To:
Teachers of Constitutional Law in
high school
From: Rich Kitchens,
Director, Constitutional Law Education Project (CLEP) (http://conlawed.com)
(Email us at: rich@conlawed.com)
Sub: Newsletter #389
(January 31,
2010)
This is an
occasional FREE
newsletter for the teachers of Constitutional Law
(4th) and others interested in teaching such a
subject to high school students. Currently, it goes out to more than
160 teachers. It is organized to suggest strategies in each of
the five units in the Constitutional Law (4th)
text. Of course, you can use any of this information
without the text as well. More information can be obtained by using
the Teacher’s Guide to Constitutional Law (4th),
published by the CLEP.
If you
wish to be removed from this newsletter mailing list, please reply
with the designation “Remove” in the subject box.
Please let
us know what you would like to see in this newsletter as it evolves.
To view past issues of the newsletter, contact Rich Kitchens at our
email address. To see Rich Kitchens’ classroom, check out: http://www.edutopia.org/room-learn-speak-your-mind
=====================================================
General Articles, Hints and
Reminders:
Summer
Institute for Teachers—Federal Trials and Great Debates in U.S.
History [ABA, 1/25/10]: Designed especially for
teachers of U.S. history, government, civics, or law, the Federal
Trials and Great Debates Institute will deepen participants’
knowledge of the federal judiciary and of the federal court's role
in key public controversies that have defined our constitutional and
other legal rights. Register for the FREE institute held in
Washington, D.C., June 27 – July
2
http://www.abanet.org/publiced/summerinstitute/home.shtml
Ignorance bites
California
in the wallet [LA Times, 1/31/10]: A new poll shows that the people want
control of the state budget, but most don't know where the money
comes from or where it goes.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/politics/la-me-week31-2010jan31,0,1882235.story
I.
Introduction to Law, the Constitution, and the Supreme
Court
[See TOPICS 1-10 in the
4th edition of Constitutional Law]
Some recent articles that
are relevant to this unit:
Carol Tobias, “An Update on the Lingering
Openings on the U.S.
Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.” Writ, 1/26/10:
Professor Tobias updates readers on the details and background of
the situation regarding the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth
Circuit, which has long had more than a quarter of its judgeships
empty. Tobias comments on the nominees; notes that President Obama
and the Senate are doing a better job on the process of filling
these vacancies than they had been in the past; and gives specifics
as to what more they need to do to truly restore the Fourth Circuit
to its full strength.
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/commentary/20100126_tobias.html
The
U.S. Supreme
Court
[TOPICS 7, 8, 9, 11, 12]
Obama-Alito
tensions surface at State of the Union address [LA Times,
1/29/10]: There's a history behind Justice
Alito's visible reaction to the president's unusual criticism of a
Supreme Court ruling. Now opponents in the debate over corporate
election spending are taking sides.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nation-and-world/la-na-obama-alito29-2010jan29,0,4533576.story
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/29/us/politics/29scotus.html
II.
Defining the Political System: Federalism and Checks and Balances
[See TOPICS 11-15 in the
4th edition of Constitutional Law]
Some recent articles that
are relevant to this unit:
L.A.
City Council finally passes medical marijuana ordinance [LA Times,
1/27/10]: After years of debate, the city will
drastically limit the number of dispensaries and restrict where they
can operate. Advocates are threatening to challenge the law in
court.
http://www.latimes.com/news/la-me-medical-marijuana27-2010jan27,0,7773553.story
Bid to legalize marijuana in
California
takes key step [LA Times, 1/29/10]: Supporters gather what is likely to be
enough signatures to put their measure on the state ballot in
November.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-marijuana-initiative29-2010jan29,0,6132946.story
The American
Presidency [TOPIC 15]
Obama focuses
on jobs, economy in first State of the Union address [LA Times / NY Times, 1/28/10]: U.S.
