The commentary on the Koch-Cato continues to multiply. Three recent posts are particularly noteworthy. The first are two former Cato staffers associated with so-called “liberaltarianism,” Brink Lindsey and Will Wilkinson. Brink’s views, in particular, are quite close to my own. In addition, noted progressive blogger Ezra Klein adds his voice to those wondering what the […]
Author Archive | Jonathan H. Adler
Unanimous En Banc on Sixth Circuit
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has a reputation for being one of the most divided and contentious courts in the nation. Many of the courts divided opinions have been chronicled on this blog. But it’s important not to overstate the degree of division on the court. Last week, for instance, the […]
Koch v. Cato — Woodlief Responds, Frank Comments
Here are two more worthwhile posts on the Koch-Cato kerfuffle: One by Tony Woodlief responding to Jerry Taylor, the other by Ted Frank. Recognizing that not every reader of the VC is interested in this contretemps, I’ve placed excerpts from both posts below the jump. [UPDATE: It appears Ted Frank’s comment has been taken down. […]
Koch v. Cato — The View From Koch
I have spoken with quite a few folks close to the Koch brothers and their organizations, but have not been able to get anyone to speak (let alone answer questions) on the record. I have, however, come across a letter sent to alumni of the Charles G. Koch fellowship program detailing the Kochs’ position. I […]
Court Seeks Reargument of Alien Tort Statute Case
This afternoon the Supreme Court asked for supplemental briefing and announced it would hear additional oral arguments next term in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum, in which the Court is considering whether foreign nationals may file suit against corporations for alleged human rights abuses in U.S. courts. Kiobel was just argued last week. Lyle Denniston […]
Judge Turns Away Challenge to Recess Appointees on NLRB
Last Friday, a federal judge turned away a challenge to President Obama’s recess appointment of three members to the National Labor Relations Board. As Lyle Denniston reports on SCOTUSBlog, Judge Amy Berman Jackson refused to consider the claim in the context of a challenge to a recent NLRB rule requiring employers to provide certain information […]
Koch v. Cato – Monday Morning Roundup
The Koch brothers lawsuit to take control of the Cato Institute has continued to receive commentary, and has even inspired a Facebook page. Over the weekend, I posted a statement from Jerry Taylor of the Cato Institute. I will present the the Kochs’ perspective if and when I get a statement or am able to […]
Brooks on Wilson
AEI President Arthur Brooks reflects on the legacy of James Q. Wilson: Arguably, no social scientist had more influence over American public policy, on topics ranging from deregulation to welfare reform. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by George W. Bush and advised five decades of American presidents. Pat Moynihan once reportedly told […]
Koch v. Cato — A View from Cato
My friend Jerry Taylor, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute, offered me his perspective on the Koch-Cato dispute. Jerry’s obviously sympathetic to Cato President Ed Crane, but he also offers a fair amount of detail about recent events, including recent changes to the Cato Institute’s Board of Directors — changes that occurred last Thursday […]
James Q. Wilson, RIP
James Q. Wilson, one of the nation’s influential social scientists, passed away yesterday. He was 80. He wrote many important books and articles on many subjects. In some of my fields, his book Bureaucracy is an indispensable source. Here are additional comments by Tyler Cowen and Ken Kersch.
Koch v. Cato Follow Up
Since yesterday’s post, I’ve been hearing from folks on various sides of the conflict and hope to be able to report some additional details shortly, including news on recent changes to Cato’s Board of Directors — changes that relate to the current conflict. In the meantime, Laurie Bennett has more coverage at Forbes (including a graphic […]
Koch v. Cato
Yesterday the Washington Post‘s “ThinkTanked” blog reported that Charles and David Koch have filed a lawsuit to take control of the Cato Institute, the nation’s most prominent libertarian think tank. Although it is a non-profit, as initially incorporated, Cato is effectively owned by a board of shareholders. Until recently, this board consisted of Cato President […]
An Increasingly Unrepresentative Court
Is the Supreme Court becoming detached from the practice of law? A new study by the University of Tennessee’s Benjamin Barton, “An Empirical Study of Supreme Court Justice Pre-Appointment Experience,” suggests it might be. It finds that Supreme Court justices today have a far narrower set of pre-Court experience than in the past. Here is the […]
Chevron’s Anniversary
It’s not often that we get to celebrate the anniversary of oral argument in Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. NRDC, but today is such a day. Chevron was argued on February 29, 1984. Some day, perhaps there will also be a post commemorating Kurns v. Railroad Friction Products Corp., a preemption opinion the Supreme Court issued […]
The Green Costs of Kelo Revisited
By Jonathan H. Adler on February 29, 2012 12:33 pm in Eminent Domain, Energy, Environment, Kelo, Property Rights
In 2006, Ilya and I co-authored “The Green Costs of Kelo: Economic Development Takings and Environmental Protection,” in which we argued that allowing the use of eminent domain for economic development was bad for environmental conservation. Environmentalist advocates responded with disbelief. The Community Rights Counsel (the precursor to the Constitutional Accountability Center) went so far […]