MedWorm provides a medical RSS filtering service. Over 6000 RSS medical sources are combined and output via different filters. This feed contains the latest medical blog items that have been tagged with 'amendment'. Sat, 03 Sep 2011 02:06:23 +0100 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5169521&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FfipML0MCLcM%2F By David RittgersRight to Record, a website devoted to the legal aspects of recording police officers, has the scoop. A panel of the First Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the right of citizens to openly record police officers. Gathering information about government officials in a form that can readily be disseminated to others serves a cardinal First Amendment interest in protecting and promoting “the free discussion of governmental affairs.” Moreover, as the Court has noted, “[f]reedom of expression has particular significance with respect to government because ‘[i]t is here that the state has a special incentive to repress opposition and often wields a more effective power of suppression.’” This is particularly true of law enforcement officials, who are granted substantial ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5169521 Sat, 27 Aug 2011 15:21:17 +0100 5169521 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5125906&cid=t_268072_133_f&fid=35452&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.graphictruth.com%2F2011%2F08%2Fnymwars-content-is-king-and-king-is.html My patience has ended. I'm just about to pull the pin on Google+ so that I can take some time and think about my reliance on other Google services. The entire debate tells me that for whatever reason, google as a corporation has jumped the shark and I do not feel comfortable investing my social capital in it.And if that social capital were not valuable, they would not be locked in a death match with Facebook over data-mining futures, and governments would not be petitioning them for their databases.Oddly, my decision is not based on whether I have anything to hide. I have always made the point of never putting anything on the Internet that could put me at risk, and I make a point of distancing myself from those who do."Content is King, and King is Content." The reality of the Internet... Graphictruth blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5125906 Sat, 13 Aug 2011 00:19:00 +0100 5125906 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5050528&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FA2jMgd6qwKA%2F Three years after the Supreme Court’s  landmark Heller ruling, which declared Washington, D.C.’s gun control laws unconstitutional, city officials keep fighting.  Under pressure from another lawsuit concerning a de facto ban, the city says that guns may now be purchased at the police station.  No details yet on whether residents will have to change into orange jump suits and wait in the holding cells while the police process the paperwork. More here. Guns in D.C. is a post from Cato @ Liberty - Cato Institute Blog (Source: Cato-at-liberty) Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5050528 Wed, 20 Jul 2011 18:45:36 +0100 5050528 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4984426&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Fil0p9jN4s5w%2F This article is still being edited — it won’t appear in the John Marshall Law Review till the fall – so comments are welcome.  Thanks to Eugene Volokh for making suggestions on an earlier version. Update: Larry Solum has “recommended” our article on the Legal Theory Blog.  Thanks! So What If Corporations Aren’t People? is a post from Cato @ Liberty - Cato Institute Blog (Source: Cato-at-liberty) Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4984426 Wed, 29 Jun 2011 14:19:41 +0100 4984426 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4975827&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Ffsa2Wum2Vxs%2F By Julian SanchezI note that I’m not hearing many critics of Citizens United decrying yesterday’s very welcome Supreme Court ruling, in which the majority held unconstitutional a California statute prohibiting the sale or rental of violent video games to minors. Perhaps that’s just because they’re concerned with corporate influence on elections as a policy matter, and not so much about Grand Theft Auto, but as a matter of First Amendment interpretation, it seems as though the elements that supposedly made Citizens United a travesty are present here. As the conservative Justice Alito notes in dissent, for example, the statute at issue here does not prohibit anyone from creating, possessing, freely loaning, or playing violent video games: It regulates only their renta... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4975827 Tue, 28 Jun 2011 16:39:05 +0100 4975827 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4975836&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FSPKxQcM8ajk%2F By Ilya ShapiroWith its last opinion on the last day of the term, the Supreme Court brought things back to constitutional basics by striking down a state law that punished political speech. Whatever the motivations behind Arizona’s so-called Clean Elections Act, giving a publicly funded candidate more taxpayer-provided money every time his privately funded opponent—or his supporters—have “spoken too much” clearly chills speech. In elections, where there is no effective speech without spending money, matching funds provisions triggered by speech fail First Amendment scrutiny. And this result should’ve been obvious to the entire Court, not just a five-justice majority, in the wake of the Davis v. FEC “Millionaires’ Amendment” case from 2008. Davis struck down the part of Mc... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4975836 Mon, 27 Jun 2011 16:54:47 +0100 4975836 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4975839&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FjqIiiUmeSBM%2F By David BoazSince New York passed a law extending marriage to same-sex couples, Republican presidential candidates have been mostly silent. But not Rep. Michele Bachmann, who has had a long and strong interest in gay rights issues. In an interview on Fox News Sunday she endorsed both New York’s Tenth Amendment right to make marriage law and the federal government’s right to override such laws with a constitutional amendment, confusing host Chris Wallace: WALLACE: You are a strong opponent of same-marriage. What do you think of the law that was just passed in New York state—making it the biggest state to recognize same-sex marriage? BACHMANN: Well, I believe that marriage is between a man and a woman. And I also believe—in Minnesota, for instance, this year, the legislature... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4975839 Mon, 27 Jun 2011 15:50:06 +0100 4975839 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4975840&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FobqD34Uv_fw%2F By Ilya ShapiroThe Supreme Court scored an epic win for the First Amendment in striking down California’s prohibition on selling violent videogames to minors. The law was both overly broad—sweeping in a wide variety of games based on no objective standard and no age-based gradations—and underinclusive—with no restrictions on other types of media. With a few strictly drawn exceptions for historically unprotected speech—obscenity, incitement, fighting words—government lacks the power to restrict expression simply because of its content. And a legislature cannot create new types of unprotected speech simply by weighing its purported social costs against its alleged value. “Reading Dante is unquestionably more cultured and intellectually edifying than playing Mortal Kombat,” Ju... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4975840 Mon, 27 Jun 2011 15:28:28 +0100 4975840 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4975845&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FH4gEql8vpE8%2F By Ilya ShapiroIn an important but little-noted First Amendment case decided Thursday, Sorrell v. IMS Health Inc., the Supreme Court correctly invalidated a particular regulation of commercial speech but unfortunately left intact the general doctrine that distinguishes and privileges noncommercial speech.  Justice Kennedy authored the 6-3 decision (joined not just by the “conservatives” but also Justice Sotomayor) that struck down a Vermont law prohibiting the sale of information about doctors’ prescription histories as making viewpoint-based speech restrictions in violation of the First Amendment.  In so ruling, the Court effectively affirmed a Second Circuit decision (involving a similar Connecticut law) I discussed previously.  Cato filed amicus briefs in both the Second Circui... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4975845 Mon, 27 Jun 2011 13:01:36 +0100 4975845 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4952799&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FczRzl1vXuRE%2F By Ilya ShapiroIn 1920, the Supreme Court decided an obscure case concerning the implementation of a treaty between the United States and Canada regarding migratory birds. Tucked into Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes’s five-page decision in Missouri v. Holland was a sentence that expressed a truly startling idea: that Congress can transcend its enumerated powers via its power to implement treaties. That is, although Congress has no enumerated power to pass, say, general criminal laws, if a ratified treaty with France demands that we pass such laws, then Congress’s power expands to allow for such legislation. Thus, foreign nations and the executive branch are given the power to change, almost at will, one of the most hotly debated and carefully crafted sections of the Constitution,... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4952799 Mon, 20 Jun 2011 20:35:51 +0100 4952799 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4934111&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FQswTor8YJUA%2F By Roger PilonThe liberties we Americans enjoy were hard-won over the centuries. Today we mark a major event in that struggle, the day in 1215 when English barons presented King John with a written list of rights they demanded he recognize. Known ultimately as Magna Carta, the Great Charter, it was a compact between the barons and their king, a political effort by subjects to secure their liberty by placing their ruler under the rule of law, thus limiting arbitrary power. The charter has gone through several iterations, but it drew in part from the common law rights, especially rights of property, that judges in the king’s courts had been finding from reason and custom as they decided controversies the king’s subjects brought before them. What Magna Carta did was bring those same right... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4934111 Wed, 15 Jun 2011 14:05:12 +0100 4934111 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4911455&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FKqSbv2XRftU%2F By Caleb O. Brown On June 12, 1967, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down bans on interracial marriage in more than a dozen states in the case of Loving v. Virginia. Today, the highest court in the United States may soon take on the issue of marriage equality for gay and lesbian relationships. Attorneys David Boies and Theodore B. Olson are hoping the case of Perry v. Schwarzenegger will further establish marriage as a fundamental right of citizenship. Also featured are John Podesta, President of the Center for American Progress, Cato Institute Chairman Robert A. Levy and Cato Executive Vice President David Boaz. Watch the full event from which many clips were pulled here and Robert A. Levy’s presentation here. The Constitutional Case for Marriage Equality is a post from Cato @ Liberty ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4911455 Wed, 08 Jun 2011 12:52:04 +0100 4911455 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4902405&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FI8niYC-xAnE%2F By Jim HarperIt might be tempting to laugh at France’s ban on words like “Facebook” and Twitter” in the media. France’s Conseil Supérieur de l’Audiovisuel recently ruled that specific references to these sites (in stories not about them) would violate a 1992 law banning “secret” advertising. The council was created in 1989 to ensure fairness in French audiovisual communications, such as in allocation of television time to political candidates, and to protect children from some types of programming. Sure, laugh at the French. But not for too long. The United States has similarly busy-bodied regulators, who, for example, have primly regulated such advertising themselves. American regulators carefully oversee non-secret advertising, too. Our govern... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4902405 Mon, 06 Jun 2011 16:35:53 +0100 4902405 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4902692&cid=t_268072_150_f&fid=35777&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPharmalot%2F%7E3%2F-n8abnKML2w%2F In a recent memo to clients, former US Attorney and healthcare fraud prosecutor Michael Loucks argues that qui tam, or whistleblower lawsuits should be unsealed after 60 days. Why? The average suit remains under seal for about 13 months which, he maintains, is unfair to drug and device makers that remain unaware of the allegations. “Very few companies have sought to force the government at an early stage to disclose the False Claims Act suit. Thus, companies have defended investigations without the benefit of the discovery and litigation rights accorded litigants in federal civil suits and without the ability to correct any misconduct identified in the (False Claims Act) complaint, and have typically allowed the matter to be resolved on the government’s timetable,” he writes,... Pharmalot blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4902692 Mon, 06 Jun 2011 16:20:07 +0100 4902692 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4893395&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FViJgaSkD9x8%2F By George Scoville “PBS used to ask, ‘If not PBS, then who?’ The answer now is: HBO, Bravo, Discovery, History, History International, Science, Planet Green, Sundance, Military, C-SPAN 1/2/3 and many more.” “The fiscal problem that is destroying U.S. economic confidence is not the fiscal balance, however. It is the level of government expenditures relative to GDP.” “The Pentagon’s first cyber security strategy… builds on national hysteria about threats to cybersecurity, the latest bogeyman to justify our bloated national security state.” “How ‘secure’ do our homes remain if police, armed with no warrant, can pound on doors at will and, on hearing sounds indicative of things moving, forcibly enter and search for evide... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4893395 Fri, 03 Jun 2011 16:07:34 +0100 4893395 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4862506&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FkOrWUGoBEMU%2F By Julian SanchezBack in February, Democratic leader Harry Reid promised fellow senator Rand Paul that—after years of kicking the can down the road—there would be at least a week reserved for full and open debate over three controversial provisions of the Patriot Act slated to expire this weekend, with an opportunity to propose reforms and offer amendments to any reauthorization bill.  And since, as we know, politicians always keep their promises, we can look forward to a robust and enlightening discussion of how to modify the Patriot Act to better safeguard civil liberties without sacrificing our counterterror capabilities. Ha! No, I’m joking, of course. Having already cut the legs out from under his own party’s reformers by making a deal with GOP leaders for a four-year ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4862506 Wed, 25 May 2011 18:41:19 +0100 4862506 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4841431&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FmJzoGRuj-4U%2F By John SamplesSteve Simpson and Paul Sherman of the Institute for Justice have written an excellent short essay about Stephen Colbert’s effort to undermine the Citizens United decision. But the joke is on Colbert: Campaign-finance laws are so complicated that few can navigate them successfully and speak during elections—which is what the First Amendment is supposed to protect. As the Supreme Court noted in Citizens United, federal laws have created “71 distinct entities” that “are subject to different rules for 33 different types of political speech.” The FEC has adopted 568 pages of regulations and thousands of pages of explanations and opinions on what the laws mean. “Legalese” doesn’t begin to describe this mess. So what is someone who... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4841431 Thu, 19 May 2011 18:33:00 +0100 4841431 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4841433&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FmYoiRBgTDyI%2F By George Scoville “Consistent bets for higher oil prices in futures markets have not been particularly lucrative.” “The vast, swaying bulk of America’s military has absolutely nothing to do with effectively combating terrorism—including the large land armies that we deploy to Muslim countries in efforts to destroy and then reconstitute their states.” “‘Poking and prodding’ is what good government does to perfect strangers. And that’s what the Obama administration has been doing, with unusual zeal, for the past 2 1/2 years.” The Cato 2011 State Legislative Guide is designed to help state policymakers free their constituents from the burden of overextended government and addresses unfunded pension liabilities, ballooning Medicaid enr... