Author Archive | Dale Carpenter

Jack Balkin has an illuminating post on the Solomon Amendment decision, Rumsfeld v. FAIR. Balkin explains why he was a “reluctant” supporter of the litigation against the Solomon Amendment: …I believed that, if successful, these lawsuits might cause problems for other areas of antidiscrimination law, in particular, in the area of Title VI and Title […]

My post on Rumsfeld v. FAIR three days ago prompted a thoughtful response from Robert Corn-Revere, a noted First Amendment lawyer, who’s more optimistic about the decision than I am. That led to a further exchange between us, hosted by the First Amendment Center. The entire exchange can be read here.

Several quick reactions to today’s unanimous decision by Chief Justice Roberts in Rumsfeld v. FAIR, the Solomon Amendment case: (1) The Court side-stepped the thorny and under-theorized question of government power to give money to an individual or institution on the condition that it relinquish the exercise of a constitutional right. This “unconstitutional conditions” doctrine […]

This is the provocative question addressed by co-authors Professor David Stras (a colleague of mine at Minnesota) and Ryan Scott (a former student of mine, now clerking for Judge Michael McConnell). It is available here. While I’m not entirely on board for their analysis, attention should be paid to these two rising young stars of […]

Quick, without looking or reading on, how many of the liberties protected by the First Amendment can you name? If you can name more than one, you’re among the elite in constitutional literacy in the United States. Says the AP: Americans apparently know more about “The Simpsons” than they do about the First Amendment. Only […]

I’ve now gone through the recent University of California study of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” which estimates the costs of the policy in its first ten years (1994 through 2003). The commission that produced the report includes several experts in military and national security policy. Notable among them are former Secretary of Defense William Perry […]

You can listen now to the live webcast of oral argument before the New Jersey Supreme Court on a case challenging the exclusion of same-sex couples from marriage under the state constitution. It’s at http://www.judiciary.state.nj.us/webcast/index.htm.

Under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” more than 10,000 Americans serving the country in the military have been expelled for homosexuality. A new study sponsored by the University of California has found that in the period from 1994 to 2003, the cost of discharging and replacing gay service members was at least $363.8 million. That figure, […]

Reading a biography of Alexander the Great (Agnes Savill, Alexander the Great and His Time), I came across the following: The famous Theban band [of male lovers] was renowned for its heroism; the lovers swore to live or die together and were invincible in war. To gain the admiration of his friend, a young man […]

According to the AP caption: “An unidentified Kenyan woman demonstrates in Nairobi, Kenya Friday Feb. 10, 2006.” (AP Photo/Sayyid Azim)

Thanks much to Eugene and all the VC for letting me join in. I plan to post mostly on gay legal/political/cultural issues, especially developments on the gay-marriage front. Believe it or not, I have a few other interests and I’ll explore them on occasion. Overall, I don’t expect to contribute nearly as often as the […]

Thanks again to Eugene for letting me in the forum this week. In the end it comes down to this: Given that gay families exist, and are not going to be eliminated or converted by any means acceptable to the American people, what is to be done with them? Is it better for society that […]

The traditionalist reformer must not simply be satisfied that the reform is headed in the right direction, but must also be satisfied with the pace of that reform and with how the reform is brought about. The process considerations demand that any reform be based not simply on reasoned judgment, but on reasoned judgment informed […]

For many liberals, gay marriage is nowadays an easy case. It eliminates discrimination against a class of people. It signals tolerance for diverse families. It eliminates an archaic distinction. If the benefits seem to outweigh the harms, as they do, let’s go for it. And the sooner the better. For a principled conservative, embracing gay […]

I’m afraid I didn’t have time to read much of the commentary today. I do plan to go back and skim the commentary from this week later on. Since this will be my last commentary response, let me encourage you to send any burning questions I haven’t answered to me directly at dalecarp@umn.edu. I do […]