The Honorable Thomas Griffith, Blogger
The former D.C. Circuit Judge is now a contributor to the Yale Journal on Regulation's Notice & Comment blog.
Law & Government
Government Officials' Internet Browsing Histories Are Not Agency Records under FOIA
The D.C. Circuit rejects an effort to obtain internet browsing histories under the Freedom of Information Act
China's New Data Privacy Law Doesn't Protect People Against the Biggest Threat: The Government
The law just addresses use of individuals' data by private companies, carving out exceptions for government harvesting of data.
In a Land of Scarce Water, Prices Should Be the Guide
The West needs markets in water, not allocations based on political considerations.
Louisiana Medical School's Vaccination Rules Temporarily Blocked
But the decision turns heavily on Louisiana law, and on the nature of this particular set of rules.
Could Congress Use the Congressional Review Act to Expand Agency Authority?
Two professors have proposed using the CRA to authorize agency actions and avoid the filibuster. Would it work?
If Government Is Good at One Thing, It's Making a Crisis Worse
The same institution that's unable to run the Postal Service or Amtrak orchestrated our invasion and withdrawal of Afghanistan.
Does the First Amendment Shield a Government Official From Being Censured by His Colleagues?
The Supreme Court will hear the case this fall.
Parents, Politicians, and School Administrators Battle Over Masks for Kids
Plus: Illinois schools prohibit hairstyle discrimination, Ann Arbor bans fur sales, and more....
Pioneer Institute Podcast on the Revised Federal Eviction Moratorium
Interviewer Joe Selvaggi and I explore the constitutional and policy issues at stake.
States Are Finally Starting To Rein in Deceptive Police Interrogation Techniques That Lead to False Confessions
Devastating examples of how coercive interrogations can lead to false confessions have led Illinois and Oregon to become the first states to limit when police can lie to suspects.
There Will Be No Late Impeachment of Governor Andrew Cuomo
NY Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie says impeachment is not possible once the Governor leaves office.
Amy Coney Barrett Declines To Block Indiana University COVID-19 Vaccine Requirement
The university's vaccine requirement will remain in force.
U.S. Is Becoming More Urban and More Ethnically Diverse, Says Census Bureau
People who checked the "Some Other Race" or racial combination census boxes are now America's second largest ethnic group.
"This Is No Way to Rule a Country"
If an eviction moratorium is needed, why wouldn't the legislature try to enact one?
State Governments Didn't Need Coronavirus Bailouts. They Got Billions of Dollars Anyway.
As it turns out, state and local tax revenues hardly collapsed.
Howard Mortman: Why Does Congress Pray Every Day?
The When Rabbis Bless Congress author and C-SPAN honcho on a weird political tradition and the glorious death of legacy media
John Marshall Argued for the Independence of Federal Prosecutors
Professor Matthew Steilen points to an interesting letter to St. George Tucker
Biden's Eviction Moratorium Defies the Rule of Law
The administration issued the order even while conceding that it lacked the authority to do so.
The Senate's Infrastructure Bill Redefines 'Broadband' To Manufacture a Connectivity Crisis
It is the equivalent of mandating that all new homes come with at least five bathrooms.
How a Sneaky Crypto Crackdown Plot Blew Up the Infrastructure Bill
Cryptocurrency advocates fight back against major government overreach.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill Will Add More Than $250 Billion to the Deficit. Does Anyone Care?
A CBO report that might have sunk legislation in an earlier era was greeted with a bipartisan shrug.
Kansas Wants This Experienced Eyebrow Entrepreneur To Get 1,000 More Hours of Training
Jigisha Modi can't hire her own mother-in-law—who has decades of eyebrow-threading experience—because of Kansas' occupational licensing rules. Now she's suing.
Cryptocurrency Fight Holds Up Infrastructure Bill
For now, the side that wants less cryptocurrency regulation and taxation lost.