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4841433 Thu, 19 May 2011 14:29:22 +0100 4841433 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4841581&cid=t_268072_109_f&fid=34750&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpsychcentral.com%2Fblog%2Farchives%2F2011%2F05%2F19%2Fmuzzling-doctors-who-ask-questions-about-gun-safety%2F Imagine that your 16-year-old daughter has been bullied mercilessly in school, but hasn’t talked to you about it, or spoken about her suicidal impulses. One day, she is brought by ambulance to your local hospital emergency room, having made superficial cuts on her arms while in school. The emergency room physician tries to call you at work, but your cell phone isn’t picking up. The doctor begins her evaluation of your daughter, including an assessment of all relevant risk factors for suicide. Now imagine that the doctor believes she is forbidden by law from asking your daughter whether there are guns in your home — despite the fact that firearms in the home markedly increase the risk of gun-related suicide.1 You needn’t use much imagination. In Florida, Gov. Rick Scott is expec... World of Psychology blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4841581 Thu, 19 May 2011 10:38:43 +0100 4841581 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4820820&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FSjfmZ01Qsro%2F By Jim HarperIn 1913, the Seventeenth Amendment cut an important tie in the Constitution between state legislatures and the Congress. In the original Constitution, states were empowered to choose the senators who would represent them in Congress. The result? Senators had an allegiance to the state government as much as the people of the state they represented. Why does this matter? Well, today—with direct, popular election of senators—there isn’t much of anyone looking after state legislatures in Congress. Accordingly, the federal government continually tries to turn states into administrative outposts of the federal government rather than respecting them as the independent political powers they’re supposed to be. In program after program, remote federal officials s... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4820820 Fri, 13 May 2011 14:40:11 +0100 4820820 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4813258&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FBZvbCdFqdd0%2F By Jim HarperSenator Chuck Schumer rounds out a trifecta of bloggable moments from the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law’s hearing this morning. Ignoring the subject of the “mobile privacy” hearing, Schumer queried the witnesses from both Google and Apple on whether they will accede to his demand that they reject certain “apps” on Android phones and iPhones. The applications Senator Schumer dislikes alert people on their mobile phones to the locations of DUI checkpoints. Senator Schumer says these apps “allow drunk drivers to evade police checkpoints,” but that statement fails to include other parties who might rightly wish to avoid police checkpoints—such as law-abiding citizens who wish to live free in this count... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4813258 Tue, 10 May 2011 19:23:55 +0100 4813258 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4758737&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FPvSlV8yRWlM%2F By Ilya ShapiroLast month, I described an unfortunate court ruling that let stand a Texas law designed to protect that state’s in-state liquor retailers from out-of-state competition, a holding that disregarded recent high-court precedent.  This built on a podcast I had recorded about a year ago about the relationship between state alcohol regulation under the Twenty-First Amendment (which ended Prohibition) and the Commerce Clause. As the Wall Street Journal describes today: The federal government and states have been in a tug-of-war over alcohol regulation since the 21st Amendment passed in 1933. That amendment gave states the right to decide whether to go wet or stay dry. But the Supreme Court in 2005 came down decisively in favor of the feds in Granholm v. Heald. The Court st... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4758737 Wed, 27 Apr 2011 16:13:53 +0100 4758737 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4747882&cid=t_268072_150_f&fid=35777&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPharmalot%2F%7E3%2F9c4NOuPTQQ8%2F The US Supreme Court tomorrow will review a highly controversial issue - the constitutionality of a Vermont law that restricts the sale of prescription drug info identifying prescribers and patients for commercial marketing purposes. The practice is known in the pharma world as data mining and has been building for some two decades ever since data was gathered by market research firms, but has since sparked heated arguments over free speech, health care costs and information privacy. The information at issue includes the name of a prescribing physician, patient age and sex, the type and strength of each drug prescribed, and the date and location of prescription. Pharmacies, of course, are required by law to collect and maintain data about each prescription that is filled, and are allowed c... Pharmalot blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4747882 Mon, 25 Apr 2011 16:16:39 +0100 4747882 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4747601&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FAJ9IzcCc0_8%2F By Ilya ShapiroLast month, I wrote about a major eminent domain struggle in National City, California.  City officials had decided to declare almost seven hundred properties blighted even before conducting any sort of blight study, which eventually turned out to be riddled with errors.  At the center of the fight is a private, nonprofit boxing gym that has helped keep hundreds of at-risk kids in school and off the streets.  The city wanted to bulldoze the center so a wealthy developer can build luxury condos and stores.  In 2007, the Institute for Justice teamed up with the gym and filed suit to stop the city from taking the property, and here’s video about their legal fight: Four years later, IJ scored a knockout blow against eminent domain abuse:  Last Thursday, the Superi... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4747601 Mon, 25 Apr 2011 12:43:51 +0100 4747601 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4747603&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FzgxhrmmdCgg%2F By Ilya ShapiroLately I seem to have been blogging — and filing briefs – a fair bit on campus First Amendment issues, regarding both students and professors.  The threats to free speech and academic freedom stretch far beyond the halls of Widener Universty and concern more than just the rules of political correctness. This month, UCLA’s James Enstrom (34 years a professor) is fighting his dismissal from UCLA for submitting a paper to a regulatory board that denied that diesel particulates cause 2,000 premature deaths in California per year.  The scientific literature published subsequent to his initial findings support his thesis and the conclusions his work refuted turned out to be written by a fraud who received his Ph.D. from a diploma mill.  In short, he was f... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4747603 Mon, 25 Apr 2011 12:36:50 +0100 4747603 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4734050&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FDUdh-TINSGs%2F By Ilya ShapiroAs I wrote last week, a decade ago in Palazzolo v. Rhode Island, the Supreme Court rejected the idea that those who buy property subject to burdensome regulations lose the right the seller otherwise has to challenge those regulations.  The Court ruled that the Takings Clause does not have an “expiration date.”  Sadly, not all government authorities or courts took Palazzolo to heart, and now we have a second such case meriting Cato’s involvement in the span of a week. In 2000, after the EPA issued a Record of Decision concerning limiting access to a “slough” (a narrow strip of navigable water) on its Superfund National Priorities List, CRV Enterprises began negotiations to buy a parcel of land next to the slough across from a site once occupie... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4734050 Thu, 21 Apr 2011 12:48:33 +0100 4734050 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4723789&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FuQHo05x7vAc%2F By Ilya ShapiroEveryone knows that students have First Amendment rights, that the Constitution proverbially doesn’t stop at the schoolhouse door.  Yet students in the Plano Independent School District in Texas (against whose speech code Cato previously filed a brief) were prohibited from handing out pencils with messages such as “Jesus is the reason for the season” and “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so,” or sending holiday cards to retirement homes that said “Merry Christmas.” The students, through their parents, sued the district on First Amendment grounds, and were successful through a Fifth Circuit panel ruling that “qualified immunity,” a doctrine that prevents government officials from being held personally l... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4723789 Mon, 18 Apr 2011 14:44:27 +0100 4723789 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4719888&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FY52cONji5A8%2F By Ilya ShapiroJust a decade ago in Palazzolo v. Rhode Island, the Supreme Court rejected the idea that those who buy property subject to burdensome regulations lose the right the seller otherwise has to challenge those regulations. The Court ruled that the Takings Clause does not have an “expiration date.” Sadly, not all government authorities or courts took Palazzolo to heart. In 1997, Daniel and Susan Guggenheim bought a mobile home park that, at the time of purchase, was in “unincorporated territory” of Santa Barbara County, California. The Guggenheims did not challenge the county’s 1979 rent control ordinance but instead challenged the 2002 adoption of that ordinance by the City of Goleta when the city incorporated the Guggenheims’ land. The Ninth C... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4719888 Fri, 15 Apr 2011 12:10:50 +0100 4719888 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4709190&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Fw_3gECG0FYA%2F By John SamplesOver the next few years, most arguments about campaign finance regulation will be about extending mandated disclosure to some of the independent spending freed up by the Citizens United decision. Writing in the Wall Street Journal, James L. Huffman offers a unique perspective on mandated disclosure: he was a candidate for the U.S. Senate last year. He argues that mandated disclosure means incumbents know who funded the campaigns of their challengers.  Incumbents do not have to actually threaten anyone; disclosure plus circumstances means a cautious businessperson will stay clear of electoral participation. Huffman also claims that some people who might have contributed to his campaign heard from associates of his opponent who said contributing to Huffman might be a bad idea... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4709190 Wed, 13 Apr 2011 15:32:20 +0100 4709190 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4709194&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FuJSybkJzWsw%2F By Jim HarperEvery lover of liberty and the Constitution should be offended by the moniker “Privacy Bill of Rights” appended to regulatory legislation Senators John Kerry (D-MA) and John McCain (R-AZ) introduced yesterday. As C|Net’s Declan McCullagh points out, the legislation exempts the federal government and law enforcement: [T]he measure applies only to companies and some nonprofit groups, not to the federal, state, and local police agencies that have adopted high-tech surveillance technologies including cell phone tracking, GPS bugs, and requests to Internet companies for users’ personal information–in many cases without obtaining a search warrant from a judge. The real “Privacy Bill of Rights” is in the Bill of Rights. It’s the Fourth ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4709194 Wed, 13 Apr 2011 13:09:53 +0100 4709194 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4704629&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FSLtAhRW5GrY%2F By Ilya ShapiroFew could imagine a more troubling free speech and due process case than that of Hayden Barnes.  Barnes, a student at Valdosta State University in Georgia, peacefully protested the planned construction of a $30 million campus parking garage that was the pet project of university president Ronald Zaccari.  A “personally embarrassed” Zaccari did not take kindly to that criticism and endeavored to retaliate against Barnes — ignoring longstanding legal precedent, the Valdosta State University Student Handbook (a legally binding contract), and the counsel of fellow administrators.  Zaccari even ordered staff to look into Barnes’s academic records, his medical history, his religion, and his registration with the VSU Access Office! The district court found th... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4704629 Tue, 12 Apr 2011 12:54:06 +0100 4704629 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4684265&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FlMc1JdHkAwQ%2F By Jim HarperSan Francisco's Entertainment Commission will soon be considering a jaw-dropping attack on privacy and free assembly. Here are some of the rules the Commission may adopt for any gathering of people expected to reach 100 or more: 3. All occupants of the premises shall be ID Scanned (including patrons, promoters, and performers, etc.). ID scanning data shall be maintained on a data storage system for no less than 15 days and shall be made available to local law enforcement upon request. 4. High visibility cameras shall be located at each entrance and exit point of the premises. Said cameras shall maintain a recorded data base for no less than fifteen (15 days) and made available to local law enforcement upon request. Would you recognize a police state if you lived in one? How ab... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4684265 Wed, 06 Apr 2011 23:42:28 +0100 4684265 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4684267&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Fsk7oM6IAdb0%2F By Julian SanchezI've written before about the "Mosaic Theory" some courts have recently employed to conclude that certain forms of government surveillance may trigger Fourth Amendment protection in the aggregate, even if the surveillance can be broken down into components that don't fall under the traditional definition of a Fourth Amendment "search." This has been applied specifically to high-tech forms of location tracking, where several judges have concluded that a person may have a privacy interest in the totality of their public movements over a long period of time, even though observing a person at any particular public place in a specific instance is not an intrusion on privacy. I've explained in that previous post why I find this reasoning compelling. Legal scholar Orin Kerr, howe... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4684267 Wed, 06 Apr 2011 18:56:27 +0100 4684267 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4676754&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FvaQFtvT5V3c%2F By Ilya ShapiroAs Andrew and Adam have already explained, today’s decision in ACSTO v. Winn, though grounded in the technical legal doctrine of “standing,” is a big win for school choice and state flexibility in education reform.  Even more importantly, it makes clear that there is a difference between tax credits and government spending; to find that tax money was used for unconstitutional ends here would have assumed that all income is government property until the state allows taxpayers to keep a portion of it.  That is not, to put it mildly, how we think of private property. Of course, even had the Court found that Arizona’s scholarship scheme involved the use of state funds, the program would have been insulated from Establishment Clause challenge because it offered the “g... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4676754 Mon, 04 Apr 2011 19:18:53 +0100 4676754 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4653315&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FFQQJv3QGBnk%2F By Ilya ShapiroYesterday the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the Arizona matching-public-campaign-funding case, McComish v. Bennett, spearheaded by our friends at the Goldwater Institute and the Institute for Justice. Here's the background:  In 1998, after years of scandals ranging from governors being indicted to legislators taking bribes, Arizona passed the Citizens Clean Elections Act. This law was intended to “clean up” state politics by creating a system for publicly funding campaigns.  Participation in the public funding is not mandatory, however, and those who do not participate are subject to rules that match their “excess” private funds with disbursals to their opponent from the public fund. In short, if a privately funded candidate spends more than his publicly f... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4653315 Tue, 29 Mar 2011 14:26:45 +0100 4653315 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4653605&cid=t_268072_150_f&fid=35777&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPharmalot%2F%7E3%2Figh8X5xxjNM%2F A provision of the False Claims Act that prevents whistleblower lawsuits from being unsealed does not violate the First Amendment and, therefore, the public’s right to access the documents, a federal appeals court has ruled. In a 2-to-1 vote, the US Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit upheld an earlier decision that shot down the argument whistleblower lawsuits should be unsealed after a 60-day period because this would allow the public to learn as soon as possible about corporate wrongdoing. The rationale for requiring these lawsuits to remain sealed for at least 60 days is to allow the feds, who are permitted to seek extensions beyond that initial period, to investigate the allegations. During the seal period, the whistleblower is not supposed to discuss the suit or its contents. ... Pharmalot blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4653605 Tue, 29 Mar 2011 11:55:34 +0100 4653605 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4642576&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FC313665Ucqo%2F By Ilya ShapiroVermont passed a law prohibiting the exchange of a variety of socially important information. Most notably, the law outlaws the transfer of doctors' prescription history to facilitate drug companies' one-on-one marketing — a practice known as "detailing" — because it believes detailing drives up brand-name drug sales and, in turn, health care costs. The state knew that the First Amendment prevented it from banning detailing itself, so it made the practice more difficult indirectly. Yet data collection and transfer are protected speech — think academic research, or the phone book — and government efforts to regulate this type of speech also runs afoul of the First Amendment. See, e.g., Solveig Singleton, Cato Policy Analysis No. 295, "Privacy as Censorship: A Skeptica... