Thursday, June 1, 2017

Posts for June 1, 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:

Fearing Trump's next move, liberals urge Supreme Court conservative Kennedy to stay [Reuters, 6/1/17]: Liberal activists are urging U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, a conservative with whom they often disagree, to put off any thought of retirement, fearing President Donald Trump would replace him with a jurist further to the right.

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:

Jerry Brown says states should act if Trump quits climate deal [SF Chron / SJ Merc, 5/31/17]: Gov. Jerry Brown on Wednesday called on states to forge an alliance to support the Paris climate deal following reports that President Trump plans to withdraw the United States from the landmark international accord.

The American Presidency [TOPIC 15]

Trump's Travel Ban Is Headed for a Supreme Court Showdown [The Atlantic, 5/28/17]: Will the justices, many of whom worked in the executive branch, hold the president's words against him?

‘We were used, abused and exploited’ [Politico, 6/1/17]: As he built support for his signature political issue, Donald Trump formed a powerful partnership with a non-profit group dedicated to families of those killed by undocumented immigrants, but now some of those families are alleging they were exploited by both the non-profit group and — to a lesser extent — by President Trump.

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:

Just How Many Obama 2012-Trump 2016 voters were there?
[Sabato’s Crystal Ball, 6/1/17]: Using different surveys to try to answer an oft-asked question.

Supreme Court to hear case on Ohio voter purges [USA Today / The Atlantic / Constitution Daily, 5/31/17]: The Supreme Court agreed Tuesday to hear yet another case on voting rights — not so much about who can vote, but who cannot. The justices will hear Ohio's challenge to a federal appeals court ruling that struck down the state's aggressive method for purging voters from its registration rolls. The case is Husted v. A. Philip Randolph Institute.

Oregon May Become the First State to Use Direct Democracy to Join the Presidential National Popular Vote Agreement Plan [Justia, 6/1/17]: Professor Amar comments on a recent significant development in the election reform movement known as the National Popular Vote interstate compact plan. Amar explains why the NPV would benefit voters in all states and why Oregon’s shift in particular is important.

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 lawmakers advance bill to reform bail system [AP / KQED, 5/31/17]: California lawmakers advanced a bill Wednesday to dramatically change the state's pretrial release policies by ending bail for most defendants. The state Senate voted 25-11 to send the measure to the Assembly.

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:

It’s Just a Joke—or Is It? [Newseum, 5/31/17]: A California school district discusses whether jokes are protected by the First Amendment. A male student at San Ramon Valley High School in Northern California posted an anti-Muslim video last week as part of a presidential campaign for his student council.
For more detail on this situation, see the Huffington Post, 5/22/17:

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:

International Law, Citizenship and Immigration [TOPIC 40-42]

The climate-change pact is more popular than Trump – and the senators who oppose it [McClatchy, 5/31/17]: The Paris climate change agreement is more popular than not only President Donald Trump but also the 21 Republican senators who’ve pushed him to withdraw from it. 

Bad hombres, good hombres [Economist, 5/31/17]: The Supreme Court protects a Mexican immigrant from deportation But another court upholds the deportation of a long-time resident -- and denounces the administration's immigration policies.

UN report: human rights violations in CAR may be war crimes [Jurist, 5/31/17]:A new report released Tuesday by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) claims that human rights violations within the Central African Republic (CAR) may amount to war crimes.

White House Signals It Will Withdraw From Paris Climate Agreement [CNS, 5/31/17]: President Donald Trump is expected to withdraw the United States from the 2015 Paris climate agreement, despite mounting pressure from international allies and even the pope.


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