Friday, October 20, 2017

Posts October 20, 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:

Originalism and Textualism in Action: Not Constraining and Not Neutral [“Dorf on Law{ blog, 10/19/17]: “In practice, textualism has devolved into a vehicle for ideological judging — disguised as deference to the legislature. The numbers in Michigan, though, blow its cover.”

Guns, Constitutional Tests, and Games [“Dorf on Law{ blog, 10/19/17]: “My latest Verdict column asks whether a federal ban on bump stocks would violate the Second Amendment. The short answer is no, but as I explain, the full answer is a bit more complicated.
Read the column to which Professor Dorf reers:

Appeals Court to Review Case of Undocumented Teenager Seeking Abortion [WSJ, 10/19/17]:  Judge ordered Department of Health and Human Services to allow her to leave shelter to obtain procedure.

Young, pregnant migrant's case becomes a test of Trump policies on abortion and immigration [LA Times / Jurist, 10/19/17]: When the Trump administration chose E. Scott Lloyd, a prominent antiabortion activist and attorney, to head the federal agency that oversees refugee affairs, he quickly set about enforcing strict policies. For months, even as he personally intervened in cases and tried to talk young women out of getting abortions, his efforts drew little attention. The case of a 17-year-old pregnant girl in an immigration detention center in Texas has suddenly changed that.

The American Presidency [TOPIC 15]

George W. Bush’s unmistakable takedown of Trumpism — and Trump [Wash Post, 10/19/17]: For the past nine years, George W. Bush has largely stayed out of presidential politics; he declined to criticize his successor, Barack Obama, and he chose not to endorse but largely ignored President Trump. While Mitt Romney and others spoke out publicly against Trump, Bush stayed above the fray. That changed in a big way Thursday.

Are the Emoluments Lawsuits Filed Against President Trump Dead? [New Yorker, 10/19/17]: The emoluments lawsuits continue to work their way through the courts. On Wednesday, in a courtroom in lower Manhattan, lawyers for crew laid out their arguments for why the case should be allowed to proceed.

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:

Votes, Money, Politicians and Influence [CalMatters, 10/19/17]: How often does your legislator vote with powerful interest groups in Sacramento? With the help of our partners at Digital Democracy, we’ve created a unique dataset to help illustrate how the policymaking process works, looking at the relationships between legislators, lobbying groups, money and votes. We call it the “Alignment Score.”

With Help From Bannon, California GOP Hopes to Stoke Voter Anger [KQED, 10/19/17]: With its share of registered voters continuing to slip and no particularly promising candidates for governor or the U.S. Senate, California Republicans are gathering in Anaheim this weekend in hopes of reversing their sunken fortunes by stoking voter anger.

Legislation and the Legislative Process (TOPIC 20)

Women Call Capitol's Sexual Harassment Complaint Process Flawed [CPR, 10/19/17]: Tam Ma, a legal and policy director with the advocacy group Health Access, says she experienced harassment during her early years in the Capitol. She never took her complaints to her superiors because she didn’t want it to be held against her later on.

Republicans Will Redo Tax Plan Without Democrats [CNS, 10/20/17]: The Senate passed a $4 trillion budget framework Thursday night, a key step in the Republican plan to pass a tax package by the end of the year without any votes from Democrats.

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

Judge denies Arpaio's motion to erase his criminal contempt conviction [Arizona Republic / Politico, 10/20/17]: U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton on Thursday denied former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio's request to vacate his criminal contempt conviction after he was pardoned by President Donald Trump. In her ruling, Bolton said while Trump's pardon "undoubtedly spared Defendant from any punishment that might otherwise have been imposed. It did not, however, 'revise the historical facts' of this case." 

New Federal Court Decision Should Be a Warning to Schools and Police Departments That Arrest Students [EdLaw Profs blog, 10/19/17]: Last week, in S.R. v. Kenton County Sheriff’s Office, a U.S. District Court in Kentucky issued a decision that should drastically change schools' and resource officers' thinking in regard to handcuffing students. 

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:

Campus free speech under extreme duress [FAC, 10/19/17]: Law professors Howard Gillman and Erwin Chemerinsky write that the so called “heckler’s veto” has no place in a free speech country, “If audience members had a general right to engage in disruptive or threatening behavior by using loud, boisterous, or inciting speech, it would give any determined individual or group veto power over the expression of any idea they opposed

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:

Survey: Almost half of tech workers worry about losing their jobs because of ageism [SJ Merc, 10/19/17]: More than 40 percent of tech workers worry about losing their jobs because of age, a new survey shows. Jobs site Indeed also found that 18 percent of those who work in the tech industry worry “all the time” about losing their jobs because of ageism. The release of the survey Thursday comes amid other news about diversity — or lack thereof — in tech workplaces.




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