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4642576 Mon, 28 Mar 2011 11:50:56 +0100 4642576 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4642577&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FDUAjXcfKZ1Y%2F By Daniel J. MitchellI posted recently at International Liberty about the stunning political incompetence of Republican Senators, who reportedly are willing to give Obama an increase in the debt limit in exchange for a vote (yes, just a vote) on a balanced budget amendment. As I explained, there is no way they can get the necessary two-thirds support to approve an amendment, so why trade a meaningless and symbolic vote on a BBA for meaningful and real approval of more borrowing authority for Obama? My analogy yesterday was that this was like trading an all-star baseball player for a utility infielder in the minor leagues. I did acknowledge that forcing a vote on a BBA was a worthwhile endeavor, but said that the GOP has that power anyhow, so why trade away something valuable to get somethi... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4642577 Sun, 27 Mar 2011 19:29:38 +0100 4642577 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4636413&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F1dImHb3owjo%2F By Gene HealyRecently, I've been blogging over at the Washington Examiner's lively "Beltway Confidential" site, mostly on the subject of congressional war powers and President Obama's Libyan adventure. Today's post, "Obama Makes 'Kinetic Military Action' on the English Language" has a little fun with the administration's wordgames and the legal rationales behind them. Other posts and a column on the subject are here, here, and here. Today also brings a pair of columns--in the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post, respectively--from conservative luminaries defending the notion that Obama has the constitutional power to bomb Libya without congressional authorization. Yoo, the legal architect of George W. Bush's Terror Presidency, chides Tea Party Republicans like Jason Chaffetz of Uta... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4636413 Sat, 26 Mar 2011 00:31:45 +0100 4636413 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4605810&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FOpTZuC8QPxk%2F By Ilya ShapiroThis is a big week for private property rights.  Two epic eminent domain struggles are playing out on opposite sides of the country.  First, National City, California, is ground zero for eminent domain abuse.  City officials declared several hundred properties blighted even before conducting a blight study that was riddled with problems. The city wants to seize and bulldoze a youth community center (CYAC) that has transformed the lives of hundreds of low-income kids, so a wealthy developer can build high-rise luxury condos: CYAC has numerous volunteers, including local law enforcement officers, providing free mentoring in boxing as well as academics.  The gym is famous for getting kids off the street and back into school.  As Rick Reilly explained in a feature in Sport... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4605810 Thu, 17 Mar 2011 18:35:22 +0100 4605810 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4544947&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FRmhvzKbuPbs%2F By Ilya ShapiroRecently, activist and filmmaker Annie Leonard released a video titled "The Story of Citizens United v. FEC," an eight-and-a-half-minute criticism of last year’s Supreme Court case of the same name. Well, sort of. Competitive Enterprise Institute’s Lee Doren made his own video critique in response to Ms. Leonard’s offering, and points out quite clearly that Ms. Leonard doesn’t really deal with any actual constitutional problems in her position—essentially ignoring the decision and its rationale—and instead spends most of her time corporation bashing. Lee was kind enough to cite, inter alia, a blogpost I wrote last year about what “corporate personhood” does and does not mean. If Ms. Leonard was going to ignore the decision, it may have at least served her wel... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4544947 Thu, 03 Mar 2011 17:40:11 +0100 4544947 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4540556&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F7UEHXeeBcRY%2F By Roger PilonFreedom requires tolerance. That principle will be put to the test today as Americans respond to the Supreme Court decision in Snyder v. Phelps. As Ilya Shapiro first noted below, Chief Justice John Roberts, writing for the Court, with a thoughtful dissent by Justice Samuel Alito, upheld the right of Rev. Fred Phelps and members of the Westboro Baptist Church to picket at military funerals, carrying signs that read “Thank God for Dead Soldiers,” “Fags Doom Nations,” “America is Doomed,” “Priests Rape Boys,” and “You’re Going to Hell.” It is a mark of our liberty that in most cases we defend even the most despicable speech. And in that we stand in stark contrast to much of the world. In truth, we should also defend most (but not all) despicable actions ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4540556 Wed, 02 Mar 2011 17:24:00 +0100 4540556 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4540558&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F2UpjKQF_6Lk%2F By Ilya ShapiroAs I predicted after oral argument last October, today the Court ruled 8-1 (Alito dissenting) in favor of free speech at the expense of giving a legal victory to a repugnant group.  While the Westboro Baptist Church hates what they view as both the sinner and the sin, the Court properly rebuked the Phelpses while correctly expressing utmost devotion to their right to propagate their wayward message. Stepping aside from the emotions and bizarre facts, this case implicates all sorts of legal issues aside from the First Amendment.  A private cemetery can and should remove unwanted visitors for trespassing — but the Phelpses didn’t enter the cemetery.  A town can pass ordinances restricting the time, place, and manner of protests — but the Phelpses stayed within all ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4540558 Wed, 02 Mar 2011 16:55:08 +0100 4540558 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4522087&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F_HJ3m2AeitY%2F This report provides crucial practical drafting guidance for exercising the states’ constitutional authority. In essence, it recommends that state legislators draft their Article V applications and delegate commissions with an eye to targeting specific subject matters, while still giving state delegates a meaningful level of deliberative independence to ensure that the amendments convention can serve its consensus-building and problem-solving purpose. The key is to regard an amendments convention as a modern-day “task force”—a representative body that is limited to a specific agenda but expected to exercise judgment on accomplishing that agenda. For the previous two papers, and other materials regarding amendment conventions, see Goldwater's invaluable Artivle V resource page. How ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4522087 Fri, 25 Feb 2011 19:09:06 +0100 4522087 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4495175&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F998-bwSthvo%2F This article will explain the role stare decisis played in Citizens United and build on the Chief Justice’s concurrence to describe the current state of the doctrine. Thanks to Larry Solum for featuring us on his Legal Theory Blog. When Should Courts Overturn Precedent? is a post from Cato @ Liberty - Cato Institute Blog (Source: Cato-at-liberty) Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4495175 Fri, 18 Feb 2011 22:41:19 +0100 4495175 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4495178&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FxIIWRsNaR1A%2F By David BoazBill Monroe, who was moderator for NBC's Meet the Press for about 10 years, has died at 90. The Washington Post does a fine job with his long career, from his pro-civil-rights journalism in Lousiana in the 1950s to his years with NBC and Meet the Press.   I want to draw attention to his longtime advocacy of extending the First Amendment to broadcasting. Actually, I'm sure he thought that the First Amendment did cover all forms of the news media — but he knew that Congress and the courts didn't see it that way, so he wanted an explicit amendment to make that clear. Because his articles on this topic were published in the pre-Internet Dark Ages (yes, children, there are great ideas not online), I can't link to any of them.  He spoke at the Cato Institute in 1984 on the t... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4495178 Fri, 18 Feb 2011 18:46:15 +0100 4495178 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4482743&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FsSzbK8YDm8U%2F By John SamplesSenator Rand Paul is moving beyond economic issues. His critique of the Patriot Act may be found here. Sen. Paul lauds James Otis, Jr, the most important opponent of the writs of assistance imposed by the British prior to the American Revolution.  By invoking the name of this great patriot, Sen. Paul is trying to recall for Americans the original meaning of our Revolution and Constitution. He is practicing a politics of the original public meaning of America. An astonishing performance. Sen. Paul and the Writs of Assistance is a post from Cato @ Liberty - Cato Institute Blog (Source: Cato-at-liberty) Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4482743 Tue, 15 Feb 2011 18:46:27 +0100 4482743 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4464483&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F8TFeNGGT_zw%2F By Michael F. CannonIt's good news for residents of Washington, D.C., that Wal-Mart is planning on opening four stores in the District. Yet Washington Post columnist Robert McCartney reports today on one curious source of opposition: "There'll probably be a lot of shoplifting going on. They'll need a lot of security," Terriea Sutton, 35, said. Brenda Speaks, a Ward 4 ANC commissioner, actually urged blocking construction of the planned store in her ward at Georgia and Missouri avenues NW partly because of that risk. Addressing a small, anti-Wal-Mart rally at City Hall on Monday, Speaks said young people would get criminal records when they couldn't resist the temptation to steal. Of course, that's a rationale for banning all stores, not just Wal-Mart. Perhaps we should isolate these you... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4464483 Fri, 11 Feb 2011 13:29:50 +0100 4464483 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4455251&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FR6X94r2j9hw%2F By Julian SanchezFirst, the good news: Last night, civil libertarians had a rare excuse to pop champagne when an effort to fast-track a one-year reauthorization of three controversial Patriot Act provisions--set to expire at the end of the month--failed in the House of Representatives. As Slate's Dave Weigel notes, the vote had been seen as such a sure thing that Politico headlined its story on the pending vote "Congress set to pass Patriot Act extension." Around this time last year, a similar extension won House approval by a lopsided 315-97 vote. Now the reality check: The large majority of representatives also voted for reauthorization last night: 277 for, 148 against. The vote failed only because GOP leadership had sought to ram the bill through under a "suspension of the rules"--a str... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4455251 Wed, 09 Feb 2011 20:07:00 +0100 4455251 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4405755&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F1iNgb5-si-Q%2F By Jim HarperThis afternoon I briefly attended a meeting of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority board to comment on the question whether there should be random bag searches in the D.C. area’s subway system. A variety of other liberty loving D.C.-area residents spoke up against bag searches, noting the weakness of the practice in terms of security, the privacy consequences, and the insult to Metro riders in treating all as suspects. The chairman of the Riders Advisory Council asked that the program be suspended. Along with restating the security weakness of random bag searches—it simply transfers risk from one station to another, from the subway to busses, or from the Metro system to other infrastructure—I emphasized the strategic consequences of the policy:... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4405755 Thu, 27 Jan 2011 21:43:57 +0100 4405755 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4382748&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FoF7XF-mu_R0%2F By Ilya ShapiroAs Caleb noted earlier, today marks the one-year anniversary of Citizens United, a case I first thought ”just” concerned some weird regulation of pay-per-view movies, but turned out to be about asserted government power to ban political speech — including books and TV commercials — simply because the speaker was not one individual but a group (in corporate or or other associational form).  See also this op-ed by ACLU lawyer Joel Gora. Roger similarly noted the continuing discussion in Congress and elsewhere about the public financing of elections.  As it turns out, the Supreme Court has agreed to hear a challenge to such a system, specifically Arizona’s Clean Elections Act.  Brought by our friends at the Institute for Justice and the Goldwat... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4382748 Fri, 21 Jan 2011 18:10:56 +0100 4382748 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4382751&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FIlAXKrr0E2g%2F By Caleb O. BrownThe Supreme Court majority in Citizens United asserted plainly that the federal government’s powers are few and defined in the realm of political speech. The decision has since been cast as one that does little more than give “corporations and unions the freedom to spend as much as they like to support or attack candidates.” Of course, the stakes were far higher. As the government’s attorney asserted during the initial oral argument, the Federal Election Commission retained the authority to ban the sale of certain books (e-books included) in the weeks leading up to an election, a fact opponents of Citizens United rarely mention. Shortly after that oral argument, Austin Bragg and I made a short video with Steve Simpson of the Institute for Justice, A... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4382751 Fri, 21 Jan 2011 15:44:46 +0100 4382751 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4343116&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F0cJzc6zv4OI%2F By Ilya ShapiroLast term, the Supreme Court decided what could end up being an important precedent for protecting property rights — even as the Court ruled unanimously against the property owners in that particular case!  How is this possible?  Read the new article by Cato legal associate Trevor Burrus and me, “Judicial Takings and Scalia’s Shifting Sands.” Here’s the background:  Seeking to restore beaches damaged by hurricanes, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection began dredging sand from the Gulf of Mexico ocean floor and transporting it to Florida’s gulf coast. The expanded area of the beach became state property, depriving beachfront landowners of their littoral rights. In reviewing the landowners’ lawsuit against the state, ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4343116 Thu, 13 Jan 2011 13:53:57 +0100 4343116 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4330995&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FzSsVgh--nzU%2F By Julian SanchezThis weekend, we learned that the U.S. government last month demanded records associated with the Twitter accounts of several supporters of WikiLeaks—including American citizens and an elected member of Iceland’s parliament. As the New York Times observes, the only remarkable thing about the government’s request is that we’re learning about it, thanks to efforts by Twitter’s legal team to have the order unsealed. It seems a virtual certainty that companies like Facebook and Google have received similar demands. Most news reports are misleadingly describing the order [PDF] as a “subpoena” when in actuality it’s a judicially-authorized order under 18 U.S.C §2703(d), colloquially known (to electronic surveillance geeks) as a &#8220... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4330995 Mon, 10 Jan 2011 22:01:46 +0100 4330995 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4327047&cid=t_268072_136_f&fid=37852&url=http%3A%2F%2Fdonnatrussell.com%2F2011%2F01%2F09%2Fhows-that-2nd-amendment-remedies-thing-working-out-for-ya%2F New cartoon by Trussell & Trussell on Politics Daily. How’s That ’2nd Amendment Remedies’ Thing Working Out for Ya? Even Don Draper couldn’t clean you up now, Tea Party. Filed under: Politics Tagged: 2nd amendment, gabrielle giffords, robert donna trussell, shooting, tea party, tucson (Source: Donna Trussell) Donna Trussell blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4327047 Mon, 10 Jan 2011 04:23:10 +0100 4327047 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4322690&cid=t_268072_150_f&fid=35777&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPharmalot%2F%7E3%2FUjxdBU3b7R8%2F After several years of courtroom battles, the US Supreme Court has agreed to review whether laws that ban data mining - specifically, the sale of prescription drug info that identifies prescribers and patients for commercial marketing purposes - are unconstitutional (see this). The move, which is not surprising, comes after conflicting rulings issued by different federal appeals courts. Last November, the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit shot down a Vermont law after deciding it violated the First Amendment right to free speech (see here). Previously, the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit upheld similar statutes passed by Maine and New Hampshire (read this). The challenges to the state laws were made by three healthcare research firms - IMS Health, SDI, Wolters Kluwer hea... Pharmalot blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4322690 Fri, 07 Jan 2011 23:10:01 +0100 4322690 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4322661&cid=t_268072_136_f&fid=37852&url=http%3A%2F%2Fdonnatrussell.com%2F2011%2F01%2F07%2Frepublicans-and-their-thursday-constitutional%2F New cartoon by Trussell & Trussell on Politics Daily. Republicans and Their Thursday Constitutional. Six too few? Fourteen too many? Filed under: Politics Tagged: 14th amendment, birthright, citizenship, gop, immigration, republican, robert donna trussell (Source: Donna Trussell) Donna Trussell blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4322661 Fri, 07 Jan 2011 19:13:29 +0100 4322661 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4265690&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FE5YfIgimkjo%2F By Ilya ShapiroAs Tim Lynch has already blogged — and as Cato is currently featuring on its front page, today is Bill of Rights Day.  