President Barack Obama put jobs and the economy at the heart of his
first State of the Union address, a speech that dealt mostly with
domestic issues. Of the money banks repaid for their bailouts, $30
billion should be put into a program to help community banks loan to
small businesses, he said. Obama called for a tax credit for small
businesses that hire or raise employees' pay. Mark Zandi, chief
economist at Moody's Economy.com, singled out the tax credit for
praise, saying it "could be a substantial
game-changer."
http://www.latimes.com/news/nation-and-world/la-na-obama-speech28-2010jan28,0,2547950.story
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/28/us/politics/28obama.html
Fact check:
Obama and the 'hatchet' job [AP, 1/28/10]: President Barack Obama,
who once considered government spending freezes a hatchet job, told
Americans on Wednesday it's now part of his solution to the
exploding deficit. He didn't explain what had
changed.
http://www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune/localnews/ci_14284133
Fact Check:
Searching for Some Light Amid the Heat [NY Times, 1/30/10]: When President Obama squared off with
House Republicans in a question-and-answer session on Friday,
perhaps no issue was more contentious than health care. Among Mr.
Obama’s boldest assertions was that Democrats had put forward a
mostly centrist plan and that Republicans attacked it as “some
Bolshevik plot.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/30/health/policy/30check.html
Read the full
text of the speech [LA Times, 1/28/10]:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2010/01/obama-state-of-the-union-speech-text.html
In Speech,
Obama to Admit Missteps in First Year [NY Times, 1/27/10]: For all
the questions circulating in Democratic quarters as President Obama
tries to weather the worst storm of his administration, perhaps none
is as succinct as this: Are the missteps at the White House rooted
in message or substance?
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/27/us/politics/27obama.html
Tyranny
of the Majorities [NY Times’ Sunday Mag, 1/31/10]:
Why losing a few Democrats in Congress could be good news for the
president.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/31/magazine/31fob-wwln-t.html
Neil Buchanan, “If We Must Obsess About
Budget Deficits, Can We At Least Measure Them Correctly?”
Writ, 1/28/10: Professor Buchanan contends that --
despite what many in the media have been claiming -- governmental
budget deficits are not inherently bad. He urges, too, that given
the reality that deficits are likely to be unfairly and
categorically stigmatized, they should at least be measured
correctly. Buchanan explains how the federal deficit is currently
measured and why that measure can be misleading, and notes the
importance of the interrelationship between state and federal
budgets. He contends that the current politics of charge and
counter-charge should be replaced by reasoned bipartisanship if we
are truly to form a rational, constructive approach to the federal
budget. And, most significant of all, Buchanan deems President
Obama's new plan to cut spending to address deficits a "shockingly
dangerous policy error" -- one recalling a colossal error that was
made by FDR in the Great Depression.
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/buchanan/20100128.html
III. The
Political System: Voting and Campaigns
[See TOPICS 16-20 in the 4th
edition of Constitutional Law]
Some recent articles that are relevant to
this unit:
Michael Dorf, “The Supreme Court Rejects
a Limit on Corporate-Funded Campaign Speech.” Writ,
1/25/10: Professor Dorf analyzes the Supreme
C0urt's recent -- and highly significant -- Citizens United decision,
which invalidated a provision of federal law that had importantly
limited corporations' ability to fund campaign speech. Dorf argues
that the decision is especially notable for what it says about the
Court's placid acceptance of the often disturbing ways in which
money influences American politics. In addition to offering thorough
commentary on the decision, Dorf also assesses its likely impact. He
concludes that the decision probably should not be read to
foreshadow the invalidation of all campaign-finance regulation, but
predicts that it may be a significant step toward more permissive
rules in this area.
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/dorf/20100125.html
Robert Levy, “Campaign Finance Reform: A
Libertarian Primer.” Writ, 1/28/10: Levy offers a libertarian reading of
the Supreme Court’s recent Citizens United decision. Levy argues
that the decision to loosen rules against corporations paying for
campaign related speech was long overdue. Further, he contends that
the best way to root corruption out of our political process and
limit the influence of big money on government would be to reduce
the powers of federal government.
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/commentary/20100128_levy.html
Tea-party
allies include Obama birth site skeptics [Sac Bee, 1/26/10]:
Californians are pretty sure President Barack Obama was born in the
U.S.A., but not at all sure about the tea party movement, according
to a new Field Poll.
http://www.sacbee.com/topstories/story/2489369.html
Stampede Toward
Democracy [NY Times Op-Ed, 1/25/10]: With last week’s ruling in Citizens United v. Federal
Election Commission, the court has now declared that
corporations and unions may spend money on political advertising
that urges the election or defeat of a candidate for public office.
