Media, Politics, Society

Is the Scott Walker Story Just the Tip of the Koch Brothers’ Political Iceberg?

Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Guest Blogger

Last week I wrote up a post titled Scott Walker: A Fiscally Responsible Governor or a Politician Who Is Playing Favorites?. Judging from the number of comments left at that post, it appears that people are very interested in what’s been going on in the state of Wisconsin. I think many people may believe that as Wisconsin goes—so goes the nation…and probably the life expectancy of labor unions and collective bargaining.

What got a lot of press attention was the story of the prank phone call that Governor Walker received from gonzo journalist Ian Murphy. Murphy pretended to be billionaire industrialist David Koch. He talked to Walker for twenty minutes. Murphy reportedly told the Associated Press he made the prank phone call in order to show how candid Walker would be in a conversation with Koch at a time when Democrats claim the governor was refusing to return their calls.

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Constitutional Law, Courts, Justice, Politics

Is Free Speech Really Free?

 

Submitted by Lawrence Rafferty, (rafflaw), Guest Blogger

 

After a few recent discussions about Free Speech in earlier threads, I came across another example of how limited our Free Speech really is.  At a recent speech by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, a former CIA employee, Ray McGovern, attempted to protest her speech about Democracy and Freedom of Speech and how the freedom to disseminate information helped the Egyptians rid themselves of a brutal dictator.  Continue reading “Is Free Speech Really Free?” →

Constitutional Law

Birthright Citizenship Was the Original Intent

-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger

Rep. Gary Miller (R-CA) claims that birthright citizenship “undermines the intention of the Fourteenth Amendment.” Arizona Rep. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills alleged that “if you go back to the original intent of the drafters … it was never intended to bestow citizenship upon aliens.” Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) trots out the old canard that the Citizenship Clause was drafted to “address slavery, not immigration.”

When one looks at the 1866 Senate debate regarding the 14th Amendment, the facts don’t support these claims.

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Constitutional Law, Religion

Giles County School Board Obeys Constitution

-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger

The school board in Giles County, VA, has decided to remove the Ten Commandments posters in all local schools. The Virginia ACLU and the Freedom From Religion Foundation had plaintiffs and threatened lawsuits that the school board would have almost surely lost. The school board decided it could better spend the estimated $300,000 cost of a lawsuit on instruction that wasn’t religious.

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Congress, Constitutional Law, Media, Politics, Society

Grappling . . . Grappling . . . I’ll Let You Know: Obama Remains Undecided on Gay Marriage

Some of us have raised objections for the last two years on President Obama’s conflicting positions on gay rights. Now, White House Spokesman Jay Carney was able to nail down concretely the President’s position on gay marriage: he is still “grappling” with it.
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Bizarre, Society, Torts

That’s Why They Call It Sue-Shi: Los Angeles Man Sues Over Denial of All-You-Can-Eat Sushi Bar

There is an interesting case in Los Angeles where David Martin found an all-you-can-eat offer at a Sushi restaurant a bit fishy . . . or perhaps not fishy enough. Martin went to the Studio City restaurant to take advantage of the all you can eat deal for $28. However, because he is a diabetic, he proceeded to eat the fish and leave the rice. That led Restaurant owner Jay Oh to cry foul and demand that he either eat the rice with the fish or pay a la carte prices. That led Martin to file suit.

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Criminal law, Politics, Society

Roger Ailes Accused of Encouraging Judith Regan To Lie To Federal Investigators

Filings in Judith Regan’s pending lawsuit have revealed the identity of the person whom she says encouraged her to lie to federal investigators about her affair with former New York police commissioner, Homeland Security nominee and subsequent convicted felon Bernard Kerick. She previously described the person as a “senior fox executive” but papers revealed that she was referring to Roger Ailes, the chairman of Fox News.

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Bizarre, Criminal law

Religiously Redneck: Florida Prisoners Lists Rednecks As His Religion on Booking Form

As Jeff Foxworthy might say, you know you’re a Redneck if you actually write down “Redneck” on your booking form under religion. That stand-up (and line-up) line properly goes to Joshua Lee Joehlin, who has become the first religiously Redneck inmate in Florida.
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Constitutional Law, Courts, Politics, Society

Jeff Cox Responds to Criticism in Mother Jones Article

After the posting this morning over the controversy involving former Indiana Deputy Attorney General Jeff Cox, I had an opportunity to discuss the allegations with him in detail. Cox makes an interesting free speech case over his treatment and later termination for comments that he made on Twitter and on his blog. I wanted to share some of those details and the concern over a termination based on a lawyer’s statements in his private life.
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Bizarre, Constitutional Law, Religion, Society

Tennessee Legislators Move To Make Adherence to Sharia Law a Felony

State Sen. Bill Ketron, R-Murfreesboro, and state Rep. Judd Matheny, R-Tullahoma, have introduced a bill that would make it a felony to adhere to Sharia law in the state of Tennessee — punishable by 15 years in jail. The facially unconstitutional law would make Tennessee the leading state in the Union in the denial of freedom of religion.

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Bizarre, Constitutional Law, Politics, Society

A Little Touch of Tripoli? Indiana Deputy Attorney General Calls For Use of Live Fire Against Protesters In Wisconsin

Indiana Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey Cox has reportedly been fired after Mother Jones Magazine identified him as the source of a tweet denouncing liberals and calling for the use of live ammunition against teacher protesters in Wisconsin.

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Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Politics, Society

Obama Administration Refuses To Defend The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)

For two years, some of us have been criticizing President Obama for his Administration’s opposition to same-sex marriage and the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy in federal courts. The Justice Department has now announced that it has decided to reverse its position and refuse to further defend the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).

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Constitutional Law, Courts, Lawyering, Society

Delaware Supreme Court Overturns Ruling That Movie Announcement to Turn Off Cellphones Was Racist

There is an interesting case out of Delaware where the Supreme Court overturned a decision by the state Human Relations Commission that the manager of a Dover cinema, David Stewart, was racist for asking people in a largely black movie audience to turn off their cellphones and refrain from talking during the movie. What is most interesting is the individual who appears to have helped organize the complaint to the Human Relations Commission. The decision also overturned the $80,000 fine against the Carmike 14 Theater. The case is Boggerty v. Stewart, 2011 Del. LEXIS 108 (Feb. 17, 2011)
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