But of course, this is less of a big deal than Constitution Day (September 17, when we release the Cato Supreme Court Review at an annual conference) — because the Bill of Rights is essentially redundant of the Constitution’s original structural protections:  Whenever the government exceeds its constitutionally granted powers, it violates rights of some sort. Tim Sandefur explains over at the Pacific Legal Foundation’s blog: Madison, along with his colleagues like James Wilson, Alexander Hamilton, and others, expected the Constitution to give Congress only a limited set of powers—powers that were listed in the text of the docu... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4265690 Wed, 15 Dec 2010 21:45:08 +0100 4265690 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4258844&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Fsu578fBkHkA%2F By Roger PilonToday POLITICO Arena askes: How badly does today’s ObamaCare ruling set back the Democrat’s signature domestic achievement? Should Tenth Amendment enthusiasts take heart that other federal laws with which state officials disagree can be struck down? My response: A quick reading of Judge Henry Hudson’s opinion today striking the “individual mandate” provision of ObamaCare gives hope to those of us who have long urged, more broadly, for a restoration of limited constitutional government. As Judge Hudson put in granting summary judgment to Virginia, “the legislative process must still operate within constitutional bounds.” The administration had argued that Congress had authority to enact and enforce the individual mandate to buy healt... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4258844 Mon, 13 Dec 2010 18:47:23 +0100 4258844 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4241707&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FRUzEnHdekPU%2F By Ilya ShapiroAs I wrote almost exactly a year ago, my friend Mark Sigmon filed a case on behalf of the ACLU seeking to prohibit a town in North Carolina from enforcing its sign ordinance against a man who painted “Screwed by the Town of Cary” on the side of his house.  Well, yesterday, the federal district court granted the plaintiff David Bowden summary judgment and entered a permanent injunction against the town.  The court concluded that the sign ordinance was content-based under the First Amendment because it required more than a perfunctory inquiry into the content of signs in order to determine whether the ordinance would apply.  For example, the ordinance required the town to determine whether something was a “work of art,” a “holiday message,&... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4241707 Wed, 08 Dec 2010 17:50:31 +0100 4241707 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4237871&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F33fKhCvAoOY%2F By David RittgersIn my post on Brian Aitken’s plight, I discussed New Jersey’s draconian gun laws and how a law-abiding citizen can become a victim of overbroad laws. New Jersey gun laws weren’t always so bad, but overcriminalization warped them into their current unconstitutional state. This trend is a staple of modern legislative activity. Every time a politician says that we must pass a new law to “get tough on crime” and that their pet legislation ought to be passed “for the children,” it’s a sure indicator that the rule of law is about to take another body blow. Take, for instance, the crusade against sexting that threatens to make foolish teenagers into sex offenders. Or the proposed federal cyberbullying act, which aims to turn teens into federal felons, in spite of... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4237871 Tue, 07 Dec 2010 20:06:33 +0100 4237871 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4214080&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FxdKCm7gj4bw%2F By Ilya ShapiroToday, the Supreme Court agreed to review McComish v. Bennett (consolidated with Arizona Free Enterprise v. Bennett), which challenges Arizona’s public financing of elections as an unconstitutional abridgment of speech. Because the case concerns a crucial new battleground in the fight between free speech and “fair” (read: government-controlled) elections, Cato filed an amicus brief supporting the cert petitions filed by our friends at Goldwater Institute and the Institute for Justice. McComish centers on Arizona’s “Clean Elections” Act, which provides matching funds to publicly funded candidates if their privately funded opponent spends above certain limits. In other words, by ensuring that his speech will not go “unmatched” by his opponen... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4214080 Mon, 29 Nov 2010 20:40:14 +0100 4214080 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4207280&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Fn04V4GSo1dE%2F By Jim HarperWriting in the Washington Post, George Washington University law professor Jeffrey Rosen carefully concludes, “there’s a strong argument that the TSA’s measures violate the Fourth Amendment, which prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures.” The strip/grope policy doesn’t carefully escalate through levels of intrusion the way a better designed program using more privacy protective technology could. It’s a good constutional technician’s analysis. But Professor Rosen doesn’t broach one of the most important likely determinants of Fourth Amendment reasonableness: the risk to air travel these searches are meant to reduce. Writing in Politico last week, I pointed out that there have been 99 million domestic flights in the last decad... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4207280 Sun, 28 Nov 2010 23:30:32 +0100 4207280 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4197030&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FZmiEwqb5y0s%2F By Ilya ShapiroAs the legal battle against Obamacare continues, we got good constitutional news today in another aspect of health care law.  The Second Circuit Court of Appeals, based in New York City, ruled that statutes restricting commercial speech about prescription drug-related data gathering are unconstitutional.  The court emphasized that the First Amendment protects “[e]ven dry information, devoid of advocacy, political relevance, or artistic expression.” The case, IMS Health v. Sorrell, concerned a Vermont law that sought to constrain various aspects of prescriber-identifiable data gathering, dissemination, and use. The state argued that such information collection and exchange could induce doctors to alter their prescribing practices in ways that impose additional costs on ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4197030 Tue, 23 Nov 2010 20:37:57 +0100 4197030 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4190130&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F6mRrN-Dbd6I%2F By Neal McCluskeyLast week, Rep. Mike Honda (D-CA) published a call in The Hill for a much bigger federal role in elementary and secondary education. His plans are loaded with flaws too numerous to dissect here, so I’ll just highlight one, depressing thing about his piece: his bizarro constitutional history. Follow Honda’s narrative and you’d think for most of our history the feds stayed out of education because of the Articles of Confederation, and a jerky little state called Rhode Island: Inequity in education has historical roots. At its inception, the Federal Government lacked the capacity and the authority to take responsibility for public education. Before the Constitution was drafted, the 13 colonies operated under the Articles of Confederation, created by the S... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4190130 Mon, 22 Nov 2010 18:51:38 +0100 4190130 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4179302&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FMPEt1UT7yL8%2F By Timothy B. LeeOn Thursday the Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously approved the Combating Online Infringements and Counterfeits Act. Its backers, including Hollywood and the recording industry, are hoping to rush the legislation through Congress during the current “lame duck” session. The legislation empowers the attorney general to draw up a list of Internet domain names he considers to be “dedicated to infringing activities,” and to obtain a variety of court orders designed to block access to these sites for American Internet users. To understand the proposal, it helps to know a bit about the Domain Name System, or DNS, that is the focus of the bill. The DNS is the Internet’s directory service. Computers on the Internet are assigned (mostly) unique numb... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4179302 Thu, 18 Nov 2010 21:42:43 +0100 4179302 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4159219&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FujSpzFqXP-E%2F By Michael F. CannonFollowing up on what Dan and Chris have said … If the co-chairs of President Obama’s fiscal commission were serious about reducing federal spending and deficits, they would have proposed eliminating the federal deficit, rather than “reduc[ing] it to 2.2 percent of GDP by 2015.”  Yawn. They would have proposed cutting federal spending (currently, 24 percent of GDP and rising) to match federal tax revenue (currently at 15 percent of GDP).  But the co-chairs proposed only to “bring spending down to 22 percent and eventually 21 percent of GDP.”  Not only does that elicit another yawn, but since the co-chairs only asked for half a loaf, they won’t even get that much. If the co-chairs were serious about reducing federal spending ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4159219 Thu, 11 Nov 2010 17:55:59 +0100 4159219 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4151756&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Fnhbw84wqoVs%2F By Andrew J. CoulsonK-12 school choice programs based on education tax credits are receiving a lot of attention after last week’s Supreme Court oral arguments in the Winn case. SCOTUS is likely to overturn a lower court ruling in Winn that would have hobbled or killed Arizona’s education tax credit program, and that has some folks consternated. Among the ranks of the tetchy is Kevin Carey of the Quick and the Ed. Jay Greene responds here, and concludes, in essence, that Carey is inconsistently alternating between two criticisms of tax credits whenever one is whacked with a compelling counterargument. Worth a read. Education Policy Meets Whac-a-Mole® is a post from Cato @ Liberty - Cato Institute Blog (Source: Cato-at-liberty) Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4151756 Tue, 09 Nov 2010 20:42:52 +0100 4151756 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4133662&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FkCfj3_-6pKE%2F By Ilya ShapiroOn Tuesday — you may have missed this because of some political developments that day — the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Schwarzenegger v. Entertainment Merchants Association.  This case is a First Amendment challenge to a California law that prohibits selling violent video games to minors.  Cato had filed a brief pointing out that, to paraphrase the Four Tops, it’s just the same ol’ song, but with a different meaning whenever a new form of entertainment comes along.  In other words, it is difficult to find any form of entertainment that did not once suffer the ire of parents’ groups, smoldering church bonfires, and would-be government protectors of children. From the Brothers Grimm, to “penny dreadful” novels, to comic books, t... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4133662 Thu, 04 Nov 2010 19:19:01 +0100 4133662 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4133670&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FUvvg3G17Wzs%2F By Michael F. CannonListening to NPR on the way into work, I twice heard a reporter refer to Meredith McGehee, a champion of (ahem) campaign finance reform, as a “good-government lobbyist.” Got that?  If you disagree with McGehee’s lobbying agenda — if, say, you think campaign finance reform is an unconstitutional attempt by the Left to restrict political speech that they don’t like — then you are against making government better. But did you catch the more subtle form of bias?  I maintain there is no such thing as good government. (Call it Cannon’s First Law of Politics.)  And I’m not alone.  ”Government, even in its best state,” wrote Thomas Paine in Common Sense, “is but a necessary evil.”  Not good.  Less evil tha... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4133670 Thu, 04 Nov 2010 15:22:08 +0100 4133670 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4118896&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FyVeElh030gg%2F By Roger PilonToday POLITICO Arena asks: Is it worrisome that Americans spend on political advocacy – determining who should make and administer the laws – much less than they spend on potato chips, $7.1 billion a year? My response: For decades among modern liberals it has been an article of faith — devoid of evidence — that money corrupts politics and that there is too much money in politics — “unconscionable” amounts, we’ve been told, repeatedly. Thus the crusade to restrict and regulate in exquisite detail every aspect of campaign finance, beginning in earnest with the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 and culminating with the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (McCain-Feingold). Yet after every new restriction along that tortuous course,... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4118896 Wed, 27 Oct 2010 19:05:40 +0100 4118896 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4118897&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FL3TRisx-TMU%2F By Ilya ShapiroFive years ago, in the landmark property rights case of Kelo v. New London, the Supreme Court upheld the forced transfer of land from various homeowners by finding that “economic development” qualifies as a public purpose for purposes of satisfying the Fifth Amendment’s Takings Clause.  In doing so, however, the Court reaffirmed that the government may not “take property under the mere pretext of a public purpose, when its actual purpose was to bestow a private benefit.” State and federal courts have since applied that pretext standard in widely differing ways while identifying four factors as indicators of pretext: evidence of pretextual intent, benefits that flow predominantly to a private party, haphazard planning, and a readily identifiable beneficiary.  More... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4118897 Wed, 27 Oct 2010 17:47:46 +0100 4118897 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4077248&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fbaby-born-from-a-20-year-old-embryo%2F2010.10.17 There appears to be a new record for a cryopreserved embryo birth. From NPR: In 1990 a couple underwent In Vitro Fertilization. They eventually had a healthy baby. They also, as is common, had a number of microscopic embryos that hadn’t been implanted, but were viable. They decided to anonymously donate them. Now, one of those embryos has produced a little boy, 20 years after being created. In other embryo-related news, Colorado has another personhood rights bill (Amendment 62) on the ballot for November: As used in sections 3, 6, and 25 of Article II of the state constitution, the term “person” shall apply to every human being from the beginning of the biological development of that human being. So here’s my question: Under the proposed Colorado amendment, would this kid be leg... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4077248 Sun, 17 Oct 2010 15:00:14 +0100 4077248 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4065345&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FzTZRl0bFuCA%2F By John SamplesKenneth Vogel offers an unexpected insight into the nature of campaign finance regulation: “[Wisconsin Senator Russell] Feingold faces an uphill battle against a novice opponent, who, perhaps ironically, has been the beneficiary of hundreds of thousands of dollars in ads attacking Feingold that would have been prohibited had McCain-Feingold remained intact.” In other words, if Feingold’s campaign finance law had not proven to be contrary to the U.S. Constitution, he might well not be facing “an uphill battle” to serve a fourth term in Washington. The political speech that is causing Feingold problems would have been prohibited in that situation. But the First Amendment favors speech and not the re-election needs of senators. Oddly, Vogel writes ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4065345 Wed, 13 Oct 2010 19:41:26 +0100 4065345 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4065348&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FqVWdktjtel0%2F By Ilya ShapiroThroughout history, people have fought over beaches, including in the legal arena. In the latest case in which Cato has filed an amicus brief, a state has once again redefined property rights to take possession of highly-valued beachfront property. In 2003, Hawaii passed Act 73, which took past and future title to accretions (the slow build-up of sediment on beaches) from landowners and gave it to the State, changing a 120-year-old rule. While waterlines are unpredictable, the original rule — common to most waterfront jurisdictions — helped establish legal consistency. Indeed, without such a rule, beachfront property becomes beachview property in just a few years. In response to Act 73, homeowners sued the state, claiming that the law violated the Takings Clause of the F... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4065348 Wed, 13 Oct 2010 17:04:18 +0100 4065348 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4065354&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FCV9DH-ZUPOE%2F By Roger PilonToday POLITICO Arena asks: Looking at the repeated failures of campaign finance reforms, is it time to end the restrictions? My response: Funny, we didn’t hear the primal scream about campaign finance from liberal Democrats during the 2008 campaigns, when money was pouring into their coffers from everywhere. Do we need any better evidence of the hypocrisy surrounding their screams this year? If so, turn to the lead editorial in this morning’s Wall Street Journal. It’ll tell you all you need to know about the campaign finance “reform” ruse that has been going on for years. As I’ve written often at the Arena, the true aim of this game is incumbent protection, and it has been from the beginning. But thanks to the First Amendment, incumbents ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4065354 Wed, 13 Oct 2010 14:47:16 +0100 4065354 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4040551&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FcTYC6sXeQ_U%2F By Ilya ShapiroI’ve resisted commenting on Snyder v. Phelps, the “funeral protest case,” because, as the old saying goes, hard cases make bad law.  And in this instance, really weird and repugnant speech makes for a lot of sound and fury signifying very little. Still, the bizarre and inflammatory facts of the case — protestors show up at soldiers’ funerals to make the point that these deaths are God’s retribution for America’s tolerance of homosexuality — have gained plenty of media interest, particularly during this relatively uneventful term at the Supreme Court.  So I have commented a few times on the radio and yesterday attended the oral argument, the transcript of which you can read here and audio for which should be released on t... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4040551 Thu, 07 Oct 2010 15:32:21 +0100 4040551 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4036626&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F6sUUi634sro%2F By John SamplesThe plaintiffs in the SpeechNow.org case have petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to decide “whether, under the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment, the federal government may require an unincorporated association that makes only independent expenditures to register and report as a political committee.” You can read all about this important case here. The Next Step for SpeechNow is a post from Cato @ Liberty - Cato Institute Blog (Source: Cato-at-liberty) Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4036626 Wed, 06 Oct 2010 17:14:37 +0100 4036626 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4027151&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FVxq4Zjb-mkk%2F By Ilya ShapiroToday is the first Monday in October, the traditional start of the Supreme Court term.  While we have yet to see as many blockbuster constitutional cases on the docket as we did last term—which, despite the high profile 5-4 splits in McDonald v. Chicago and Citizens United actually produced fewer dissents than any in recent memory—we do look forward to: Two big free speech challenges, one over a statute prohibiting the sale of violent video games to minors, another the offensive protesting of a fallen soldier’s funeral; An Establishment Clause lawsuit against Arizona’s tax credit for private tuition funds (an alternative to educational voucher programs); Regulatory federalism (or “preemption”) cases involving: safety standards for seatbelts; an Arizona statute... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4027151 Mon, 04 Oct 2010 11:06:21 +0100 4027151 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3987039&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FTYd4fkSARtk%2F By Julian SanchezThe law normally advances by small and cautious steps—by the gradual extension of established precedents and rules to novel problems and fact patterns. Little wonder, then, that tricky questions of law often amount to conflicts between competing metaphors. Is a hard drive like a closed briefcase whose contents are all fair game for police once the “container” is legitimately opened? Or is it more like a warehouse containing hundreds or thousands of individual closed containers? If the latter, what are the “containers”? Directories? Individual files? A similar metaphor war figures in the FBI’s effort to expand its authority to acquire information from Internet Service Providers using National Security Letters, which are issued by agents witho... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3987039 Mon, 20 Sep 2010 16:33:22 +0100 3987039 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3987043&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FBMKy5RTSVsM%2F By Michael F. CannonPresident Obama’s Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius is still threatening to bankrupt insurance companies who tell their customers that ObamaCare‘s mandates will increase premiums by more than 2 percent, even though her department’s projections show that, starting this week, just one of the law’s new mandates will increase some premiums by nearly 7 percent. In a CBS News story last week, Sebelius tried to defend those indefensible threats: But don’t the insurance companies have a right to make their own analyses and claims to their customers? “Absolutely, they have a right to communicate with their customers,” replied HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. “We just want to make sure that communication is as... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3987043 Mon, 20 Sep 2010 14:20:35 +0100 3987043 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3987044&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F273u-NWF8og%2F By Ilya Shapiro“These kids today and their violent [blank]….” This refrain has been around for as long as there have been kids – and elders to shake their fists at them. In the 19th century, dime novels and “penny dreadfuls” were blamed for social ills and juvenile delinquency. In the 1950s, for example, psychologist Fredric Wertham’s attack on comic books – in his bluntly titled book Seduction of the Innocent – so ignited the national ire that Congress held hearings on the cartoon menace. In response, the comic book industry voluntarily adopted a ratings system. Similarly, backlash against the movie industry and the music industry (e.g., Tipper Gore’s attack on gangsta rap) caused those respective industries to also adopt volu... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3987044 Mon, 20 Sep 2010 11:06:26 +0100 3987044 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3980814&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F_Ka9_i5F_44%2F By Ilya ShapiroIn 1998, after years of scandals ranging from governors being indicted to legislators taking bribes, Arizona passed the Citizens Clean Elections Act. This law was intended to “clean up” state politics by creating a system for publicly funding campaigns. Participation in the public funding is not mandatory, however, and those who do not participate are subject to rules that match their “excess” private funds with disbursals to their opponent from the public fund. In short, if a privately funded candidate spends more than his publicly funded opponent, then the publicly funded candidate receives public “matching funds.” Whatever the motivations behind the law, the effects have been to significantly chill political speech. Indeed, ample eviden... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3980814 Fri, 17 Sep 2010 15:49:35 +0100 3980814 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3972901&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FkA7P5Rq_miU%2F By Ilya ShapiroThe Montana Supreme Court overturned more than 100 years of state property law concerning navigatable waters by effectively converting the title in hundreds of miles of riverbeds to the State. The majority of that court ruled that the entirety of the Missouri, Clark Fork, and Madison rivers were navigable at the time of Montana’s statehood, producing a broad holding that eradicates property rights to the rivers and riverbanks that Montanans had enjoyed for over a century. Before this case, the hydroelectric energy company PPL Montana and thousands of other private parties exercised their property rights over these non-navigable stretches that the state never claimed.  Today, Cato joined a brief filed by the Montana Farm Bureau Federation supporting the PPL Montana&#82... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3972901 Wed, 15 Sep 2010 23:41:08 +0100 3972901 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3968997&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FtUd78uL-qc4%2F By David RittgersJustice Breyer appeared on Good Morning America today, telling George Stephanopoulous that burning the Koran may not be protected by the First Amendment. As Breyer puts it, this may be akin to “shouting fire in a crowded theater,” since internet-driven publicity could bring retaliatory violence here or abroad. Let me get this straight – burning a Koran isn’t protected the same way that burning a Bible or the American flag is, or a neo-Nazi march through a neighborhood of Holocaust survivors. The “crowded theater” is now global, and all someone has to do to diminish the First Amendment rights of all Americans is threaten to use violence if an offending word is uttered. That’s not a consistent interpretation of the First Amendment, but Breyer’s record of cons... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3968997 Tue, 14 Sep 2010 19:07:26 +0100 3968997 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3965393&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FVNx7y-rBzqI%2F By Michael F. CannonThe following analogy may help to explain why everyone should be troubled by HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius’ efforts to intimidate insurance companies who say unflattering things about ObamaCare. Last month, Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli (R), issued an opinion that state regulatory boards already have the authority to impose additional regulations on abortion clinics.  Critics pounced, claiming that the measure could shut down 17 of the state’s 21 clinics. What if Cuccinelli responded with a letter threatening to investigate clinics that “misinform” the public about the costs of such regulation? (Source: Cato-at-liberty) Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3965393 Mon, 13 Sep 2010 17:52:58 +0100 3965393 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3957897&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FDKojA3KM-8w%2F By Michael F. CannonThis week saw more bad news for ObamaCare.  So the Obama administration slipped on the brass knuckles. Last week brought news that health insurance premiums grew by a smaller increment in 2010 than in any of the past 10 years.  On Tuesday, The Wall Street Journal reported that ObamaCare appears to be turning that around: Health insurers say they plan to raise premiums for some Americans as a direct result of the health overhaul in coming weeks, complicating Democrats’ efforts to trumpet their signature achievement before the midterm elections. Aetna Inc., some BlueCross BlueShield plans and other smaller carriers have asked for premium increases of between 1% and 9% to pay for extra benefits required under the law, according to filings with state regulators. Th... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3957897 Fri, 10 Sep 2010 20:32:44 +0100 3957897 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3942776&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FL8Ehoyf2UkU%2F By Jim HarperOn August 24th, the Attorneys General of 17 states sent a letter [PDF] to the founder and CEO of the Craigslist online platform, to “request” that they take down the “Adult Services” section of the site. The link to that section of the site now stands with a “CENSORED” label over the place where the link stood. On the TechLiberationFront blog, Ryan Radia has a good write-up, including the legal protections Craigslist enjoys under federal law as a provider of an “interactive computer service.” The AGs undoubtedly know that could not directly shut down Craigslist. They wouldn’t have a legal leg to stand on if they attacked the site for the behavior of its users. But they also know that publically badgering Craigslist can win ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3942776 Tue, 07 Sep 2010 11:06:40 +0100 3942776 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3920825&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FoD8Mopiu5RA%2F By Ilya ShapiroOfficials in Montgomery, Alabama, are bulldozing homes in their historic civil rights district — and billing the homeowners for the cost of demolition: Christina Walsh of the Institute for Justice writes about this injustice at the Daily Caller: Imagine you come home from work one day to a notice on your front door that you have 45 days to demolish your house, or the city will do it for you.  Oh, and you’re paying for it. This is happening right now in Montgomery, Ala., and here is how it works: The city decides it doesn’t like your property for one reason or another, so it declares it a “public nuisance.”  It mails you a notice that you have 45 days to demolish your property, at your expense, or the city will do it for you (and, of course, bill you). Yo... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3920825 Tue, 31 Aug 2010 16:10:33 +0100 3920825 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3872541&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FBEk1ClsdhGo%2F By Roger PilonPolitico Arena asks for comments today on President Obama’s Ground Zero Mosque remarks: My response: Speaking expressly “as President” last evening [Friday], Mr. Obama has weighed in on the Ground Zero Islamic mosque controversy — and blatantly misstated it. This controversy has nothing to do with Muslims having “the same right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country” or with their ”right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan,” as Obama put it. Nor does it have anything to do with the First Amendment. Rather, the issue is simply one of common decency and sensitivity to the feelings of others. The president is right about one thing: Ground Zero is “... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3872541 Mon, 16 Aug 2010 15:27:13 +0100 3872541 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3862003&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Fem9DHbqcQio%2F By Julian SanchezThe Electronic Frontier Foundation trumpets a surprising privacy win last week in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. In U.S. v. Maynard (PDF), the court held that the use of a GPS tracking device to monitor the public movements of a vehicle—something the Supreme Court had held not to constitute a Fourth Amendment search in U.S. v Knotts—could nevertheless become a search when conducted over an extended period.  The Court in Knotts had considered only tracking that encompassed a single journey on a particular day, reasoning that the target of surveillance could have no “reasonable expectation of privacy” in the fact of a trip that any member of the public might easily observe. But the Knotts Court explicitly reserved judgment on potential uses ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3862003 Thu, 12 Aug 2010 01:22:10 +0100 3862003 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3858137&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Fem9DHbqcQio%2F By Julian SanchezThe Electronic Frontier Foundation trumpets a surprising privacy win last week in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. In U.S. v. Maynard (PDF), the court held that the use of a GPS tracking device to monitor the public movements of a vehicle—something the Supreme Court had held not to constitute a Fourth Amendment search in U.S. v Knotts—could nevertheless become a search when conducted over an extended period.  The Court in Knotts had considered only tracking that encompassed a single journey on a particular day, reasoning that the target of surveillance could have no “reasonable expectation of privacy” in the fact of a trip that any member of the public might easily observe. But the Knotts Court explicitly reserved judgment on potential uses ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3858137 Thu, 12 Aug 2010 01:22:10 +0100 3858137 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3816388&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FwAQRpCwJvM4%2F By Tim LynchNat Hentoff  has a terrific column in the Village Voice on the stop and frisk tactics of the New York City Police Department.  Here’s an excerpt: Commissioner Kelly and Mayor Bloomberg, your stop-and-frisk approach trashes the Fourteenth Amendment. So while Governor Paterson merits our cheers for not being at all intimidated by you, a lot more has to be done to bring the Constitution back into New York City. A co-sponsor of the bill, Assemblyman Jeffries, reminded all of us (The New York Times, July 16) that the signing of the bill was “the beginning point, not the end point, of a larger evaluation of the effectiveness and legitimacy” of the NYPD’s stop-and-frisk electronic dragnet. Since there will continue to be stops, questions, frisks—and some arrests—I wo... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3816388 Tue, 03 Aug 2010 13:26:41 +0100 3816388 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3802373&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F3K0qVu6Hoeo%2F By Jim HarperFourth Amendment: “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.” Supreme Court (Katz v. U.S.): “[S]earches conducted outside the judicial process, without prior approval by judge or magistrate, are per se unreasonable under the Fourth Amendment—subject only to a few specifically established and well delineated exceptions.” Washington Post: “The Obama administration is seeking to make it easier for the FBI to compel companies to turn over records of an individ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3802373 Thu, 29 Jul 2010 12:58:09 +0100 3802373 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3790851&cid=t_268072_133_f&fid=35452&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.graphictruth.com%2F2010%2F07%2Ffirst-amendment-issue-of-our-time.html Senator Al Frankin speaking at Netroots. (Source: Graphictruth) Graphictruth blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3790851 Tue, 27 Jul 2010 02:30:00 +0100 3790851 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3790683&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FUJnyjEPqbbM%2F By Ilya ShapiroIn my last two posts I described how the New York Times misunderstands the Constitution and highlighted Reason’s great new article comparing conservative and libertarian theories of constitutional interpretation.  Well, now I have a chance to put those topics together, in response to yesterday’s big front-pager entitled “Court Under Roberts Is Most Conservative in Decades.” Times Supreme Court reporter Adam Liptak — generally a sharp and honest broker — surveys some new political science literature and concludes, among other things, that since John Roberts became Chief Justice five years ago, the Court has been moving (modestly) to the right and is now “the most conservative one in living memory.”  Ed Whelan debunks both ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3790683 Mon, 26 Jul 2010 21:05:28 +0100 3790683 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3784240&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FWCYyVn6vhJg%2F By David RittgersThat’s the message of my recent op-ed in the Daily Caller. New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s initial reaction to the McDonald v. City of Chicago decision was to say that McDonald would have no impact on government’s ability to keep guns “out of the hands of criminals and terrorists.” This was a reference to legislation that Bloomberg supports that would allow the federal government to bar anyone the Attorney General thinks is a terrorist from purchasing a firearm. Not convicted of a crime in support of terrorism — that would make them a felon and already unable to purchase or own a firearm. No, being suspected of activity in support of or preparation for terrorism means you get the same treatment as if you were a convicted felon or had been involunta... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3784240 Fri, 23 Jul 2010 18:24:13 +0100 3784240 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3753792&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FqcEC5L1bchw%2F By Ilya ShapiroMy sometime co-author Josh Blackman points out a parallel between Justice Thomas’s fascinating concurrence in McDonald v. Chicago — which extended the right to keep and bear arms to the states – and the “Keeping Pandora’s Box Sealed” article we published earlier this year. Justice Thomas in McDonald v. Chicago: With the inquiry appropriately narrowed, I believe this case presents an opportunity to reexamine, and begin the process of restoring, the meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment agreed upon by those who ratified it. Blackman & Shapiro in Pandora’s Box: The purpose of this article is to provide a roadmap to welcome the Privileges or Immunities Clause back into constitutional jurisprudence. The Slaughter-House Cases “sapped the... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3753792 Thu, 15 Jul 2010 02:20:51 +0100 3753792 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3753799&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FY_7YaQqUknY%2F By David RittgersPornography producer John Stagliano is on trial in Washington, D.C., accused of interstate trafficking of obscenity. Reason has been producing workmanlike coverage of the trial. Setting aside the constitutionally difficult prospect of defining obscenity, the trial is replete with procedural anomalies that call into question the basic fairness of the proceedings. District Court Judge Richard Leon ruled that Stagliano cannot use expert witnesses, and shut the press out of the jury selection process (which, after a full week, has yet to finish). Things don’t bode well for a free and open trial: The courtroom monitors that will display the crucial evidence are all arranged to be out of the sightlines of press and interested citizens, viewable only by jurors and lawyers. ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3753799 Wed, 14 Jul 2010 15:37:23 +0100 3753799 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3750042&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FsGNN_KbrNZ4%2F By Ilya ShapiroToday, we celebrate a free speech victory in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York.  In the case of Fox Television v. Federal Communications Commission, the three-judge panel struck down the FCC’s indecency policy for being “unconstitutionally vague” and “creating a chilling effect that goes far beyond the fleeting expletives issue” (e.g., stray f-bombs) that was at the heart of this case. The case was before the Second Circuit after it was remanded by the Supreme Court last year.  Cato adjunct scholar Robert Corn-Revere, acting in his capacity as partner at Davis Wright Tremaine, is lead counsel for co-petitioner CBS.  Bob wrote an article for last year’s Cato Supreme Court Review in which he characterized the case as the first act of many... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3750042 Tue, 13 Jul 2010 19:47:33 +0100 3750042 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3729861&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F-JGDzc6MAE8%2F By Jeffrey A. MironThe Supreme Court ruled last week that state and city governments must respect the individual right to bear arms that is guaranteed by Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. This ruling does not necessarily invalidate all gun control laws, but it will likely mean the demise of outright bans and restrict significantly the ability of states and cities to impose other kinds of controls. Advocates of gun control have decried the ruling because they believe guns cause crime and that gun control laws, by gun reducing gun availability, reduce crime. Regardless of the constitutional questions, however, both arguments for controls are flawed. Many crimes do not require an armed perpetrator, and numerous weapons can substitute for guns (knives, baseball bats, fists, bombs, cha... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3729861 Mon, 05 Jul 2010 12:31:19 +0100 3729861 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3710549&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FNcyINEh72Bg%2F By Ilya ShapiroI still haven’t finished reading the full 214-page opinion, but a few points to add to the statement I made yesterday: Justice Alito’s plurality opinion, joined by the Chief Justice and Justices Scalia and Kennedy, is a tight 45-page discussion of the history of the right to keep and bear arms and how it relates to the Court’s “incorporation” doctrine under the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause.  No excess verbiage, no policy arguments, and, notably, no denial or disparagement of the Privileges or Immunities Clause — just denying to take up the issue in light of the long line of Substantive Due Process incorporation. Justice Thomas provides a magisterial 56-page defense of the Privileges or Immunities Clause, resurrecting a... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3710549 Tue, 29 Jun 2010 14:51:35 +0100 3710549 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3710550&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Fs9FY7MJ0UQU%2F By John SamplesThe Center for Competitive Politics has sponsored an analysis by Allison Hayward of Elena Kagan’s writings on campaign finance regulation. It should be read widely, not least by the Senators trying to discern her fitness for the Court. Here’s a taste of Allison’s analysis: In Kagan’s 1996 article, Private Speech, Public Purpose: The Role of Governmental Motive in First Amendment Doctrine, she “explicitly recognized that ‘campaign finance laws… easily can serve as incumbent-protection devices’ and when applied to certain speakers ‘the danger of illicit motive becomes even greater.’ It is impossible to square Kagan’s analysis in this article with her recent comments that the Supreme Court should have deferred to Congress in Citizens United... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3710550 Tue, 29 Jun 2010 14:43:09 +0100 3710550 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3706655&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FxTkaNa-2CgY%2F By Roger PilonToday Politico Arena asks: What are the political implications for Democrats and for the Kagan hearings of today’s Supreme Court gun decision? My response: The Supreme Court’s decision today that the Second Amendment applies against the states cannot be helpful to Democrats in the upcoming elections or to Elena Kagan in her confirmation hearings. Most Court-watchers expected the decision to come out as it did, yet the dissent by the Court’s four liberals speaks volumes. How could other rights in the Bill of Rights be good against the states, but not this right? Given the quality of their argument, the conclusion that the Court’s liberals are picking and choosing their rights on political grounds is inescapable. And that issue will arise in the Kagan he... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3706655 Mon, 28 Jun 2010 18:37:19 +0100 3706655 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3706657&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FJBS3Qv-awdM%2F By Ilya ShapiroToday is a big victory for gun rights and a bigger one for liberty.  The Supreme Court has correctly decided that state actions violating the right to keep and bear arms are no more valid than those taken by the federal government. It could not have been otherwise: the Fourteenth Amendment, coming on the heels of the Civil War, says clearly that never again would the Constitution tolerate state oppressions, and that all individuals possess certain fundamental rights.  It is equally clear that the right to keep and bear arms is one of those deeply rooted fundamental rights, not least because the Framers thought so highly of it as to enumerate it in the Second Amendment. Still, Justice Alito’s plurality opinion leaves a lot to be desired, in that his ultimately correct con... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3706657 Mon, 28 Jun 2010 15:44:57 +0100 3706657 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3703079&cid=t_268072_136_f&fid=37852&url=http%3A%2F%2Fdonnatrussell.com%2F2010%2F06%2F28%2Fsharron-angle-and-the-second-amendment-you-two-get-a-room%2F New cartoon by Trussell & Trussell on Politics Daily. Sharron Angle and the Second Amendment: You Two Get a Room. Filed under: Politics Daily Tagged: chaos theory, Media, political cartoon, second amendment, sharron angle, tea party (Source: Donna Trussell) Donna Trussell blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3703079 Mon, 28 Jun 2010 06:54:05 +0100 3703079 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3699483&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FF1-9G7cOSdE%2F By Ilya ShapiroWith all the property rights news coming out of the Supreme Court and New York Court of Appeals in the last week, I almost missed Wednesday’s fifth anniversary of the dreadful Kelo v. New London decision.  Justice Stevens’s  opinion in Kelo sanctioned a transfer of private property from homeowners to a big company in the name of (promised but, as we’ve seen, never realized) job creation and increased tax revenue.  This was a Pyrrhic victory for eminent domain abusers, however, given: 9 state high courts have limited eminent domain powers; 43 state legislatures have passed greater property rights reform; 44 eminent domain abuse projects have been defeated by grassroots activists; 88 percent of the public now believes that property rights are as impor... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3699483 Fri, 25 Jun 2010 11:24:25 +0100 3699483 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3676649&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F8Ewss4YVAME%2F By Ilya ShapiroYesterday I blogged about the Florida property rights case, which I now consider the best unanimous opinion against my position I could ever imagine.  Although the property owners lost, four justices stood for the idea that courts no less than legislatures or executive bodies are capable of violating the Takings Clause (Fifth Amendment), while two others endorsed remedying such violations via Substantive Due Process (Fourteenth Amendment), and the remaining two didn’t express an opinion one way or the other.  For more on the case, see the blogposts of Cato adjunct scholars Tim Sandefur, Ilya Somin, and David Bernstein. An interesting side note involves Justice Scalia’s excoriation of Substantive Due Process (and Justice Kennedy’s use of it): Moreover,... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3676649 Fri, 18 Jun 2010 19:15:38 +0100 3676649 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3671666&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FxMK0wcACeUE%2F By Ilya ShapiroIn case you missed yesterday’s excellent Hill Briefing on the DISCLOSE Act and other recent developments in speech restrictions, next week I’ll be debating Citizens United and the future of campaign finance regulation.  The event, cutely titled “Citizens United, Republic Divided; Campaign Finance Law After Citizens United,” takes place June 24 at noon at American University’s Washington School of Law, Room 401.  That’s 4801 Massachusetts Ave. NW here in Washington.  IJ’s Steve Simpson and I will be up against American U’s Jamie Raskin and Election Law Blog’s Rick Hasen (who has also blogged this notice).  RSVP to Michael Vasquez at mv5786a@student.american.edu so there’s enough lunch to go around. For Cato&#821... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3671666 Thu, 17 Jun 2010 19:28:09 +0100 3671666 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3671669&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Fuo2Ue2RPuUI%2F By Ilya ShapiroToday the Supreme Court came down with its ruling in Stop the Beach Renourishment v. Florida Department of Environmental Protection, a case I previously blogged about here and here, and in which Cato filed a brief. While the Court’s 8-0 ruling against the Florida oceanfront (now ocean-view) property owners was not the result we wanted, the part of the decision that was unanimously unfortunate turned on a narrow and probably mistaken interpretation of state property law.  Much more importantly, the remainder of Justice Scalia’s opinion makes clear that judicial takings are just as much a violation of the Fifth Amendment as any other kind.  “If a legislature or a court declares that what was once an established right of private property no longer exists,” Scalia writ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3671669 Thu, 17 Jun 2010 17:51:17 +0100 3671669 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3652395&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FPhAmWAwWzLI%2F By John SamplesCongress has been trying to overturn the Citizens United decision for the past four months. (Citizens United invalidated bans on speech by groups taking a corporate form). Their effort — the DISCLOSE Act — now seems bogged down in the House of Representatives. The National Rifle Association argues that they should not have to disclose their small donors. The labor unions also have complaints: Amaya Tune, a spokeswoman for the AFL-CIO, told Bloomberg this week that “the final bill should treat corporations different than democratic organizations such as unions. We believe the legislation should counter the excessive and disproportionate influence by big business and guarantee effective disclosure of who is paying for what.” Here’s the problem: The Supre... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3652395 Fri, 11 Jun 2010 15:08:42 +0100 3652395 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3644750&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F9-SXdHb4rZc%2F By Roger PilonWhen taxpayers underwrite the campaign expenses of candidates for public office, serious questions arise: Not least, why should taxpayers subsidize candidates or ideas they oppose? But when taxpayers subsidize only one side in a campaign, there should be outrage. Perhaps there was at the Supreme Court this morning, when the Court blocked an appalling opinion out of, not surprisingly, the oft-overturned Ninth Circuit. In McComish v. Bennett the Goldwater Institute is challenging Arizona’s Clean Elections Act, under which “candidates who run with public campaign subsidies receive an almost dollar-for-dollar match each time a privately funded opponent raises money above a certain amount,” the Goldwater press release states, “and additional matches when independent expend... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3644750 Tue, 08 Jun 2010 21:12:45 +0100 3644750 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3629878&cid=t_268072_151_f&fid=35818&url=http%3A%2F%2Frecoveryissexy.com%2Fprinciples-of-the-12-steps%2F Recovery through the Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous Sgt. Bill S., used a one word summary to describe the basic principle (as he saw it) behind each of the 12 Steps, when he was giving talks to military personnel about alcoholism at Lackland in San Antonio, Texas, during the 1950’s and later on in California. In the following, quoted from Sgt. Bill S., ‘On the Military Firing Line in the Alcoholism Treatment Program’, Chapter 18, “Recovery through the Twelve Steps” The twelve steps lead people through a necessary therapeutic sequence involving; insight, surrender, positive goals, introspection, confession, submission humility, amendment, restitution, reorganization, spirituality, and love The 12-Steps and principles are therefore; INSIGHT: We admitted we were pow... Recovery Is Sexy.com blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3629878 Wed, 02 Jun 2010 18:25:27 +0100 3629878 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3621658&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FjE7Biud9oeU%2F By Jim HarperLast week, I referred obscurely to “folks wanting to install the FCC as the Internet’s regulator,” cautioning that this same Federal Communications Commission is our national censor. A friendly correspondent points me to an article in Ars Technica about the demand for speech controls coming from the same groups that want the FCC to control the Internet’s infrastructure, groups such as Free Press, the Media Access Project, and Common Cause. Is there a parry to the charge that this is a demand for censorship? The signatories to the regulatory filing “respectfully request[] that the FCC . . . inquire into the extent and effects of hate speech in media, and explore possible non-regulatory ways to counteract its negative impacts.” The filing doe... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3621658 Tue, 01 Jun 2010 17:43:50 +0100 3621658 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3607485&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FNsFlrbiXSNI%2F By Jim HarperAmid charge and countercharge about who is shilling for whom in the debate over Internet regulation, Peter Suderman has the right focus in a short piece on Reason’s Hit & Run blog. The Federal Communications Commission’s Chairman is claiming that he only wants to regulate the Internet’s infrastructure, but one of his colleagues, Commissioner Michael Copps, is non-denying that he wants to censor the Internet. There may be exceptions, but it’s usually pretty safe to assume that anytime a politician or bureaucrat dodges a question while calling for “a national discussion about” the proposal at hand, what he or she really means is, “I want to indicate that I support this idea without actually going on record as supporting it.” Th... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3607485 Thu, 27 May 2010 15:43:17 +0100 3607485 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3599359&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Fasg8hAKKiiM%2F By Walter OlsonThe California Department of Fair Employment and Housing has agreed to stop investigating citizens on the theory that their political expression in and of itself constitutes a potential violation of laws against housing discrimination. The concession came in a settlement with Julie Waltz, whom it had dragged through an investigation for publicly opposing the placement of subsidized group homes in and near her Norco, Calif. residence. A news release from the Center for Individual Rights: During the year-long investigation, state investigators told Waltz that her speech violated state fair housing laws, requested that she refrain from her speech activities, and threatened her with prosecution. An investigator also told her that the investigation would end if she removed signs ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3599359 Tue, 25 May 2010 19:12:24 +0100 3599359 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3585591&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FlP50jE4h0DI%2F By Ilya ShapiroSince I first issued my challenge to debate “anyone anytime anywhere” on the (un)constitutionality of Obamacare, a lot has happened.  For one thing, Randy Barnett and Richard Epstein, among many others, have published provoctive articles looking at issues beyond the Commerce Clause justification for the individual mandate — such as the argument that Congress’s tax power justifies the mandate penalty and that the new Medicaid arrangement amounts to a coercive federal-state bargain.  (Look for to a longish article from yours truly due to come out in next month’s issue of Health Affairs.)  For another, as Michael Cannon noted, seven more states — plus the National Federation of Independent Business and two individuals – have joined ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3585591 Fri, 21 May 2010 00:33:05 +0100 3585591 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3585594&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F0XOHW5lFkQY%2F By Ilya ShapiroOne quick addendum to my previous commentary on this week’s decision in Graham v. Florida the use of foreign law by U.S. courts: Toward the very end of Justice Kennedy’s majority opinion, in part D where he gratuitously nods to world opinion about juvenile life-without-parole (LWOP) sentences, he takes issue with one of the lesser arguments we make in our brief, that no international treaty prohibits such sentences.  (See page 31 of the Graham opinion — note that Cato itself is not mentioned because we were one of 13 groups signing the brief — and pages 14-16 of our brief.)  Kennedy says that the issue of whether international law prohibits the United States from imposing the juvenile LWOP sentences is beside the point, that the proper questio... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3585594 Thu, 20 May 2010 19:40:32 +0100 3585594 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3581591&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FyrFMb31yafw%2F By Ilya ShapiroJust as Tuesday’s primary elections were good news for libertarians, they were bad news for Elena Kagan.  Now that Arlen Specter (D-R-D-PA) will never again face an electorate, we will be able to see his true colors, whatever they are – this should be interesting! — on the Senate Judiciary Committee.  Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), assuming she wins her June 8 primary run-off (having to tack left to do so), will be a possible vote against Kagan so she can show skeptical Arkansans that she’s not an Obama-Reid-Pelosi rubber stamp.  And Rand Paul’s trouncing of establishment candidate Trey Grayson in the Republican primary should strike fear into the hearts of all senators running for re-election this fall (or even 2012) such that they refuse to�... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3581591 Thu, 20 May 2010 12:42:30 +0100 3581591 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3581595&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FUFFBFxXOuno%2F By Andrew J. CoulsonThe Supreme Court is expected to decide tomorrow whether to summarily overturn a Ninth Circuit Court ruling, hear an appeal of that ruling, or let the Ninth Circuit’s decision stand. The case involves Arizona’s k-12 scholarship tax credit program that helps families afford private schooling, which the Ninth Circuit found last year to violate the First Amendment. Before the Ninth Circuit handed down its decision, I predicted that it would rule against the tax credit program, and that it would eventually be overturned by the Supreme Court. The first part of that prediction came to pass, and I still expect the second part to as well. For the reasons why SCOTUS will overturn the Ninth Circuit, see Cato’s brief in the case.  Ilya Shapiro (with whom I... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3581595 Wed, 19 May 2010 18:17:32 +0100 3581595 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3577382&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F9UpjEwYNT-A%2F By Ilya ShapiroOn Tuesday I discussed the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down laws that allow juveniles to be sentenced to life without parole (LWOP) for non-homicide crimes.  What concerns me here isn’t so much the morality or policy wisdom in applying such sentences — though Chief Justice makes some good policy points in his concurrence — or even the interpretation of what constitutes a “cruel and unusual punishment” — which I think Justice Kennedy mishandles in a confusing discussion of national consensuses.  No, the most troubling part of that case was the unfortunate reference to foreign authorities to support the Court’s interpretation of the Eighth Amendment.  Justice Kennedy notes that juvenile LWOP has been “rejecte... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3577382 Wed, 19 May 2010 12:51:00 +0100 3577382 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3556074&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FU_ija4EHXQU%2F By Mark MollerElena Kagan has been getting a lot of flak  from the right for her position on military recruitment at Harvard. While the military’s don’t ask don’t tell policy is unjust, Harvard’s position on recruitment was also misplaced—and, were the question ever presented to my faculty, I’d vote against barring the military from recruiting at my law school for the same reasons as Ilya Somin. But, although Harvard made the wrong call on recruitment (albeit one that, in fairness, is not attributable just to Kagan, but, reportedly, to an overwhelming majority of the Harvard law faculty), Kagan’s opposition to the Solomon Amendment, which conditioned federal funding on JAG recruiters’ access to campus, has much to recommend it from a libertarian standpoint, for the rea... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3556074 Wed, 12 May 2010 12:34:37 +0100 3556074 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3552224&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FBv23ItJ9-p8%2F By Ilya ShapiroAs I’ve been re-reading Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan’s publications — of which there are surprisingly few for someone of her achievements and reputation — I’ve had half an eye on the TV punditry.  It seems that the leading critique from both the right (e.g., Fox News, Senator Jon Kyl — who’s usually excellent on these things) and extreme left (e.g., Jane Hamsher) is that Kagan doesn’t have judicial experience.  This just completely misses the point.  As a solicitor general (the “Tenth Justice”) and former dean of Harvard Law — where she did a magnificent job and gained the respect of scholars from across the political spectrum — not to mention senior roles in the Clinton White House, teaching ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3552224 Mon, 10 May 2010 19:29:27 +0100 3552224 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3508446&cid=t_268072_150_f&fid=35777&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPharmalot%2F%7E3%2F5kplgLzalRM%2F Back in 2002, Orphan Medical obtained FDA approval to market its Xyrem drug to treat cataplexy, which is a sudden loss of muscle tone associated with narcolepsy, although docs soon began prescribing the med to treat other conditions. And Alfred Caronia, a former Orphan sales exec, was convicted three years later of encouraging docs to engage in off-label usage. However, the Washington Legal Foundation, which has long been active in championing off-label promotion as a form of commercial free speech, has filed a brief urging the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit to overturn Caronia’s conviction on the grounds that the “First Amendment broadly protects the right of individuals to speak truthfully about off-label uses of FDA-approved products, even in a commercial contex... Pharmalot blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3508446 Tue, 27 Apr 2010 13:36:01 +0100 3508446 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3487035&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F6aPUFQFeJbg%2F By Ilya ShapiroAs expected from the oral argument in U.S. v. Stevens last fall – when Justice Alito was alone in expressing some support for the government’s position – the Court on Tuesday upheld the First Amendment by declining to add a category of unprotected speech. This was not, after all, a case about the “human sacrifice channel” or Michael Vick’s greatest dog fights. Indeed, cruelty to animals should be and is punished everywhere in the country. Instead, at issue here was a broadly drawn “depiction of animal cruelty” statute that could have ensnared Spanish tourism brochures or hunting instructional videos. More fundamentally, the Court rightly rejected the government’s proposed weighing of the “value” of speech agai... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3487035 Tue, 20 Apr 2010 16:25:51 +0100 3487035 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3487040&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Ft-LG2mluQe0%2F By Ilya ShapiroA northern Texas school district attempted to banish all religious expression from its schools by prohibiting virtually all non-verbal student speech in any school-related context.  Officials used this broad policy to promote an anti-religious orthodoxy and root out any and all religious speech. The Supreme Court made clear, however, in its seminal school speech case, Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District, that students enjoy First Amendment rights, and that core political and religious speech cannot be suppressed without showing that the speech will “materially and substantially disrupt” the educational process. Here, the Fifth Circuit upheld all of the district’s regulations and found that Tinker did not supply the relevant legal standar... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3487040 Mon, 19 Apr 2010 19:11:33 +0100 3487040 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3456669&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FnkONjUE--qc%2F By Timothy B. LeeI’m saddened to hear of the retirement of Justice John Paul Stevens. Whatever you might say about his jurisprudence in other areas, one place where Justice Stevens really shined was in his defense of high-tech freedom. Justice Stevens wrote the majority opinion in some of the most important high-tech cases of the last four decades. In other cases, he wrote important (and in some cases prescient) dissents. Through it all, he was a consistent voice for freedom of expression and the freedom to innovate. His accomplishments include: Free speech: Justice Stevens wrote the majority decision in ACLU v. Reno, the decision that struck down the infamous Communications Decency Act and clearly established that the First Amendment applies to the Internet. In the 13 years since t... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3456669 Fri, 09 Apr 2010 20:57:19 +0100 3456669 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3424830&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FniqsTHnIV0w%2F By Julian SanchezImagine for a moment that all your computing devices had to run on code that had been written in 1986. Your smartphone is, alas, entirely out of luck, but your laptop or desktop computer might be able to get online using a dial-up modem. But you’d better be happy with a command-line interface to services like e-mail, Usenet, and Telnet, because the only “Web browsers” anyone’s heard of in 1986 are entomologists. Cloud computing? Location based services? Social networking? No can do, though you can still get into a raging debate about the relative merits of Macs and PCs. When it comes to federal privacy law, alas, we are running on code written in 1986: The Elecronic Communications Privacy Act, a statute that’s not only ludicrously out of date,... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3424830 Wed, 31 Mar 2010 12:50:41 +0100 3424830 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3420437&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FWAtKqZhiqDY%2F By Ilya ShapiroThat’s the question NYU law professor Rick Hills asks over at PrawfsBlaws: So why do American libertarians think that federalism is consistent with their commitment to individual liberty? Why not, instead, support a strong national government that can suppress subnational trade wars and protect a robust set of national liberties? What’s the payoff, in terms of individual liberty, from protecting subnational jurisdictions’ exclusive jurisdiction over certain topics? In other words, if government is bad, why do we want a multiplicity of governments — federal, state, local — all presumably restricting individual liberty in some way? Well, with all due respect to Prof. Hills — who also graciously commended Cato’s brief in Comstock, ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3420437 Tue, 30 Mar 2010 12:54:02 +0100 3420437 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3411093&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FEtMQjrQlTKs%2F By Roger PilonThis post was co-authored with John Samples. Another good day for free speech, and a bad day for campaign finance zealots. Following on the heels of the Supreme Court’s stunning decision two months ago in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, and applying that holding, all nine active judges on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled unanimously today that government restrictions on the right of citizens to pool their money for independent political ads are unconstitutional. Individuals have long been able to spend unlimited funds on independent political ads. But if two or more people joined together and pooled their money for the same thing, they were considered a “political committee” and were subject to numerous burdensome regulations, including limits on ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3411093 Fri, 26 Mar 2010 18:24:02 +0100 3411093 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3395111&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FvGl1dTTGmxk%2F By Ilya ShapiroArizona grants income tax credits for contributions made to school tuition organizations (“STO”).  These STOs must these donations for scholarships that allow students to attend private schools.  This statutory scheme broadens the educational opportunities for thousands of students by enabling them to attend schools they would otherwise lack the means to attend.  The Ninth Circuit held that the tax credit program violated the Establishment Clause because many of the STOs — as it happens, a decreasing majority — provide scholarships for students to attend parochial schools.  Counsel for the defendants, including the Institute for Justice, asked the Supreme Court to review the case — and indeed to summarily reverse the Ninth Circuit, based in part on ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3395111 Mon, 22 Mar 2010 20:17:18 +0100 3395111 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3382801&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F9982If77svc%2F By John SamplesLawrence Lessig has proposed a constitutional amendment in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United.  