Tuesday, May 16, 2017

Posts for May 16, 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.

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:

The American Presidency [TOPIC 15]

Trump Confirms He Shared Classified Intel With Russians [CNS, 5/16/17]: A day after the White House vociferously denied a Washington Post report that President Donald Trump shared classified information with Russian officials, the president himself took to Twitter Tuesday morning to say he not only shared the information but had every right to do so.

Ex-intelligence leaders: ‘Nightmare’ if Trump leaked to Russia [Politico[, 5/15/17]: The president could have hampered the U.S. response to ISIS, security experts say. President Donald Trump’s allegedly loose lips with the Russians could have caused serious damage to U.S. efforts to counter the Islamic State, intelligence experts and former government security officials of both parties said Monday night.

How Trump gets his fake news [Politico, 5/15/17]: The president rarely surfs the web on his own, but his staff have made a habit of slipping news stories on to his desk—including the occasional internet hoax.

Trump's trust problem [Politico, 5/15/17]: Senior administration officials have strained their credibility with the public with months of false, misleading or tortured statements.

GOP flips Obama-era regulations, claim a boon to economy [AP, 5/14/17]: Final score: Republicans 14, Barack Obama’s last-minute regulations, one. Congressional Republicans anxious to show voters they can get something done are hailing their reversal of more than a dozen Obama-era regulations on guns, the internet and the environment.

9th Circuit Focuses on Trump’s Muslim Statements in Travel Ban Hearing [KQED / Jurist / Trial Insider, 5/15/17]: Once again, statements about Muslims made by President Trump on both the campaign trail and in the White House took center stage at a court hearing over the president’s ban on travel from six majority-Muslim countries.

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:

California Seeks Fines for Dozens of Political Campaigns [CNS, 5/16/17]: California’s Fair Political Practices Commission has proposed roughly $100,000 in fines for campaign violations against dozens of candidates and campaign committees, to consider at their May 25 meeting.

High Court Serves Defeat to North Carolina’s Voter-ID Law [CNS, 5/15/17]: North Carolina’s warring lawmakers failed Monday to have the U.S. Supreme Court take up a battle over a voter-identification law struck down as discriminatory.

Legislation and the Legislative Process (TOPIC 20)

Secret Republican Senate Talks Are Shaping Health Care Legislation [KQED, 5/15/17]: The Senate is negotiating its own legislation to repeal and replace much of the Affordable Care Act in secret talks with senators hand-picked by party leaders and with no plans for committee hearings to publicly vet the bill. 

Why Flynn could easily beat his Senate subpoena [Politico, 5/15/17]: Congress is handcuffed in getting obstinate witnesses to comply. That's why the FBI's Russia probe is the one that really matters.

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

California's attorney general says Trump administration's new emphasis on drug prosecutions is 'crazy' [AP, 5/15/17]: California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra on Monday sharply criticized the decision by President Trump's administration to reinvigorate federal prosecution of drug crimes, saying the decision will have a disproportionate impact on communities of color.

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:

NewseumEd Pilots Fake News Class at Palo Alto School [Newseum, 5/15/17]: The class, developed with student input, is aimed at improving students’ media literacy. 
Explore the free learning tools at NewseumEd:

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:

Give Juveniles Their Due [Marshall Project, 5/15/17]: Fifty years after a landmark Supreme Court case, juvenile courts still lack due process. This is the story of the Gault  case.




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