At my suggestion, Intelligence Squared is hosting a debate on the motion: Abolish The Minimum Wage. At a time when President Obama is proposing to increase it, I thought it might be useful to go back to first principles and explore whether the minimum wage is good policy in the first place. The debaters are […]
Author Archive | Nick Rosenkranz
The Exact Same Word May Mean Different Things For Purposes of State Law and Federal Law
Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) defines the word “marriage” for purposes of federal law. In a recent post, Randy argues that this provision must be unconstitutional, because otherwise one could be “married” under state law but not under federal law, or vice versa, and “that is crazy.” With all due respect, […]
The “Pretext” Argument Against Section Three of the Defense of Marriage Act
In his most recent post, Randy responds to my critique (here and here) of the DOMA “federalism brief.” He begins by conceding: “In most every conceivable case, there is no objection to any particular definition adopted by Congress for purposes of federal law. Most definitions can easily be shown to be both necessary and proper […]
The Wall Street Journal Editorial Page Rejects The Federalism Argument Against Section Three of the Defense of Marriage Act
The Wall Street Journal editorial page — always a steadfast friend of federalism — is nevertheless unconvinced by the “federalism brief” in the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) case. The editors write: [L]iberals and some libertarians argue [that DOMA] is an offense to federalism. We disagree …. In the Constitution’s system of dual federal-state sovereignty, […]
There Is No Federalism Objection To Section Three of the Defense of Marriage Act
There has been a lot of commentary about the federalism argument against the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Several of my co-conspirators signed on to the “federalism brief” in the DOMA case. I expressed serious doubts about the argument a few weeks ago (as did Sasha, and Ed Whelan over at National Review Online), and […]
Trevor Paglen Drone Photographs
If you’re interested in drones, you might also enjoy Trevor Paglen’s photographs of them. Paglen is a fascinating artist who has a particular interest in photographing secret things — drones, military installations, spy satellites. Here is Paglen’s webpage, and here is a recent New Yorker profile of him. If the Conspiracy had an official artist, […]
The Bourne Implausibility
By Nick Rosenkranz on March 6, 2013 9:40 pm in Constitutional Law, Fifth Amendment, National Security, Popular Culture, Targeted Killing, Uncategorized
I just caught the last few minutes of The Bourne Ultimatum. At the end (spoiler alert), Bourne successfully exposes everything, and we catch a glimpse of MSNBC, reporting on a secret CIA assassination program “which in several cases may have even targeted U.S. citizens.” In the movie, it appears that MSNBC believes this to be […]
Congress Has Power To Define The Terms Of Its Own Statutes
Last week, Dale Carpenter blogged about a particular amicus brief filed in U.S. v. Windsor, the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) case. In this brief, Dale, as well as co-conspirators Jonathan Adler, Randy Barnett, and Ilya Somin, set forth a “federalism-based” argument against DOMA. With all due respect to my co-conspirators, I agree with Ed […]
Federalist Society Talks at Yale and Harvard
I will be speaking to the Yale and Harvard Chapters of the Federalist Society this week, about The Subjects of the Constitution and The Objects of the Constitution. Yale Law School, room 128, Wednesday, March 6, noon. Harvard Law School, Wasserstein Hall, room 2009, Thursday, March 7, noon.
IQ2US Debate: Prohibit Genetically Engineered Babies
Intelligence Squared is hosting a provocative debate on the motion “Prohibit Genetically Engineered Babies” — this Wednesday, February 13, 6:45-8:30pm, at the Kaufman Center, 129 West 67th Street (btw Broadway and Amsterdam), New York City. As IQ2US describes the issue: Imagine a world free of genetic diseases, where parents control their offspring’s height, eye color […]
A Call For Drastic Changes In Educating New Lawyers
By Nick Rosenkranz on February 11, 2013 1:30 pm in Academia, Education, Law School Tuition and Loans, Law Schools, Legal Profession
New York Times coverage of the mid-year ABA meeting, and the report of its Task Force on the Future of Legal Education, here.
Drone Strikes and Due Process
Mike Ramsey has a nice post over at the Originalism Blog.
The Commentariat Likes Football!
Average number of comments on my prior treaty posts: 66. Number of comments on my final treaty post (Super Bowl Sunday, 6:42pm): 4. I must say, I wouldn’t necessarily have pegged you all as football fans! I can only imagine the armchair quarterbacking!
Final Post Of The Treaty Debate
This will be my final post of the debate with guest-blogger Rick Pildes about whether a treaty can increase the legislative power of Congress. In this post, I will just make some brief concluding remarks. 1 Rick has been at pains to suggest a fundamental disagreement between Ilya and me. This is tactically clever – […]
Missouri v. Holland vs. Reid v. Covert
My thanks to Rick Pildes and to our commenters for pushing me to reframe the precise issue at stake in Bond and my precise position about it. I think we now have a better understanding of where we part ways. Here is the question: If a non-self-executing treaty promises that Congress will do something that […]