Author Archive | Jonathan H. Adler

Jack Goldsmith observes that the expansion of legal rights for Guantanamo detainees and restrictions on rendition have been offset by other measures designed to compensate for the costs of the new limitations. A little-noticed consequence of elevating standards at Guantanamo is that the government has sent very few terrorist suspects there in recent years. Instead, […]

Rick Hills doesn’t think it makes sense to call Judge Sonia Sotomayor a “legal realist.” Meanwhile, Politico reports “legal realism” may become the new “judicial activism.”

Today’s California supreme court decision upheld Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment that reversed that court’s previous ruling holding that gay marriage was required by the state constitution. In previous posts (see here and here), I criticized the view that the success of Proposition 8 and similar initiatives in other states proves that pro-gay marriage court […]

The South Carolina state legislature passed a budget purporting to require Governor Marc Sanford to accept $350 million of federal stimulus money. Governor Sanford has responded by filing suit against the state legislature. According to The State: Sanford said the case is about power, not money, and who will have it.

Talk radio host Eric “Mancow” Muller had himself waterboarded on his radio program to see whether it constitutes torture. With a Chicago Fire Department paramedic on hand, Mancow was placed on a 7-foot long table, his legs were elevated, and his feet were tied up. . . . Witnesses said Muller thrashed on the table, […]

The FCC apparently thinks it can search your home without a warrant. Our own Prof. Kerr is skeptical.

With the Senate recessed over the Memorial Day break, will President Obama name stalled nominee Dawn Johnsen to head the Office of Legal Counsel through a recess appointment? It’s quite possible. Senate Democrats vigorously objected to the use of recess appointments by President Bush, going so far as to officially keep the Senate in session […]

BLT reports that Duke University law professor Chris Schroeder will be nominated to be Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy. This is an excellent choice, and not just because Prof. Schroeder teaches both constitutional and environmental law. Among many other things, Prof. Schroeder is one of the folks behind Duke Law’s Executive […]

In today’s WSJ, Brian Hughes, a former Army Ranger twice awarded the Commendation Medal, makes a powerful case for ending “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”: I was a line infantryman in the Army’s Ranger regiment from 2000-04, earning a promotion to sergeant within three years. In that time, my platoon performed dozens of combat missions on […]

Jeff Rosen profiles Supreme Court short-lister Judge Diane Wood, and it’s very favorable. (It also relies more on named sources than his profile of Judge Sotomayor.) His bottom line: “Her combination of moderate liberalism and a judicious temperament would make her a worthy successor to David Souter.” For what it’s worth, I’ve long thought Judge […]

Ed Gillespie argues that it’s time for Republican Senators to adopt a less deferential approach to judicial nominations. In leading the White House efforts to confirm Roberts and serving as a “sherpa” for Alito’s confirmation, I argued strongly along with many Senate Republicans that Democrats would be mistaken to change the historic standard for confirmation […]

So the other night I notice that the RSS feed for Jan Crawford Greenburg’s “Legalities” was pulling in all sorts of other stuff. What gives? Well, according to this post, Legalities (and several other blogs hosted by ABC News) are being folded into something called “The World Newser,” a generic ABC World News blog. This […]

A Syracuse University management professor thinks so. Paul Caron has a round up here.

Harvard law professor Jack Goldsmith, who briefly headed the Office of Legal Counsel in the Bush Administration, has an interesting essay in The New Republic, “The Cheney Fallacy,” suggesting that the Obama Administration’s approach to counterterrorism is better than that adopted under President Bush. The article begins: Former Vice President Cheney says that President Obama’s […]

Today’s Washington Post confirms what I suspected, the new automotive fuel efficiency standards to be announced today will double as national vehicle emission standards for carbon dioxide (which only makes sense, as controlling fuel economy limits carbon dioxide emissions and vice-versa). It also explains why the automakers would accept the deal: “clarity and predictability,” along […]