Posts for September 12, 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:
The Twenty-Seventh Amendment Precedent [Gerard
Magliocca in “Concurring Opinions” blog, 9/11/17]: In 1992, the Office of Legal
Counsel (OLC) gave an opinion concluding that the Twenty-Seventh Amendment was
valid notwithstanding the two century gap between its proposal and
ratification.
Justice
Ruth Bader Ginsburg: 'Over the long haul, I have had it all” [Chicago
Sun-Times, 9/12/17]: Turning
setbacks into opportunity has been an overriding theme of her illustrious
career, and she has no intention of quitting the bench anytime soon, U.S.
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg told a 4,300-seat capacity crowd at
Roosevelt University on Monday night.
The Education of Neil Gorsuch [Columbia Mag, Fall 2017]L As a Columbia undergrad,
Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch '88CC learned how to argue his opinions.
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]
Will Donald Trump Destroy the Presidency? [The Atlantic, Oct. 2017 issue]: He disdains the rule
of law; He's trampling norms of presidential behavior; And he's bringing vital
institutions down with him.
Trump Asks U.S. Supreme
Court to Restore Refugee Travel Ban [Bloomberg / Politico, 9/11/17]: A U.S. Supreme Court justice on Monday
issued a short-term order restoring President Donald Trump’s ban on thousands
of refugees seeking entry to the country. The order issued by Justice Anthony
Kennedy puts a lower court ruling on hold until the high court decides whether
to grant the administration’s request for a longer-term order. Kennedy ordered
those opposing the administration to file court papers by noon Tuesday.
Should the courts be less
deferential to a lousy president than to a competent president? [Eric Posner blog, 9/10/17]:
Yes, say Sanford Levinson and Mark Graber. (But because they
are professors, they say “anti-Publian” rather than “lousy”). They counter the
view, which they think is conventional (is it?), that the court should enforce
the same rules against all presidents.
Prosecuting the President –Oakland Mag,
9/11/17]: East Bay Congressman Eric Swalwell is among a group of Golden State
ex-prosecutors who are connecting the dots in the Trump-Russia case.
Capitol Roundup: Immigration Deal, Parks Bond, DACA
Developments [CPR, 9/11/17]: A "sanctuary state" bill deal, the
emergence of a $4 billion parks and water bond, two new California legal fronts
against the Trump administration, and the Mexican foreign minister's visit to
the state Capitol – just another Manic Monday as lawmakers begin their final
week of work before adjourning for the year.
After an earthquake and a hurricane — and Trump's failure
to send condolences — Mexico rescinds offer of aid to U.S. [LA Times,
9/11/17]: Mexico on Monday withdrew its offer of aid to the United States to
help victims of Hurricane Harvey, saying those resources are now needed at home
as Mexico recovers from a separate hurricane and a devastating earthquake. Last
month, as Hurricane Harvey flooded Houston with days of record-breaking rains,
Mexico issued a statement offering to send food, generators and medical aid to
Texas “as good neighbors should always do in trying times.”
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:
The political parties would like voters to kill
California's top-two primary system in 2018 [LA Times, 9/11/17]:
Political parties and open primaries are the electoral equivalent of oil and
water. They may coexist, but they don’t mix.
Legislation and the Legislative
Process (TOPIC 20)
Democratic foes of Trump flock to single-payer ahead of
2020 [Politico, 9/11/17]: The Senate Democratic hell-no caucus is
saying yes to single-payer health care.
Governor, Senate Leader Reach Deal on California
‘Sanctuary State’ Bill [KQED, 9/11/17]: Gov. Jerry Brown and California’s
top state Senate leader have agreed to legislation that would further restrict
interactions between state and local law enforcement officers, and federal
immigration agents.
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
Is There a
Constitutional Right to Cash in on the Poor? [Marshall Project, 9/11/17]: One Arkansas county takes on a private probation
company.
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:
UC Berkeley gears up for Ben Shapiro speech as test run
ahead of Milo Yiannopoulos talk [SJ Merc, 9/11/17]: UC Berkeley is
bracing for yet another showdown over a controversial conservative speaker scheduled
to visit the famously liberal university this week, marking the first big test
for new Chancellor Carol Christ’s approach to handling the thorny issue of free
speech on campus.
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:
The Resegregation of Jefferson County [NY Times’
Sunday Mag, 9/10/17]: What one Alabama town’s
attempt to secede from its school district
tells us about the fragile progress of racial integration in America.
tells us about the fragile progress of racial integration in America.
Got Milk? Eleventh
Circuit Holds That Discrimination Because of Employee’s Breastfeeding is
Unlawful Discrimination [Justia, 9/12/17]: Professor Grossman comments on a
recent decision in which the US Court of Appeals for the 11th
Circuit recognized that discrimination because of an employee’s breastfeeding
constitutes illegal pregnancy discrimination. Grossman explains the facts
leading up to the case and explains why the court found that the employer, the
Tuscaloosa Police Department, had violated the employee’s rights under the
Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 and the Family and Medical Leave Act.
Who Cares Whether Cake-Baking Is 'Expressive'? The
Doctrinal Costs of Focusing on Private Burdens Rather Than Governmental Purpose [PrawfsBlawg, 9/11/17]: In their focus on the
creative artistry of wedding cakes, the briefs that are now piling up in Masterpiece
Cakeshop read more like an episode of Cake Boss rather than a typical
SCOTUS argument. Many focus on a question that, I shall suggest after the jump,
ought to be legally irrelevant -- whether baking a wedding cake is sufficiently
"expressive" to qualify as "speech" the compulsion of which
violates Wooley v. Maynard’s "forced speech" doctrine.
How Trump DOJ's about-face on LGBT workplace bias could
backfire at SCOTUS [Reuters, 9/11/17]: n July,
when the Justice Department officially parted ways with the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission in a brief arguing that the Civil Rights Act does not
preclude workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation, former Obama
Justice Department official Justin Levitt told me the split was “profoundly
weird,” since both the EEOC and the Justice Department have a role in enforcing
employees’ federal civil rights. The LGBTQ advocacy group Lambda Legal is
hoping the U.S. Supreme Court sees the intra-government split the same way.
Lawmakers sign off on bill to give California teachers
paid pregnancy leave pSac Bee, 9/11/17]: The bill, written by Assemblywoman Lorena
Gonzalez Fletcher (D-San Diego), would require public and charter schools to
give teachers and staff paid time off for pregnancy, childbirth, miscarriages
or other reproductive health issues. It passed the Assembly, 52 to 11. It
previously passed the Senate by a 31-8 vote.
International Law, Citizenship
and Immigration [TOPIC 40-42]
California files lawsuit to challenge DACA rescission [Jurist, 9/12/17]: California filed a lawsuit on Monday against the US
Department of Homeland Security (DHS), alleging the rescission of the Deferred
Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program is unconstitutional. The complaint
alleges that DACA's rescission violates the Fifth Amendment's Due Process and
Equal Protection clauses, along with other allegations including violations of
federal laws.
Attorney General Sessions Seeks
Permanent Reauthorization of Spying [CNS, 9/12/17]: The
U.S. attorney general and the director of national intelligence on Monday urged
Congress to permanently reauthorize Title VII of the Foreign Intelligence
Surveillance Act before it expires, preserving intelligence agencies’ authority
to collect information on foreigners outside the United States.
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