On Saturday morning I also attended an ACS panel on “Congressional Gridlock in the Executive: A Battle Over Nominations, Recess Appointments, and the Use of the Filibuster,” featuring law professors Michael Gerhardt and Michael McConnell, Louis Fisher of the Congressional Research Service, Marge Baker of the People for the American Way and moderated by Professor […]
Author Archive | Jonathan H. Adler
ACS Panel on Citizens United
By Jonathan H. Adler on June 16, 2012 11:14 am in Election Law, First Amendment, Restrictions on Campaign Contrbs. and Expenses, Uncategorized
This morning I attended a panel at the American Constitution Society conference titled “Citizens United Two Years Later: Money, Politics and Democracy at Stake.” The panel was moderated by Democracy editor Michael Tomasky and featured University of Montana law professor Anthony Johnstone, Fordham law professor Zephyr Teachout, longtime campaign finance activist Fred Wertheimer, founder Democracy […]
American Constitution Society National Convention
This year’s American Constitution Society National Convention starts tomorrow in Washington, D.C. Featured speakers include Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, California Supreme Court Justice Goodwin Liu, Massachusetts Governor Devall Patrick and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau director Richard Cordray. Among those speaking on various panels are two VC conspirators – Dale Carpenter and yours truly. Here’s more […]
First They Came for the Big Gulps
Will Mayor Bloomberg and his New York Nannies be satisfied with the ban on large sodas? Don’t bet on it. The policy is unlikely to do much of anything to reduce obesity — certainly not quickly enough for Mayor Minding-Others’-Business. And besides, there are lots more high-calorie options out there, and the Nannies are taking […]
Elinor Ostrom RIP
Indiana University Professor Elinor Ostrom died this morning. A non-economist who won the Nobel Prize in economics, Ostrom made substantial academic contributions across a number of fields. IU’s announcement is here. UPDATE: Here’s Peter Boettke’s commentary on Ostrom’s receipt of the Nobel Prize. UPDATE: As the WSJ notes, Ostrom was the only female Nobel Laureate […]
The TSA Allows Cameras, Except When It Doesn’t
The Transportation Security Administration “does not prohibit the public, passengers or press from photographing, videotaping or filming at security checkpoints, as long as the screening process is not interfered with or slowed down.” Specifically, so long as a traveler does not photograph or videotape what’s on the TSA’s monitors, and does not violate any local […]
Citizens United and the Wisconsin Recall
By Jonathan H. Adler on June 12, 2012 7:42 am in Elections, First Amendment, Restrictions on Campaign Contrbs. and Expenses
In yesterday’s WSJ, Stanford’s Michael McConnell explained why progressives should not blame the Supreme Court’s Citizens United for Governor Walker’s victory over the union-backed recall effort. If anything, Citizens United helped those trying to oust the controversial governor, as unions put far more money into the recall election than did corporations. Governor Walker may have […]
Sixth Circuit Smackdown Watch
Today the Supreme Court issued a unanimous per curiam opinion summarily reversing a divided panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Parker v. Matthews. The opinion begins: In this habeas case, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit set aside two 29-year-old murder convictions based on the […]
Today’s Unusual Lineup: Elgin v. Dept. of Treasury
This morning the Supreme Court issued its opinion in Elgin v. Department of Treasury, in which the Court held that the Civil Service Reform Act precludes district court jurisdiction of suits by federal employees alleging they were fired unconstitutionally. The Court’s lineup in this case is quite unusual. Justice Thomas wrote the opinion of the […]
Chevron Deference and Jurisdictional Questions
Should a federal agency receive Chevron deference for its interpretation of a statute of limitations governing violations of the statute it enforces? In AKM LLC v. Secretary of Labor the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit denied an attempt by the Occupational Safety and Health Commission to fine an employer for failing to […]
Health Care Reform Costing College Students
How should college students feel about health care reform? The WSJ reports some colleges and universities have dropped student insurance plans or hiked premiums. (More from Peter Suderman.) Perhaps it’s some consolation that the law makes it easier for parents to keep their children on their health plans — they might have to if they […]
NYT/CBS Poll: Over Two-Thirds Want Mandate Struck Down
The flurry of commentary suggesting the Supreme Court would provoke a popular backlash were it to strike down the individual mandate does not appear to have affected the populace. In a new NYT/CBS poll over two-thirds of respondents said they wanted some or all of the health care reform law struck down. Specifically, 41 percent […]
Judge Dismisses Suits Over “Birther” Parody
Today a federal district court judge in Washington, D.C. dismissed World Net Daily‘s lawsuit against Esquire for posting a satirical item on the web claiming that WND would recall author Jerome Corsi’s birther book due to the White House’s release of President Obama’s long form birth certificate. In addition to defamation and false light, WND […]
Vote — or Else
A recent mailing to Wisconsin voters from an outfit called the Grater Wisconsin Committee lists the recipient’s neighbors and details who has (and has not) voted in order to encourage neighborly pressure on those who’ve failed to make it to the ballot box. UPDATE: It turns out the design of this mailing has an academic […]
The Most-Cited Law Review Articles of All Time
Frad Shapiro and Michelle Pearse have published “The Most-Cited Law Review Articles of All Time” in the Michigan Law Review. Top of the list is Ronald Coase’s “The Problem of Social Cost,” and it’s not even close. The article also includes the most cited articles, by year, from 1990-2009.