Posts for December 1, 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:
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:
Lawsuits challenge
abortion restrictions in 3 states [AP, 11/30/16]: Taking the offensive after Election Day setbacks, Planned Parenthood and
its allies filed lawsuits Wednesday in North Carolina, Missouri and Alaska
challenging laws that they view as unconstitutional restrictions on abortion.
Here’s the Planned Parenthood new release:
The
American Presidency [TOPIC 15]
Trump's 21 potential court
nominees are overwhelmingly white, male and from red states [USA Today, 12/1/16]: They are overwhelmingly white, male and middle-aged.
Most hail not from the East or West but from the vast midsection of the
country — predominantly red or battleground states. Only half went to the
nation's top law schools.
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:
Legislation and the Legislative
Process (TOPIC 20)
The
Infrastructure-for-Voting-Rights Quid Pro Quo
[Justia, 12/1/16]: Professor Buchanan explains why congressional Democrats
should not support President-elect Trump’s proposal of a large public
infrastructure rebuilding program. Buchanan argues that instead, Democrats
should demand support for voting rights in exchange for their support for his
infrastructure spending.
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
Game over: New US computer search law takes effect
Thursday [Ars technica, 11/30/16]:
Senate declines to vote on proposals to block or delay the administrative rule.
Will the Supreme Court
Stop Texas from Executing the Intellectually Disabled? [The New Yorker, 11/30/16]:
Since the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in the United
States, in 1976, Texas has been responsible for more than a third of the
country’s executions—five hundred and thirty-eight out of a thousand four
hundred and forty. The most egregious reason is the state’s unique and grudging
approach in cases where the defendant claims intellectual disability.
Criminal Justice Reformers Meet at White House to Discuss
Future [CNS, 11/30/16]: Criminal justice
reformers and advocates gathered at the White House Wednesday and discussed the
future of the movement with hope, despite the “elephant in the room” of the
anxiety surrounding the transition to a new president.
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:
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:
LA leaders: ‘too many reports of prejudice and hate’
after election [LA Daily News, 11/30/16]: A large chunk of the
860 hate crimes reported across the nation in the wake of Presidential-elect
Donald Trump’s victory have come from California, Los Angeles County officials
said Wednesday, but more may have gone unreported.
More mosques receive hate-filled letters from California [AP,
11/30/16]: Several more mosques nationwide have reported receiving a
hate-filled letter from California that warns Muslims to leave the country or
face genocide. The identical letters postmarked from the Los Angeles area have
now shown up at mosques throughout California and in Ohio, Michigan, Rhode
Island, Indiana, Colorado and Georgia.
The Specter of Korematsu [Amicus podcast, 11/30/16]: A timely look back at the
infamous Supreme Court case that upheld the internment of Japanese Americans.
Appellate judges lean on 'Loving'
in LGBT workplace discrimination case [Indy Star / AP,
12/1/16]: Last June, same-sex couples were granted the right to marry.
Soon, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people may be formally
protected from discrimination in the workplace. The question for the
7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago on Wednesday was whether Title
VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act extends to sexual orientation.
New Report Examines
School Climate Post-Election, Finds Heightened Anxiety and Harassment [EdLawProfs blog, 12/1/16]: The South Poverty Law
Center’s Teaching Tolerance project conducted a survey in the days following
the election and got responses from over 10,000 teachers, counselors,
administrators and others who work in schools. SPLC described the
responses as "indicat[ing] that the results of the election are having a
profoundly negative impact on schools and students. Ninety percent of educators
report that school climate has been negatively affected, and most of them
believe it will have a long-lasting impact.
International Law, Citizenship
and Immigration [TOPIC 40-42]
Report Lays Groundwork at Hague for Indictments on U.S. Torture [CNS, 12/1/16]: Charges could be imminent now that officials at The
Hague have credited allegations that U.S. forces committed torture in
Afghanistan and at CIA black sites. “Within a year or so, we could be seeing
indictments,” one prominent human-rights attorney said.
Oakland Calls on California to Become a Sanctuary State [CNS, 11/30/16]: In the wake of President-elect Donald
Trump’s vow to yank federal funding from cities that don’t comply with his
administration’s plan to deport millions of undocumented immigrants, the
Oakland City Council reaffirmed its status Tuesday as a sanctuary city and
asked California Gov. Jerry Brown to declare the entire state a sanctuary for
undocumented immigrants.
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