One would think from all this that corporations and unions are now
free to buy candidates on the open market. But what, if anything,
will be different in our elections?
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/26/opinion/26baran.html
CalBuzz: I,
Jerry: How Brown Campaign Will Be Run [CalBuzz, 1/27/10]: It’s been an open secret* for weeks
that Jerry Brown planned to hire longtime aide and Brown family
retainer Steve Glazer to run his campaign for
governor.
http://www.calbuzz.com/2010/01/i-jerry-how-brown-campaign-will-be-run/
New poll:
Campbell, Whitman in lead; both still losing to Boxer, Brown [SF
Chron Weblog, 1/28/10]: Republicans Tom Campbell and Meg Whitman --
the VW bug and Hummer stretch limo of campaign financing -- continue
to lead their respective GOP primary races, according to a Public
Policy Institute of California poll just liberated from its
embargo.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/nov05election/detail?blogid=14&entry_id=56130
Dems may rue
Senate appointees [Politico, 1/29/10]: The small class of Senate
appointees put in office after the 2008 election is turning out to
haunt Democrats two years later, as those seats now rank among the
most at-risk this November.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0110/32188.html
Legislation
and the Legislative Process (TOPIC
20)
Democrats
quietly working to resuscitate healthcare overhaul [LA Times, 1/31/10]: While the focus shifts to legislation
on jobs, party leaders are taking advantage of a cooling-off period
to strategize, seek a new compromise and improve the public's
opinion of the legislation.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nation-and-world/la-na-healthcare-strategy31-2010jan31,0,4131123.story
Revision of No
Child Left Behind is launched by Obama administration [Wash Post, 1/28/10]: The Obama administration
has begun its push to revise the Elementary and Secondary Education
Act -- known as No Child Left Behind. Goals for the revision include
added flexibility, and $1 billion in federal aid is proposed to fund
programs that emerge under any new law. "NCLB needs to be fixed
right now," Education Secretary Arne Duncan said. "Clearly our goal
would be this year." An attempt to rewrite the law in 2007
failed.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/26/AR2010012604586.html
Fensterwald:
PPIC poll: Tax us to protect K-12 schools [EducatedGuess.org,
1/28/10]: Two-thirds of adults surveyed in a Public Policy Institute
of California poll say they support higher taxes to maintain funding
for K-12 schools. And a full 82 percent, including a majority of
Republicans polled, oppose cutting K-12 education to reduce the
state budget deficit.
http://educatedguess.org/blog/2010/01/28/ppic-poll-tax-us-to-protect-k-12-schools/
GOP decries
‘phony war’ on Wall Street [The Hill, 1/26/10]: Republicans are
mounting a new effort to call Democrats hypocrites for raising
populist ire at banks while continuing to accept millions of dollars
in campaign money from them.
http://thehill.com/homenews/house/77953-gop-decries-phony-war-on-wall-street
No-cuss
California?
Assembly takes aim at four-letter words [Capitol Alert,
1/30/10]: Dang you, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Darn it, legislators.
http://www.sacbee.com/static/weblogs/capitolalertlatest/2010/01/no-cuss-califor.html
IV.
Criminal Law and Procedure (4th, 5th,
6th, and 8th amendments)
[See TOPICS 21-28 in the
4th edition of Constitutional Law]
Some recent articles that are relevant to
this unit:
Expulsion for
guns in truck overturned by education board [Sac Bee, 1/25/10]: In the
end, the case of a Willows teenager expelled for having hunting guns
in his pickup truck parked next to campus didn't focus on gun
rights. It became a question of whether the authority of school
officials to enforce the state's Education Code extended to the
school fence – or a sidewalk's width beyond it.
http://www.sacbee.com/education/story/2483630.html
Family sues LAUSD over sting
tactics [LA Daily News, 1/25/10]: The family
of a 12-year-old who was used as bait in a marijuana sting operation
devised by administrators at a Granada Hills middle school filed a
lawsuit Thursday against the Los Angeles Unified School District and
the three administrators.
http://www.dailynews.com/education/ci_14243592
State high
court OK's 'John Doe' arrest warrant based on DNA [Sac Bee,
1/26/10]: In a groundbreaking case out of Sacramento, a split
California Supreme Court ruled Monday that the use of a DNA profile
to identify an unknown suspect in an arrest warrant is a legitimate
way to beat the deadline for filing criminal
charges.
http://www.sacbee.com/ourregion/story/2489104.html
Judge's
About-Face on Recusal Didn't Violate Defendant's Rights, Court Rules
[NLJ, 1/25/10]: The California Supreme Court, relying on the U.S.
Supreme Court's ruling in Caperton v. Massey, ruled Thursday
that a judge did not violate a defendant's due process rights by
overseeing her criminal trial after initially recusing himself. San
Diego Superior Court Judge Robert O'Neill had recused himself after
the defendant, a lawyer, asked O'Neill to address rumors that she
was stalking another judge, a friend of O'Neill. O'Neill took up the
case again after the rumors were found to be
unsubstantiated.
http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202439435053
V.
1st Amendment (Speech, Religion, Press and
Assembly)
[See TOPICS 29-33 in the
4th edition of Constitutional Law]
Some recent articles that are relevant to
this unit:
Censorship
settlement thrills speech advocates [SD Union-Trib, 1/25/10]:
Free-speech advocates are seeing a recent settlement of a
lawsuit that challenged Fallbrook High School’s censorship of its
student newspaper as a triumph that could send ripples throughout
the country.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/jan/25/censorship-settlement-thrills-speech-advocates/
Courts deeply
split on Ten Commandments displays [First Amendment Center,
1/26/10]:
Judges'
disagreements, such as in recent 6th Circuit case, could lead to
further Supreme Court involvement.
http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/commentary.aspx?id=22539
Bill to include
charter schools in Calif. student free expression law passes State
Senate [SPLC, 1/26/10]: The
California State Senate unanimously passed a bill Monday that
extends the rights of student free expression to charter school
students, confirmed Adam Keigwin, chief of staff for Sen. Leland
Yee, D-San Francisco/San Mateo.
http://www.splc.org/newsflash.asp?id=2017
Nev.
teachers union tries to block student newspaper article [AP / SPLC,
1/29/10]: But high school
principal, district superintendent refuse, saying halting
publication of story, which is critical of school's music teacher,
would violate First Amendment.
http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/news.aspx?id=22558
http://www.splc.org/newsflash.asp?id=2018
When the Bible
goes to school, the tug-of-war begins [Charles Haynes of the First
Amendment Center, 1/31/10]: Students have the right to
bring Scriptures to school, but any teaching involving the Bible
must be done in constitutionally sound ways.
http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/commentary.aspx?id=22553
VI.
14th Amendment, Discrimination, Privacy, Working,
Citizenship & Immigration
[See TOPICS 34-41 in the 4th
edition of Constitutional Law]
Some recent articles that are relevant to
this unit:
Vikram Amar, “The Ongoing Proposition 8
Trial: Three Key Points About the Evidence and Arguments.”
Writ, 1/29/10: Professor Amar comments on the ongoing
trial regarding Proposition 8, California's voter-enacted ban on same-sex
marriage. Amar makes three key points: (1) The evidentiary record in
the litigation so far could support -- but won't compel -- a victory
for the Prop. 8 challengers (assuming Supreme Court precedent
permits such a victory in the first place); (2) Ultimately, whatever
happens in the trial court, this will be appellate courts' call; and
(3) This case may not ultimately be headed for the Supreme Court, if
the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit rejects the
plaintiffs' challenges to Prop. 8.
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/amar/20100129.html
Proposition 8
Trial Wraps, but Will It Find a Wider Audience? [The Recorder,
1/28/10]: With witnesses done in the federal trial over Prop 8,
Chief Judge Vaughn Walker can now sort through the evidence -- aided
by a video of the proceedings. Might those tapes get a public
airing? Cameras emerged as a hot issue at the trial's start, until
the U.S. Supreme Court barred broadcast due to a bungled rule
change. But if the district court amends its guidelines to allow the
release of previously recorded videos, attorney David Boies said the
plaintiff same-sex couples would "absolutely" seek the tapes'
release.