Biden Admits New CDC Eviction Moratorium Runs Counter to 'the Bulk of the Constitutional Scholarship'
The Supreme Court will likely rule against Biden’s executive gambit.
Resolution To Repeal 1991 and 2002 Military Force Authorizations Advances to Senate Floor
It may look like Congress is reclaiming its constitutional war powers, but the president still has plenty of ways to justify his military actions.
Highways and Bridges Are Not Crumbling
Washington isn’t helping, so let states take the lead.
The CDC's New Eviction Moratorium Has Virtually all the Same Flaws as the Old
It still covers some 90% of the country, and still rests on a theory of virtually limitless CDC authority. Even President Biden acknowledges the order is legally dubious.
Why Are There New Crypto Rules in the Infrastructure Bill?
Plus: California's new pork regulations, Florida's COVID-19 boom, and more...
Should Taxpayers Be on the Hook for All Rental Debt Accrued During the Pandemic?
A new lawsuit from landlords argues that the CDC's eviction moratorium was a taking, and that they're entitled to compensation.
USPS Gets Hit With Lawsuit Over Social Media Snooping
Plus: Whistleblower on drone killings sentenced to federal prison, Biden carries on Trump's legacy on trade and immigration, and more...
Gun Control Scheme Harms Black and Hispanic New Yorkers, Public Defenders Tell Supreme Court
“New York enacted its firearm licensing requirements to criminalize gun ownership by racial and ethnic minorities.”
Is Anthony Fauci Lying About NIH Funding of Wuhan Lab Research? Or Is Rand Paul?
Inside the dispute over gain-of-function research.
Elizabeth Warren Wants the IRS To Create Its Own TurboTax. What Could Go Wrong?
A simplified tax code is the answer, not giving the IRS more funding.
Are Supreme Court Term Limits Coming Soon?
Biden’s Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court seems to favor judicial term limits.
Senate Considers Requiring Women To Register for the Draft
A proposal obtained by Politico would get rid of male-only language in an upcoming military service bill.
Senators Aim To Curtail Presidential Power Over War, Arms Sales, Emergency Declarations
Plus: The FBI had at least a dozen informants helping put together the plot to kidnap Michigan's governor, price controls fail again, and more.
Senate Could Pass a $1.2 Trillion Infrastructure Bill This Week, Even Though There's No Agreement on How To Pay for It
Plus: Strip clubs help reduce crime rates, tariffs fail to achieve their primary political purposes, Jeff Bezos goes to space, and more.
11th Circuit Refuses to Issue Injunction Against CDC Eviction Moratorium - but Doesn't Rule on the Moratorium's Legality
The decision is based on the conclusion that the landlords failed to prove they suffered an "irreparable" injury. It upholds a trial court ruling denying a preliminary injunction to landlords challenging the moratorium.
Magical Thinking Abounds in New Budget Deal Discourse
Plus: The growing trust gap, pandemic-low unemployment numbers, and more...
Dean Erwin Chemerinsky's Views on the Filibuster, Past and Present
Dean Chemerinsky has argued for and against the filibuster on both constitutional and policy grounds.
There Is Nothing "Unconstitutional" about the Filibuster
Some academics are urging VP Harris to declare the filibuster unconstitutional
Catherine Lhamon, Once and Future Title IX Czar, Says Campus Rules Don't Require 'Presumption of Innocence'
Her response to questions from the Senate HELP committee were disqualifying.
Chuck Schumer Says He Wants To Legalize Marijuana. His Bill Suggests Otherwise.
The Senate majority leader's racial rhetoric and overly prescriptive approach make an already iffy effort even more quixotic.
New Hampshire School Choice Program Opens to Religious Schools
A new law allows cash-strapped districts to send students to private religious schools.
Space Liberation!
Don't let naysayers fool you. Richard Branson's space flight is a boon for society.
The Post Office Pension Ponzi Scheme
The USPS has overpromised and undersaved for its employees' retirements—all while losing nearly $9.2 billion last year.
