Posts for January 5, 2017
These are the posts
that are accumulated in our weekly newsletter which goes out throughout the
school year. The posts are organized by the major units in our Constitutional Law (5th ed.) student textbook.
For teachers, it's not just what you say, it's how you
say it [EdSource, 1/4/17]: Principals,
parents and departments of education increasingly are asking teachers to create
classrooms where students feel that it’s O.K. to speak up, even if they’re not
sure of their idea, and where they are given a chance to explain themselves
before a misunderstanding blows up into an office referral.
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:
Libertarian Judicial Activism Isn’t What the Courts Need [”American Greatness” blog, 1/3/17]: Were the Founding Fathers anarchists? … These may seem
like facetious questions, but libertarian legal scholars have devised a novel
theory that the Constitution, properly understood, protects a person’s “right to do
those acts which do not harm others.”
They contend that this sweeping right to personal liberty is enforceable
against the federal government and the states.
Roberts Belatedly Sees
Conflict, Withdraws in Top Court Case [Bloomberg / Reuters, 1/4/17]: Chief Justice
John Roberts withdrew from a U.S. Supreme Court patent case argued last month
after belatedly discovering that his stock holdings had created a possible
conflict of interest.
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:
Fact Check: Once again, lawmakers are stretching the
facts on Obamacare [NPR, 1/4/17]: President Obama and Vice President-elect
Mike Pence were both on Capitol Hill Wednesday, making competing cases for and
against Obama's signature health care law. Republicans have promised to make
repeal of the Affordable Care Act their first order of business, once they
control both Congress and the White House.
Trump presidency puts California Legislature in defense
mode [AP, 1/5/17]: As California lawmakers return to Sacramento on
Wednesday, liberal dreams of expanding safety-net benefits and providing health
coverage to immigrants are giving way to a new vision revolving around a
feverish push to protect gains racked up in the past.
California Dems Hire Eric Holder to Take on Trump
Administration [CNS, 1/4/17]: Anticipating a
showdown with the incoming Trump administration over immigration and
environmental issues, Democratic leaders in the California Legislature said
Wednesday they will hire former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder’s firm as
outside counsel.
The
American Presidency [TOPIC 15]
High Crimes and Misdemeanors [Slate, 1/4/17]: Donald Trump appears determined to
violate the Constitution on Day One of his presidency. As soon as
Donald Trump is sworn in as president, he will almost certainly be violating the United States Constitution. Trump still
refuses to
fully divest himself of his
business holdings, creating the potential for massive conflicts of interest in
the executive branch—a problem the Framers foresaw and attempted to preempt in
drafting something called the Emoluments Clause.
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:
2017: At the Dawn of
the Age of Trump [Sabato’s Crystal Ball, 1/5/17]: It’s already clear that
the very strange political year of 2016 is bleeding over into the New Year. How
could it be otherwise? President-elect Donald Trump, loved and hated by about
equal numbers of Americans, continues to ignore or break with convention in a
wide variety of areas. Just as the normal rules didn’t apply to him in the
campaign, they may not apply to him in office either. Let’s review what we’ve
got as we head toward Inauguration Day.
GOP airs Obamacare divisions in Pence meeting [Politico,
1/4/17]: Republicans are fast-tracking the process of repealing Obamacare,
aiming to get it done in several weeks. But they’re not even close to agreement
about what comes next — or even when the repeal should take effect.
Schumer, McConnell trade
shots ahead of SCOTUS showdown [Politico, 1/4/17]: The two Senate leaders on Wednesday launched their opening volleys in
what is sure to be a contentious battle to confirm Donald Trump’s future
nominee to the Supreme Court. This time, it’s Republicans who are vowing to
press forward with the eventual nomination — and Democrats already threatening
to block the person chosen to replace deceased Justice Antonin Scalia.
Legislation and the Legislative
Process (TOPIC 20)
Pants On Fire For Claim California Legalized Child
Prostitution [PolitiFact, 1/4/17]: Did California really legalize
child prostitution? That’s the startling question our audience asked after
reading a misleading op-ed by Republican state Assemblyman Travis Allen in the
Washington Examiner.
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
Getting Away With Murder
[The Marshall Project, 1/4/17]: Researching lynching cold cases, law students restore
history.
Florida Supreme Court
issues order declaring death penalty procedure unconstitutional [Jurist,
1/4/17]: The Florida
Supreme Court issued a one-paragraph order Wednesday informing judges and
prosecutors that the state's death penalty procedure is unconstitutional,
marking the second such order in three months.
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:
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