Posts for September 27, 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:
Corporations Have Rights.
Why Not Rivers? [NY Times, 9/27/17]: Does a river
-- or a plant, or a forest -- have rights? This is the essential question in
what attorneys are calling a first-of-its-kind federal lawsuit, in which a
Denver lawyer and a far-left environmental group are asking a judge to
recognize the Colorado River as a person.
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:
U.S. appeals court allows
part of Texas law targeting 'sanctuary cities.' [Reuters / Texas
Trib, 9/26/17]: A U.S. appeals court on Monday
issued a mixed decision on a Texas law to punish “sanctuary cities,” allowing a
section requiring localities to abide by federal requests for checks on
detainees’ immigration status to take effect, but blocking other parts.
The
American Presidency [TOPIC 15]
What Does Trump's New
Travel Ban Mean for the Supreme Court? [New Yorker, 9/26/17]: The arguments, which
had been consolidated, were scheduled to be heard on October 10th; now both
sides have until October 5th to submit briefs explaining “whether, or to what
extent” a proclamation that President Trump issued on Sunday renders the cases
moot.
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:
Big stakes in high court fight over partisan political maps [AP, 9/27/17]: Democrats and Republicans are poised for a Supreme
Court fight about political line-drawing with the potential to alter the
balance of power across a country starkly divided between the two parties. The
big question at the heart of next week’s high court clash is whether there can
be too much politics in the inherently political task of drawing electoral
districts.
Roy Moore Wins
Alabama Primary for US Senate Despite Snub by Trump [CNS, 9/27/17]: Twice-removed former state supreme court justice Roy
Moore defeated Donald Trump-endorsed incumbent Luther Strange on Tuesday in
Alabama’s Republican primary for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by U.S. Attorney
General Jeff Sessions.
Legislation and the Legislative
Process (TOPIC 20)
Tuesday started as a bad day for Mitch McConnell. It only
got worse [Wash
Post, 9/26/17]:
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell lost just about every way possible on
Tuesday.
Trump, GOP to unveil massive tax-cut plan [Wash
Post, 9/26/17]: President Trump and top Republicans on Wednesday will unveil a
proposal to cut personal and corporate taxes by at least $5 trillion over 10
years, people familiar with the matter said, promising to recoup more than half
of the lost revenue by eliminating numerous unspecified tax breaks and
deductions.
Senate Stumbles in
Bid to Check Trump’s Firing Arm [CNS, 9/26/17]: Legal experts warned the Senate on Tuesday about serious constitutional
flaws that undermine their attempts at giving Special Counsel Robert Mueller
some job security.
Republican leaders: Senate won’t vote on Obamacare repeal [AP
/ Capitol Weekly, 9/26/17]: Facing assured defeat, Republican leaders decided
Tuesday not to even hold a vote on the GOP’s latest attempt to repeal the Obama
health care law, surrendering on their last-gasp effort to deliver on the
party’s banner campaign promise. “The bill is dead as a door nail,” said Sen.
John Kennedy, R-La., leaving a luncheon where GOP senators decided against
holding a futile roll call.
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
Colorado's revenge porn law brings nearly 200 charges,
but getting convictions is a challenge [Denver
Post, 9/25/17]: In a civil case, a three-time Paralympian accuses her airline
pilot ex-boyfriend of sharing nude photos.
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:
In speech, Jeff Sessions slams universities for stifling
free speech [SF Chron / Jurist, 9/26/17]: Today’s typical American
university clamps down on free speech, pushes political correctness, and
shelters the “fragile egos” of its students, U.S. Attorney General Jeff
Sessions declared Tuesday in a talk singling out UC Berkeley for the purported
ills.
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:
Department of Wackadoodle:
The DOJ's new anti-gay legal posture just got shut down in federal court [Slate / BuzzFeed, 9/26/17]:
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit
had a burning question for Donald Trump’s Department of Justice on Tuesday: What are you doing in our courthouse? By the
end of the day, the answer still wasn’t clear. Something else was, though: The
DOJ’s new anti-gay legal posture
is not going to be received with open arms by the federal judiciary.
Faith, Wedding Cakes, and
the Rule of Law [“Dorf on Law” blog, 9/26/17]: Everyone
in the United States may worship their own God, multiple Gods, or no God at
all. We have the right to believe anything we want without fear of
government reprisal. We also generally may refuse to communicate
government messages with which we disagree (warnings on dangerous products are
an exception to that rule). We are also, in the majestic words of the
great Chief Justice John Marshall, “a government of laws not men.” This term
the Supreme Court is hearing an important case
implicating these fundamental principles.
No matter how you slice
it, U.S. jurist Kennedy key vote in cake case [Reuters, 9/27/17]: A high-profile legal fight involving a conservative
Christian baker who refused to make a wedding cake for a gay couple promises to
showcase the pivotal role Justice Anthony Kennedy will play on the U.S. Supreme
Court during its new term that begins next week.
Trump Administration Says
Bias Rules Don't Cover Gay Workers [Bloomberg, 9/26/17]: A U.S. law
that has protected workers from gender and racial bias for more than half a
century shouldn’t be extended to cover gays and lesbians, Trump administration
lawyers told a federal appeals court.
Orientation Bias, FMLA Retaliation Waiting in Wings for
Justices
[Bloomberg, 9/26/17]: The U.S. Supreme Court has
a relatively light labor and employment docket so far this year, but attorneys
tell Bloomberg BNA there are a number of petitions that the justices could end
up considering.
Gorsuch Vote Could Revive
Public Union Fees Case This Week [Bloomberg, 9/26/17]: A fight over whether public sector workers who don’t
join a union can be required to pay “fair share fees” to the union could be
revived when the U.S. Supreme Court this week considers which cases to take up
in the current term.
International Law, Citizenship
and Immigration [TOPIC 40-42]
UN: illegal settlements in East Jerusalem threatening
hopes for peace [Jurist, 9/26/17]: UN
Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov warned
on Monday that continued illegal settlements in East Jerusalem are threatening
the hopes for a two-state solution in the area and undermining Palestinian
belief in peace prospects.
Saudi Arabia to allow women to drive [Jurist,
9/26/17]: Saudi Arabian King Salman bin
Abdulaziz al-Saud on Tuesday announced by decree that the country will grant
women driver's licenses beginning next June. The order was broadcast though
Saudi Arabia's state television channel and would allow women the legal right
to drive.
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