In the New York Times, Saikrishna Prakash and John Yoo: Don’t Prosecute Trump. Impeach Him. As to prosecution, they argue: The Constitution imposes on the president the duty to “take care that the laws be faithfully executed,” which vests the authority to oversee all federal law enforcement. As Alexander Hamilton observed in Federalist 70, “good government”…
Last month, a reporter with the Anniston Star in Alabama interviewed me about a bill prefiled in the Alabama House for 2018 that would exempt the purchase of gold and silver bullion from state sales and use tax, encouraging its use and taking the first step toward breaking the Federal Reserve’s monopoly on money. I could tell…
MADISON, Wisc. (Dec. 6, 2017) – Last Thursday, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker signed a bill into law legalizing hemp cultivation for research purposes only in compliance with federal law. The new law could lay a foundation to eventually expand the hemp market in the state, and with further action, could set the stage for nullification…
CONCORD, N.H. (Nov. 30, 2017) – A bill prefiled in the New Hampshire House would ban sobriety checkpoints in the state. The law would not only end constitutionally dubious “searches” in New Hampshire, it would also thwart federal programs that heavily influence state traffic laws. A coalition of five representatives prefiled House Bill 1283 (HB1283)…
In the on-going debate over who now heads the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the focus has been on whether the statute establishing the CFPB (the Dodd-Frank Act) overrides the Vacancy Reform Act (VRA). (Marty Lederman has a good discussion here). The debate highlights a broader point about textualism (and, by extension, originalism). Dodd-Frank says that…
LANSING, Mich. (Nov. 29, 2017) – Yesterday, I testified before the Michigan House Committee on Judiciary in support of a bill that would ban “material support or resources” for warrantless federal surveillance programs, an essential step for states to take in a time when the federal government seems unlikely to ever end their own spying. Rep.…
12. Is Obamacare’s Independent Payment Advisory Board constitutional? 13. Should seniors be able to opt out of Medicare without
According to a recent Fox News report, it appears increasingly likely Congress will have enough bipartisan support to push through “common sense” federal gun control legislation in 2018. If this happens, state action can effectively nullify these federal gun laws and render them ineffectual. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) have crafted legislation…
It is often suggested that as soon as the Supreme Court weighs in on a particular issue, it can no longer be revisited and whatever opinion is rendered must be treated as an eternally binding edict. If one adopts to this position, they must then accept the following: that free blacks are not citizens and…
It took me just moments to come up with these. That means there are way more than seven.