It reads: “Nothing in this Constitution shall be construed to restrict the power to limit, though not to ban, campaign expenditures of non-citizens of the United States during the last 60 days before an election.” In Citizens United, the Court said that the First Amendment concerns speech rather than speakers. Congress has no power to discriminate against speakers; hence, a source of speech – people organized as a corporation – could not be prohibited from speaking (or funding speech). Professor Lessig hopes to introduce a discrimination among speakers into the First Amendment. His proposed discrimination will not ... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3382801 Thu, 18 Mar 2010 20:31:47 +0100 3382801 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3378455&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FuR2h8bysNck%2F By David RittgersAs I previously noted, one of the areas where enforcement of the right to keep and bear arms will impact states and localities is in the carrying of handguns, either open or concealed. Until then, handgun carry proponents will be forced to comply with state laws that mandate open carry where concealed handgun permits are not issued or are only issued to those who happen to have fame, money, or political connections. Wisconsin is one of two states with no provision for concealed carry (Illinois is the other). Frank Hannon-Rock, a member of Wisconsin Carry, a pro-gun rights organization, was arrested for open carrying on his front porch. He filed suit and was recently awarded $10,000 by a federal district court. This parallels (but does not equal) the experience of Danladi M... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3378455 Wed, 17 Mar 2010 21:20:30 +0100 3378455 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3370390&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Fpt1aCcLKyHM%2F By Michael F. Cannon…are we under any obligation to obey it?  The answer may be no. Democrats are considering a scheme that would “deem” the Senate health care bill to have passed the House if a separate event occurs (specifically: House passage of a budget reconciliation bill).  That strategy has been named after its contriver, House Rules Committee chair Louise Slaughter (D-NY).  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) says of this scheme: “I like it because people don’t have to vote on the Senate bill” (emphasis added). Not so fast, says former federal circuit court judge Michael McConnell in The Wall Street Journal: Under Article I, Section 7, passage of one bill cannot be deemed to be enactment of another. The Slaughter solution attempts to allow the H... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3370390 Tue, 16 Mar 2010 15:10:48 +0100 3370390 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3362381&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Fsg9Wjs6jdp0%2F By Julian SanchezThe Washington Post reports that the Justice Department recently sent out a letter to the chairs of the Asian Pacific, black, and Hispanic caucuses in Congress, reassuring them that the Patriot Act’s expansion of information-gathering powers, including the controversial Section 215, does not override federal statutes guaranteeing the confidentiality of census data.  DOJ’s view, according to Assistant Attorney General Ronald Weich, is that “if Congress intended to override these protections, it would say so clearly and explicitly.” Section 215, recall, is colloquially referred to as the “business records” provision of Patriot, though in fact it permits investigators to obtain “any tangible thing” from a designated person or e... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3362381 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 19:37:33 +0100 3362381 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3354304&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FZ8_JCL0HA_4%2F By David RittgersI recently appeared on the Patt Morrison Show in southern California opposite Paul Helmke of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence in a segment that begs the question of what gun control laws will look like if the Supreme Court incorporates the Second Amendment with the McDonald v. Chicago case. The audio of the program is here, but the issue merits a more detailed discussion than I could get into on the radio. The litigation over the boundaries of the Second Amendment in the District of Columbia previews the kinds of gun laws that will face court scrutiny. First, certain restrictions on the purchase of firearms will likely be overturned. California maintains a “safe gun roster” of handguns that manufacturers have successfully submitted for safety testing. Followi... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3354304 Wed, 10 Mar 2010 21:45:29 +0100 3354304 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3350261&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FP7cKCi4Rk_Y%2F By Ilya ShapiroAs I blogged last week, the Supreme Court didn’t seem amenable to Privileges or Immunities Clause arguments in last week’s gun rights case, McDonald v. Chicago.  This is unfortunate because the alternative, extending the right to keep and bear arms via the Due Process Clause, continues a long-time deviation from constitutional text, history, and structure, and reinforces the idea that judges enforce only those rights they deem “fundamental” (whatever that means). It was especially disconcerting to see Justice Antonin Scalia, the standard-bearer for originalism, give up on his own preferred method of interpretation — and for the sole reason that it was intellectually “easier” to use the “substantive due process” doctrin... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3350261 Tue, 09 Mar 2010 19:31:42 +0100 3350261 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3342637&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F5nCD20hVZjk%2F By Ilya ShapiroUnder Washington’s constitution, a popular vote must be ordered on any bill passed by the legislature if a specified percentage of state voters sign a petition for a referendum. Washington’s Public Records Act makes public records, including such referendum petitions, available for public inspection. In 2009, opponents of same-sex marriage used the referendum procedure to attempt to reverse a state law which expands the rights of state-registered domestic partners. Proponents of the law sought access to the petition and two of the petition signers sought a preliminary injunction to prevent disclosure of their personal information, arguing that the PRA violates their right to speak anonymously. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held that the right to access trump... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3342637 Mon, 08 Mar 2010 13:37:10 +0100 3342637 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3326968&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Fpu6A47dw764%2F By Ilya ShapiroThis morning the Court heard argument in McDonald v. Chicago, the case asking whether the right to keep and bear arms extends to protecting against actions by state and local governments.  Just as importantly, it asked whether the best way to extend that right would be through the Due Process Clause of Privileges or Immunities Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment (because the Second Amendment doesn’t apply directly to the states). From the initial questioning through the end, it was quite clear that those living in Chicago — and, by extension, New York, San Francisco, and other places with extreme gun restrictions — will soon be able to rest easy, knowing that they will be able to have guns with which to protect themselves.  Unfortunately, the Court did not... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3326968 Tue, 02 Mar 2010 18:21:27 +0100 3326968 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3322341&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FiVLwEQO_B2Y%2F By David BoazIn this NPR story Nina Totenberg gives both sides their say.  But twice she refers to the people advocating Second Amendment rights as “gun advocates” (and once as “gun rights advocates”). That’s not the language NPR uses in other such cases. In 415 NPR stories on abortion, I found only one reference to “abortion advocates,” in 2005. There are far more references, hundreds more, to “abortion rights,” “reproductive rights,” and “women’s rights.” And certainly abortion-rights advocates would insist that they are not “abortion advocates,” they are advocates for the right of women to choose whether or not to have an abortion. NPR grants them the respect of characterizing them the way t... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3322341 Tue, 02 Mar 2010 15:54:10 +0100 3322341 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3318377&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F3Fxyz_2NuPA%2F By Ilya ShapiroTomorrow the Supreme Court will hear oral argument in McDonald v. Chicago — the Second Amendment case with implications far beyond gun rights.  The Court is quite likely to extend the right to keep and bear arms to the states and thereby invalidate the Chicago handgun ban at issue, but the way in which it does so could revolutionize constitutional law. In response to the oppression of freed slaves and abolitionists in southern and border states after the Civil War, the Fourteenth Amendment’s drafters sought to protect individual rights from infringement by state and local governments.  The amendment’s Due Process Clause and Privileges or Immunities Clause provided overlapping but distinct protections for these rights.  The Court decided in the 1873 Slaughter-Ho... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3318377 Mon, 01 Mar 2010 13:46:30 +0100 3318377 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3306819&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FTY8S8vDkpz8%2F By Jim HarperEverybody’s wrong. That’s sort of the message I was putting out when I wrote my 2008 American University Law Review law review article entitled “Reforming Fourth Amendment Privacy Doctrine.” A lot of people have poured a lot of effort into the “reasonable expectation of privacy” formulation Justice Harlan wrote about in his concurrence to the 1967 decision in U.S. v. Katz. But the Fourth Amendment isn’t about people’s expectations or the reasonableness of their expectations. It’s about whether, as a factual matter, they have concealed information from others—and whether the government is being reasonable in trying to discover that information. The upshot of the “reasonable expectation of privacy” form... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3306819 Thu, 25 Feb 2010 13:42:26 +0100 3306819 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3298292&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Fc8d7z699Udg%2F By Tad DeHavenTea partiers take note: at the forefront of any effort to reduce the size of the federal government should be the devolvement of federal programs to the states. Achieving this may seem like mission impossible given the states’ addiction to federal money. However, there are signs that the idea of returning the relationship between the federal government and the states to that which the Founders prescribed is starting to gain some currency. On Friday, the president of the Utah Senate and the speaker of the Utah House of Representatives penned an op-ed in the Washington Post calling for the federal government to begin the devolution process. The authors want the states to have the right to opt out of federal programs and allow the states to keep the taxes their residents s... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3298292 Tue, 23 Feb 2010 13:52:36 +0100 3298292 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3298294&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2Ffz1ayA38wus%2F By Julian SanchezLast week, I noted the strange story of a lawsuit filed by parents who allege that their son was spied on by school officials who used security software capable of remotely activating the webcams in laptops distributed to students. A bit more information on that case has since come out. The school district has issued a statement which doesn’t get into the details of the case, but avers that the remote camera capability has only ever been used in an effort to locate laptops believed to have been lost or stolen. (That apparently includes a temporary “loaner computer that, against regulations, might be taken off campus.”)  They do, however, acknowledge that they erred in failing to notify parents about this capability.  The lawyer for the student plaintiff... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3298294 Tue, 23 Feb 2010 13:46:14 +0100 3298294 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3298393&cid=t_268072_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F02%2F23%2Fthe-situation-of-suspicion%2F This article examines this claim by exploring in depth the cognitive biases and abilities that serve respectively as obstacles to, and opportunities for, police making accurate judgments about individualized suspicion. The article concludes that requiring police consciously to justify their intuitions can improve their accuracy, that the greatest accuracy comes from constructing institutions in a way that combines the best of unconscious intuition with more systematic critique, and that police training can be improved in various ways to enhance cognitive accuracy about the individualized suspicion judgment. * * * For a sample of related Situationist posts, see “The Legal Situation of the Underclass,” “Jennifer Eberhardt’s “Policing Racial Bias” – Video,” and “Th... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3298393 Tue, 23 Feb 2010 04:01:00 +0100 3298393 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3298300&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FcWy9DxwsWug%2F By Jim HarperThis Reason.tv video illustrates the weak case for network neutrality regulation of Internet service providers. In the AT&T case, which the video touches on, an AT&T web site blocked some (barely) controversial statements by Eddie Vedder—the Pearl Jam lead singer who stopped mattering a really long time ago. This was an error, and it was contrary to AT&T policy, according to this August 2007 story. Yet the example is one of a few used to argue for net neutrality regulations. Do we really want the government treading any of this ground? Most people would probably agree that web site operators should be free to publish or not publish whatever they want. Regulations barring web sites from editing out controversial political statements, or requiring them to broa... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3298300 Mon, 22 Feb 2010 20:40:03 +0100 3298300 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3294575&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F3sDdbKW5uvI%2F By Daniel J. MitchellI recently publicized an interesting map showing that so-called tax havens are not hotbeds of dirty money. A more fundamental question is whether anti-money laundering laws are an effective way of fighting crime — particularly since they substantially undermine privacy. In this new six-minute video, I ask whether it’s time to radically rethink a system that costs billions of dollars each year, forces banks to snoop on their customers, and misallocates law enforcement resources. (Source: Cato-at-liberty) Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3294575 Mon, 22 Feb 2010 13:42:38 +0100 3294575 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3294577&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FG5Ywbz_sAVY%2F Discussion of McDonald and “Keeping Pandora’s Box Sealed” (sponsored by the GJLPP and the Federalist Society) Mar. 3 at 12pm – Cato Institute Hill Briefing in B-340 Rayburn House Office Building - “McDonald v. Chicago: The Fourteenth Amendment and the Future of Gun Rights“ You can also listen here to a half-hour podcast about “Keeping Pandora’s Box Sealed” that I recently recorded with the Independence Institute’s David Kopel (also a Cato associate policy analyst). (Source: Cato-at-liberty) Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3294577 Mon, 22 Feb 2010 13:38:53 +0100 3294577 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3283520&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2FyKk76th22OY%2F By John SamplesA new poll from Washington Post/ABC News poll shows that most respondents oppose the recent Citizens United decision by the U.S. Supreme Court. Just over 70 percent of those polled want to reinstate the unconstitutional restrictions. The questions asked may be found here. Sean Parnell asks whether the wording of the questions in this poll drove the results. William McGinley shares Parnell’s concerns and suggests some alternative questions for future polling. I was not surprised by the result. Polls have long found that substantial majorities support something called “campaign finance reform.” Over two years ago, a poll found that 71 percent of Americans wanted to limit corporate and union spending on campaigns. 62 percent also supported limiting the amount of money a p... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3283520 Wed, 17 Feb 2010 18:15:41 +0100 3283520 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3266893&cid=t_268072_87_f&fid=36438&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FCato-at-liberty%2F%7E3%2F2Tlfs0GLUXQ%2F By Jim HarperIf you have a mobile phone, that’s the upshot of an argument being put forward by the government in a case being argued before the Third Circuit Court of Appeals tomorrow. The case is called In the Matter of the Application of the United States of America For An Order Directing A Provider of Electronic Communication Service To Disclose Records to the Government. Declan McCullagh reports: In that case, the Obama administration has argued that Americans enjoy no “reasonable expectation of privacy” in their—or at least their cell phones’—whereabouts. U.S. Department of Justice lawyers say that “a customer’s Fourth Amendment rights are not violated when the phone company reveals to the government its own records” that show wher... Cato-at-liberty blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3266893 Thu, 11 Feb 2010 19:50:35 +0100 3266893