Civics 101: How to understand the Constitution
“Here’s an important, but widely overlooked, feature: The document doesn’t grant power only to federal officials. It also confers power on persons and entities who are not part of the U.S. government at all.”
Latest COVID orders layer chaos over confusion, add to risk
In issuing his latest directive, the governor missed opportunities to quit being an autocrat and start being a statesman.
COVID-19 and the Constitution
The Constitution’s flexibility in emergency is why the late Justice Robert H. Jackson once said, “The Constitution is not a suicide pact.” But emergencies do not cause the Constitution to vanish.
New article shows how amendments conventions and other “federal functions” are regulated
“[A]nother mistake is that because an amendments convention executes a federal function, Congress can control it. But . . . the rules and protocols for carrying out federal functions come from the Constitution, not from Congress.”
New court ruling exposes unconstitutionality of Colorado lockdown orders
Colorado’s orders are classic examples of infringements of fundamental rights that are both overbroad and underinclusive—and therefore unconstitutional.
A defense of the Electoral College
“… when Hamilton stated . . . that he believed electors would use “information and discernment,” that is not very good evidence that future electors did in fact use information and discernment. But it is quite good evidence that Hamilton and his readers believed the Constitution empowered electors to do so.”
Why donors should give to think tanks and NOT colleges & universities
“Some donors try to target their grants to certain activities only. But academic administrators have ways of evading such restrictions. [At think tanks] the money probably will be used far more efficiently than if it were dissipated on academic bureaucracy.”
Polis lock-down order adds chaos to unconstitutionality
Public Health Order 20-24 is an 11 page, mostly single-spaced, mash of bureau-fog.
City destroys home without paying: Will the Supreme Court take the case?
The Takings Clause in the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution . . . reads in part, “nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.”
Denver’s COVID-19 house arrest order is probably unconstitutional
“[Denver] has overreacted and has potentially violated the constitutional rights of city residents and millions of others.
Video: Rob Natelson and Jon Caldara discuss “Nat’l Popular Vote” & protecting the Electoral College’s integrity
Rob explains why II submitted a Supreme Court brief to protect presidential elector discretion and why the National Popular Vote Compact is a terrible idea
New scholarly article explains amendments conventions
The new article “marshals a massive amount of historical evidence to show that a convention for proposing amendments is simply a ‘convention of the states,’ a frequent kind of gathering in U.S. history, and one whose make-up and procedures is well known.