My Deseret News Article on Carson v. Makin
The article explains why the Supreme Court was right to hold that state voucher programs can’t discriminate against “sectarian” religious schools and addresses various objections.
Law & Government
On Justice Thomas, Dobbs, Precedent, and Substantive Due Process
In his Dobbs concurrence, the senior associate justice reiterates his outlying views on precedent and his belief that all substantive due process decisions were "demonstrably erroneous."
Clarence Thomas Calls To 'Reconsider' Gay Marriage, Sodomy Rulings
The other justices declined to join him, but the future of the Supreme Court rulings on those matters remains unclear.
Alito's Abortion Ruling Overturning Roe Is an Insult to the 9th Amendment
The Constitution protects many more rights than it mentions, as James Madison explained.
Here Is a State-by-State Rundown of What Will Happen Now That SCOTUS Has Freed Lawmakers To Restrict Abortion
Most states are unlikely to enact bans, but 22 either have them already or probably will soon.
The Attitude-Altering Slippery Slope and Extremeness Aversion Behavioral Effects, Plus …
are attitude-altering slippery slopes good or bad?
Divorced Couple Dispute Over Pre-Embryos: One Wants Them Destroyed, the Other Wants Them Implanted
Colorado law says that ordinarily the decision is in favor of the person who doesn't want the embryos implanted; the Colorado Court of Appeals held that this applies even when the person has religious reasons for wanting to donate them to another couple.
Blame Congress for Pandemic Fraud
The inconvenient truth behind all the COVID-19 relief fraud and waste is that these government programs never should have been designed as they were.
'The Second Amendment Is Not Unlimited,' Brett Kavanaugh Stresses in SCOTUS Gun Case
“Properly interpreted, the Second Amendment allows a ‘variety’ of gun regulations,” Kavanaugh writes, invoking Antonin Scalia
SCOTUS Says You Can't Sue the Cops for Violating Your Miranda Rights
A 6–3 ruling undermines attempts to hold police accountable for misconduct.
In Landmark 2nd Amendment Ruling, SCOTUS Affirms Right 'To Carry a Handgun for Self-Defense Outside the Home'
“Nothing in the Second Amendment’s text draws a home/public distinction with respect to the right to keep and bear arms,” says New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen.
Alito's Leaked Abortion Opinion Misunderstands Unenumerated Rights
The Supreme Court justice is wrong when he says abortion rights aren't deeply rooted in American history.
Biden's Gas Tax Holiday Plan Already Running on Empty
Prominent Democrats including Joe Manchin oppose a bad idea whose time has seemingly not yet come.
The Bipartisan Senate Gun Control Bill Would Unjustly Deprive Americans of Their Second Amendment Rights
The legislation prohibits firearm sales based on juvenile records and subsidizes state laws that suspend gun rights without due process.
Sotomayor vs. Roberts on Religion, Schools, and the First Amendment
“A State violates the Free Exercise Clause when it excludes religious observers from otherwise available public benefits,” the Supreme Court held.
Environmental Protection Agency
EPA Pushes Back Power Plant Greenhouse Gas Regulations While Awaiting Supreme Court Ruling
No matter how the Supreme Court rules in West Virginia v. EPA, absent legislative action it is unlikely new power plant rules will be in force before 2024.
My NBC News Article on Today's Supreme Court Ruling Barring Discrimination Against Religious Schools in Maine School Choice Program
The decision is an important victory for both the principle of nondiscrimination and parents and students seeking better educational opportunities.
Federal COVID Aid to States and Localities Cost $855,000 Per Job Saved
A new paper reveals that the state and local bailout was not only unnecessary but incredibly wasteful.
Gorsuch and Alito Butt Heads in Another Criminal Justice Case
According to Alito, Gorsuch’s opinion “veered off into fantasy land.”
#TheyLied Prosecution Over Alleged Perjury and Faked Evidence
The defendant is one Rovier Carrington, who "sued Hollywood executives alleging that the executives had sexually assaulted him, and that they had defrauded him in connection with a decision to refuse to produce [his] reality television program."
School Choice and Religious Liberty Advocates Just Won Big at the Supreme Court
States may not "exclude some members of the community from an otherwise generally available public benefit because of their religious exercise,” says SCOTUS.
Exclusion of Religious Schooling from Generally Available School Choice Programs Generally Unconstitutional,
except for the training of the clergy, holds the Supreme Court.
Are a Majority of D.C. Circuit Judges Republican Appointees? The NYT Thinks So [Updated]
A New York Times piece on conservative legal challenges to climate regulations characterizes the balance of the D.C. Circuit in a most unusual way.
Critical Race Theory: A Deep Dive
A seven-episode mini series on critical race theory.
In Negotiations Over the 'Boyfriend Loophole,' Republicans Show More Concern for Due Process Than Democrats
Senators are mulling legislation that would expand the categories of people who are disqualified from owning guns.
As Pride Month Nears End, LGBT Political Culture Warring Escalates
You’d think drag brunches are why we’re paying $6 a gallon for gas.
The Defense Production Act Has Become a License for Central Planning
If home insulation is a "critical technology item essential to the national defense," then what isn't?
Contract Lawsuit Can Proceed, Over Private School Disciplining Student for Alleged Racial Epithet Use
The plaintiff alleged that the Wardlaw-Hartridge School had failed to comply with its own procedural rules in the Student-Parent Handbook.
Environmentalists' Lawsuit Brings Minneapolis' YIMBY Success Story to a Screeching Halt
Three environmentalists groups had argued that the city failed to perform a state-required environmental analysis of its Minneapolis 2040 comprehensive plan.
Congress and Biden Probably Just Made the Shipping Problem Worse
The Ocean Shipping Reform Act fulfills the political need to do something but probably won’t help.
Justice Sotomayor Defends Justice Thomas
In remarks to the American Constitution Society, Justice Sonia Sotomayor shares her thoughts on the senior-most Associate Justice.
A Bipartisan Tech Antitrust Bill May Soon Pass. It's Still a Bad Idea.
The legislation is likely to have a number of negative consequences for consumers.
With Roe v. Wade in Doubt, Some Liberals Fault Ruth Bader Ginsburg for Not Retiring Early
Some fans are now souring on her legacy.
"[W]ell, People Really Be Tellin', People Be Tellin'. That Is Not Right, That Is Not Right."
A Snapchat post containing this line and "a copy of the police report summarizing [a witness's] identification of [a person] as the shooter" leads to a four-year prison sentence for witness tampering; a New Jersey court says the post is a constitutionally unprotected true threat of violence.
3 Supreme Court Cases To Watch in the Next 2 Weeks
Big rulings are coming soon on school choice, guns, and abortion.
Rand Paul Asked Senators To Balance the Budget. Only 28 Agreed.
Rising interest rates will only make it harder to balance the budget in future years.
