Posts for February 19, 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 (5^th ed.) student textbook.

I. Introduction to Law, the Constitution, and the Supreme Court [See TOPICS 1-10 in the 5^th 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 5^th edition of Constitutional Law] Here are recent articles that are relevant to this unit:

General Strike [“Amicus” podcast from Slate, 2/18/17]: How state attorneys general are going on the offensive against the most egregious parts of the Trump agenda Also, the Constitution's limits on the U.S.-Mexico border.

http://www.slate.com/articles/podcasts/amicus/2017/02/the_supreme_court_considers_the_fourth_amendment_rights_of_foreigners.html

Norma McCorvey, 'Roe' in Roe v. Wade, Is Dead at 69 [NPR, 2/18/17]: She lead an interesting life.

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/02/18/515972447/norma-mccorvey-roe-of-landmark-roe-v-wade-ruling-on-abortion-dies-at-69

‘California is a nation, not a state’: A fringe movement wants a break from the U.S. [Wash Post, 2/18/17]: About 15 people huddled in a luxury apartment building, munching on danishes as they plotted out their plan to have California secede from the United States. “I pledge allegiance, to the flag, of an independent California,” Geoff Lewis said as he stood in a glass-walled conference room adorned with California’s grizzly-bear flag and a sign reading “California is a nation, not a state.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/california-is-a-nation-not-a-state-a-fringe-movement-wants-a-break-from-the-us/2017/02/18/ed85671c-f567-11e6-8d72-263470bf0401_story.html

The American Presidency [TOPIC 15]

Deportation Memos Show an Administration in Disarray [CNS, 2/19/17]: On Friday, hours after The Associated Press released a leaked Department of Homeland Security memo detailing plans to deploy up to 100,000 National Guardsmen to arrest immigrants, President Donald Trump blasted “The FAKE NEWS media” as “the enemy of the American people! SICK!” and his top aides denied the truth of the memo.

http://courthousenews.com/deportation-memos-show-an-administration-in-disarray/

Pruitt OK’d as EPA Chief Over Environmentalists’ Objections [CNS, 2/17/17]: Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to lead the Environmental Protection Agency on Friday over the strenuous objections from environmental groups angered by his frequent lawsuits against the agency he will now lead and his adversarial stance on many issues they hold dear.

http://courthousenews.com/pruitt-okd-as-epa-chief-over-environmentalists-objections/

III. The Political System: Voting and Campaigns [See TOPICS 16-20 in the 5^th edition of Constitutional Law] Here are some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:

Political Road Map: California campaign spending broke records in 2016[LA Times, 2/18/17]: expect more of the same in 2018 -- Baseball fans are cheering the arrival of spring training, the first chance to see what’s in store for the long season ahead. And there’s another big-money enterprise limbering up: California statewide political campaigns.

http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-ca-road-map-california-2018-campaign-spending-20170219-story.html

Texas election officials: hundreds of Texans may have voted improperly [Jurist, 2/18/17]: According to Texas election officials, hundreds of people were allowed to improperly cast ballots in the recent presidential election, evading the state's stringent voter ID law, by signing affidavits in lieu of showing their photo ID. 

http://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2017/02/texas-election-officials-hundreds-of-texans-may-have-voted-improperly.php

Legislation and the Legislative Process (TOPIC 20)

Partisan approach to health care law [AP, 2/17/17]: McConnell: "It’s going to be a Republicans-only exercise."

http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2017-02-17-US--Congress/id-452a89d25dfb42ea9badb62234d40639

IV. Criminal Law and Procedure (4^th, 5^th, 6^th, and 8^th amendments) [See TOPICS 21-28 in the 5^th edition of Constitutional Law] Here are some recent articles that are relevant to this unit

Federal judge requires bail hearing for immigration detainee [Jurist, 2/18/17]: US Magistrate Judge James Donohue on Friday ruled that Daniel Ramirez Medina, a Mexican immigrant-detainee, must be granted a bail hearing during the pendency of his immigration case.

http://www.jurist.org/paperchase/2017/02/federal-judge-requires-bail-hearing-for-immigration-detainee.php

Why Trump’s Wall Won’t Keep Out Heroin [The Marshall Project, 2/16/17]:

It’s the easiest drug to traffic in small batches, and it is very lucrative.

https://www.themarshallproject.org/2017/02/16/why-trump-s-wall-won-t-keep-out-heroin?ref=hp-2-111#.uKuaCGV6i

V. 1^st Amendment (Speech, Religion, Press and Assembly) [See TOPICS 29-33 in the 5^th edition of Constitutional Law] Here are some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:

VI. 14^th Amendment, Discrimination, Privacy, Working, Citizenship & Immigration [See TOPICS 34-41 in the 5^th edition of Constitutional Law] Here are some recent articles that are relevant to this unit: