3/16]: Way back in their first debate, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump actually had a substantive disagreement over policy. It was about stop-and-frisk policing, in which officers stop citizens on the street for questioning and frisk them for weapons. Trump insisted that the tactic was constitutional and had saved thousands of lives in New York City. Clinton replied that a federal court had declared the practice unconstitutional, that it was ineffective and that we need to pursue other strategies to reduce urban crime. The election is not likely to turn on the point, but the future of policing may.

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:

Federal Appeals Court Upholds Removal of College Student for Facebook Posts [Newseum, 11/7/16]: A public college had the authority to remove a nursing student from its program for Facebook posts without violating the First Amendment, a federal appeals court has ruled. 

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:

Federal judge rules Title VII protections extend to sexual orientation [Jurist, 11/6/16]: A federal ruled Friday that Title VII's protection from employment discrimination based on sex extends to sexual orientation. The ruling came as the court refused to dismiss a case where the plaintiff alleged discrimination based on his LGBT status creating a hostile work environment leading to discharge. 

Parents of three members of girls’ softball team file Title IX discrimination suit against Alabama district claiming subpar facilities [NSBA Legal Clips, 11/7/16]: Specifically, the suit alleges that HCS has discriminated against female student-athletes in: athletics funding; provision of equipment and supplies; scheduling of games and practice times; travel and per diem allowances; opportunities to receive coaching; provision of locker rooms and facilities for practices and games; training and medical facilities and provision of publicity.


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