http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202439569329
Prop 8 trial:
Attorney, witness engage in bitter argument as testimony drawing to
close [SJ Merc, 1/27/10]: After an afternoon that more resembled the
elbow throwing of the political campaign over gay marriage than the
placid decorum of a legal proceeding, Chief U.S. District Judge
Vaughn Walker tacked on an extra day of the trial as the Proposition
8 defense's second and final witness could not finish his testimony
Tuesday.
http://www.mercurynews.com/california/ci_14273562
Proposition 8
Defense Seeks to Show Gays Have Power [The Recorder / SF Chron,
1/26/10]: After two weeks of witnesses called by plaintiffs
challenging Proposition 8, the defense's case finally got under way
Monday. Kenneth Miller, a political science professor and one-time
lawyer with Morrison & Foerster, testified that gays and
lesbians have quite a bit of political power in
California. That contention, which the defense had
previously hammered on cross-examinations, is central to whether
gays deserve federal constitutional
protections.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/01/25/BAAE1BNF3G.DTL
http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202439504083
Walters:
California gay marriages may hinge on one man [Sac Bee, 1/31/10]:
The federal trial on the constitutionality of California's gay
marriage prohibition, which voters passed in 2008, has been more a
sociological and philosophical debate than a traditional evidentiary
hearing.
http://www.sacbee.com/capitolandcalifornia/story/2502324.html
Judge Put
Lawyers on Long Leash in Federal Challenge to Proposition 8 [The
Recorder, 1/29/10]: During the federal challenge to Proposition 8 --
the California ballot measure banning gay marriages in that state --
Chief Judge Vaughn Walker took a laid-back approach with evidence
and generally let the lawyers try their cases, with a few
exceptions. Trial will conclude today, save for closing arguments,
which will happen in a few weeks. That gives
Walker time to come up with specific questions
based on the evidence, which will be a key measure of where he
stands in crafting factual findings that might stand up on
appeal.
http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202439533553
Hollywood
writers' age-discrimination case settled [LA Times, 1/23/10]:
A long and winding legal
battle that raised uncomfortable questions about Hollywood's
treatment of middle-aged and older TV writers was settled Friday, a
decade after a class-action lawsuit alleged they were the victims of
widespread age discrimination. http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-ct-writers23-2010jan23,0,7044551.story
Can gender
quotas break the glass ceiling? [NY Times, 1/27/10]: By law,
at least 40% of Norwegian companies' directors must be women -- but
while that has increased gender equality at the top of the food
chain, it hasn't necessarily helped women further down the ladder.
It's possible to hoist a few female managers into the boardroom,
experts say, but that doesn't remove the glass ceiling for everyone
else. "Power is not something that is given, it is something that
you have to take," says one economist. "I don't think I've ever
heard a female oversell her
capabilities."
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/28/world/europe/28iht-quota.html
The Law of
Working [TOPIC
39]
Report:
California union membership down in 2009 [Sac Bee, 1/25/10]: California
saw a drop in the percentage of wage and salary workers who belonged
to a union in 2009, according to figures released on Friday by the
federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.
http://www.sacbee.com/static/weblogs/the_state_worker/2010/01/union-membership-down-slightly.html
International
Law, Citizenship and Immigration [TOPIC
40-42]
Specter Files
Supreme Court Brief in Torture Case [NLJ, 1/28/10]: Sen. Arlen
Specter, D-Pa., filed a brief on behalf of himself and two other
members of Congress on Wednesday in a closely watched human rights
case testing whether foreign torture victims can seek damages in
U.S. courts. The case, which will be argued at the Supreme Court on
March 3, is a dispute over the meaning of the Torture Victim
Protection Act of 1991, which Specter sponsored. In his brief
Specter asserted emphatically that Congress intended to cover cases
like the one now before the Court.
http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202439554786
Globalizing the
First Amendment in the 21st Century [Law.com, 1/28/10]: Google's
recent threat to pull out of China over the country's human-rights
and free-speech constraints highlights the central question First
Amendment expert and Columbia University President Lee Bollinger
attempts to answer in his new book, "Uninhibited, Robust, and
Wide-Open: A Free Press for a New Century." What happens when the
American idea of free speech collides with restrictions in a country
that does not accept the U.S. conception of press
freedom?
http://www.law.com/jsp/law/international/LawArticleIntl.jsp?id=1202439515530
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