In an interview with podcast host Dan Bongino, former President Trump said he “thinks” he will sue CBS after it was found to have edited an interview with Vice President Kamala Harris, only the latest such allegation against mainstream media. I hope that he will think again about this latest threat of litigation. I agree with the criticism of the media, including CBS, in the bias shown in the election. However, such a lawsuit would be legally groundless, in my view. If it is any solace, the media is doing enough damage to itself. Continue reading “No, Trump Should Not Sue CBS”
Today I had the pleasure of speaking at the Morristown Book Festival, a wonderful event featuring various contemporary authors. I was delighted to speak to a large gathering assembled at the historic St. Peter’s Episcopal Church. It was an impressive venue that made you feel almost ministerial in addressing the congregation. I also enjoyed meeting some of our blog contingent at the book signing for The Indispensable Right.
Kamala Harris this week faced accusations of plagiarism over multiple sections of her book, “Smart on Crime: A Career Prosecutor’s Plan to Make Us Safer.”
This is not the first such accusation, Harris has been accused of lifting a story from Martin Luther King. In 1965, King described “a moment in Birmingham when a white policeman accosted a little Negro girl, seven or eight years old, who was walking in a demonstration with her mother.” King recounted how the policeman asked the little girl “‘What do you want?’ and the little girl looked at him straight in the eye and answered, ‘Fee-dom’.” Harris would later tell the story of how her mother asked her “Kamala, what’s wrong? What do you want?” and I wailed back, “Fweedom.”
As found by various media outlets, the new allegations from her book would qualify as plagiarism despite the denial of the campaign. It is doubtful it will matter to many voters in the hardened political silos of this election. However, it could prompt a long-needed discussion about how we handle plagiarism in academia.
Here is a slightly expanded version of my Hill column:
Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania has been struggling for years with falling revenue and difficulty attracting applications. It has had to reduce faculty and even shutdown a historic journal to stay afloat. Students have raised the alarm of how their institution is “slowly inching toward a financial precipice.” In the midst of this crisis, the college is now facing a new controversy after its admissions counselor and representative for Long Island and New York City went on a tirade against any supporters of former President Donald Trump as “pieces of s**t.” Continue reading “Gettysburg College Under Fire After Anti-Trump Postings from Admissions Counselor”
Today, I had the pleasure of debating Professor Randall Kennedy on the question “Does Harvard support free speech and intellectual diversity?” I took the opposing view. Various readers asked for a link to the debate, which is included below. Continue reading “The Harvard Debate: Professors Kennedy and Turley Debate Free Speech”
Last night, millions tuned in to watch Fox’s Bret Baier interview Vice President Kamala Harris in a brief but substantive exchange. One of the most interesting aspects of the interview was the purely pedestrian view of the presidency that Harris presented in the interview. Harris repeatedly responded with “I will follow the law” while refusing to say where she personally stands on immigration, transgender athletes, and other issues. Continue reading ““I Will Follow the Law”: Harris Adopts a Purely Pedestrian View of the Presidency in Fox Interview”
I will be tied up today in the Harvard debate over free speech, but I wanted to share our current traffic figures. This morning, Res Ipsa passed the 85,000,000 mark in views on the blog. We have used these moments to give thanks for our many regular readers around the world and share our traffic data to give you an idea of the current profile of readers around the world. We do not have a running data page so these periodic postings allow our community to see the traffic profile of our blog. Because of the growth of the blog, we have gone from million to five million view markers. So let’s get at it. Continue reading “RES IPSA HITS 85,000,000”
Former J6 Committee Co-Chair and Rep. Liz Cheney has long been criticized for her role in creating a one-sided and at times erroneous record of what occurred on January 6th. That includes editing out Trump’s call for supporters to protest “peacefully,” burying evidence on Trump’s offer to supply National Guard support for that day, and highlighting a false account of Trump in his presidential limo that was directly contradicted by witnesses. Continue reading “Liz Cheney Under Fire for Allegedly Improper Contacts with Cassidy Hutchinson”
Below is my column in the New York Post on the recent interview of Democratic Vice Presidential nominee Gov. Tim Walz defending his record on free speech. The interview with Fox host Shannon Bream only magnified concerns over what I previously described as the most anti-free speech ticket in centuries.
Here is the column: Continue reading “Walzing Around Free Speech: How A Walz Interview Became a Dizzying Dance of Distraction”
On Thursday, I have the pleasure of debating Harvard Professor Randall Kennedy on the question “Does Harvard support free speech and intellectual diversity?” I will be taking the opposing position. Continue reading “Turley to Debate Free Speech at Harvard Law School”
Below is my column in The Hill on the Musk mania now sweeping over the media with pundits and politicians unleashing unhinged attacks on the billionaire. In an Age of Rage, Musk is now eclipsing Donald Trump as Public Enemy No. 1. It began with his stance against censorship.
Here is the column: Continue reading “Liberals are Losing their Minds over Elon Musk”
In announcing his “Operation Aurora,” former President Donald Trump has suggested that he may use the Alien Enemies Act (AEA) of 1798 to crackdown on “every illegal migrant criminal network operating on American soil.” The plan to begin mass deportations is certainly popular with the public, according to polling. However, without a declaration of war, he will likely have to look to alternative statutory vehicles for a peacetime operation. There are novel arguments that could be made in federal court, but they run against the presumed meaning of critical terms under the law. The odds do not favor the government in the likely challenges.
Continue reading “No, the Alien Enemies Act is Not a Viable Legal Basis for “Operation Aurora””
It appears that U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan and Special Counsel Jack Smith are not done yet in releasing material in advance of the election. In a previous column, I criticized the release of Smith’s 180-page brief before the election as procedurally irregular and politically biased, a criticism shared by CNN’s senior legal analyst and other law professors. Nevertheless, on Thursday, Judge Chutkan agreed to a request from Smith to unseal exhibits and evidence in advance of the election. Continue reading “Adversarial Process or Oppo Research? Judge Agrees To Release More Trump Material Before the Election”
In prior columns, academic articles, and my book, “The Indispensable Right, I discuss the never-ending litigation targeting Jack Phillips, the Christian baker who declined to make cakes that violated his religious beliefs. Phillips continues to be the subject of continuing lawsuits despite the Supreme Court upholding his right to decline to make expressive products for ceremonies or celebrations that he finds immoral. Now the Colorado Supreme Court has dismissed an action brought by a transgender lawyer against the cake shop and its owner. Continue reading “Colorado Supreme Court Dismisses Another Lawsuit Against Masterpiece Cakeshop”