Blog 4.3

1. Who is the new Attorney General?  

2. How does the Trump administration plan to handle local police departments differently?

3. If Obama's Administration prioritized civil rights protections and limiting use of excessive force, what are the priorities of the Trump administration in dealing with police?

4. What does the federal memo state is the federal government's role in monitoring police now?

5. Why are they asking the federal judge to delay the trial in Baltimore?

6. How does the Trump administration plan to make sure that local police forces follow federal laws?

Answers

1. Jefferson Beauregard "Jeff" Sessions III 

2. They are showing "the strongest signs yet that the Trump administration not only plans to scale back the number of new investigations it launches into unconstitutional policing, excessive force and other law enforcement misconduct allegations but also the likelihood it will seek to reopen agreements the Obama civil rights unit had already negotiated."

3. They want to put more power back into the police departments, for it is "not the responsibility of the federal government to manage non-federal law enforcement agencies." They also want to ensure effective policing too, even if a few eggs have to be broken to make that cake. 

4. "Sessions urged federal authorities under his command to do more to promote officer safety and morale."

5. "Justice Department lawyers are merely asking the judge in Baltimore for more time to review the agreement, considering the new Sessions memo 'and the progress toward reform Baltimore has made in the pasts several months.'"

6. "The Sessions memo also raised anew the specter that cities and states whose law enforcement agencies accept federal monies from the Justice Department could see a cut off if they do not adhere to federal laws."

Blog 4.2

1. How has Trump impacted the timeline for Republicans to get a repeal and replace bill for Obamacare passed?

2. What did Trump and Ryan do to attempt to place the blame on Democratic congressmen?

3. How do Trump and Ryan predict voters will see the failures of Obamacare, if the program gets worse?

4. Why was it so easy for Republicans to criticize Obamacare under Obama's presidency?

5. What are the results of Republicans deciding to never compromise any policy principals under Obama's presidency?

6. How is Trump using Twitter as the "bully pulpit"?

7. What message is he trying to get across to his followers that he won't say publicly?

8. Why would it be important for the Trump administration that the media blame Republican allies?

9. If Trump voters blame Republican allies, how does that help Trump gain more control in the party?

10. Why would Trump adviser Steve Bannon (the former Breitbart editor) want to put blame on Paul Ryan?

Answers

1. He largely extended it; due to his actions, it will be a much longer amount of time before their dream is achieved, if at all.

2. They are pointing to the fact that not a single Democrat voted for the bill, despite the fact that no direct appeals were made to them in the first place.

3. They feel that the public will blame solely Democrats for the failure of Obamacare, if it is to progress and get worse.

4. "Republicans have spent eight years fooling themselves about Obamacare. They have built a news bubble that relentlessly circulates exaggerated or made-up news of the law’s shortcomings and systematically ignores its successes.”

5. Democrats do not wish to compromise in any way now.

6. He is using it as a platform to send his message to a large audience, an audience made up of his Twitter followers.

7. It seems as though he is blaming Paul Ryan for the failure of the AHCA.

8. It's being done to remove blame from Trump.

9. More faith would be placed in Trump if the trust of Republican allies was lessened.

10. It would show loyalty to Trump and further Trump's power in the Republican party.

Blog 4.1

1. What does the Legal Services Corporation do?

2. How is this different than the role played by public defenders?

3. Which types of states end up getting the most help from this agency? 

4. What types of cases are they typically involved in?

5. How do these services help save communities money?

6. Why can't the lawyers who work for the program advocate for the program?

7. Why is this more prominent in rural areas than urban areas?

8. Explain how this agency can be seen as an extension of 6th Amendment civil liberties.

9. Explain how this agency can be seen as an unnecessary government expenditure.   

Answer

1. "Established by Congress in 1974 as a public nonprofit corporation, [the Legal Services Corporation] funds more than a hundred civil legal-aid programs throughout the country... In many ways, legal-aid organizations fill the same role in civil proceedings that public defenders perform in the criminal-justice system: providing legal representation for those unable to afford it themselves."

2. "The Sixth Amendment requires the existence of public-defender systems, which often have their own budgetary woes, but civil legal-aid programs have no such constitutional mandate. Instead, they rely on support from both parties and funding from federal and state governments, private foundations, and other nonprofit groups to exist."

3. Poorer states generally gain the most benefits from the LSC.

4. They primarily assist in civil cases. "Their assistance can range from educational programs to direct legal representation in state, federal, and tribal courts."

5. By preventing future expenses through the work that they do, e.g. stopping a foreclosure to ensure that property values do not fall, the LSC save communities save money.

6. "Legal-aid lawyers who work for federally funded organizations avoided speaking directly with me about the Trump administration’s budget proposal, citing federal rules that bar their organizations from lobbying either for or against legislation. "

7. “In the cities, you're more likely to have some other organizations, for example, that are doing domestic-violence protection work [or other civil protections]... In [rural areas], [the LSC is] basically pretty much the only lawyers who are representing poor people in domestic-violence and other family cases.”

8. This makes it easier for one to have the ability to obtain legal council.

9. They are not public defenders assigned by the court; therefore, they are not a necessity.

Blog 3.7

1. What does the Martin-Quinn score attempt to measure?

2. What trend do you notice as justices serve on the Supreme Court for many years?

3. How does the Greenhouse Effect theory try to explain this phenomenon?

4. How does the Cocktail Party theory try to explain this?

5. How might the historical reputation of a justice effect their decision making?

6. Why have conservatives been disappointed so far by Chief Justice John Roberts?

7. Of all the theories for why this occurs, which do you think is most realistic?  Why?

Answers

1. It's a measure of judicial ideology.

2. They become more liberal.

3. Activists have consistently pressured judges into making more liberal decisions.

4. Conservative judges want to be seen as more reasonable and moderate, so they make more liberal decisions.

5. History fails to remember conservative judges kindly, so to preserve legacy, they may make more liberal decisions.

6. His decisions have been drifting toward the liberal end of things.

7a. Either the cocktail scene or the experience have the largest effects.

7b. I believe that our interactions with other individuals shape large parts of our growth and life; therefore, because these two topics are built upon such, I find these to be the most realistic.

Blog 3.6

1. Where is Neil Gorsuch currently working?

2. Why are Democrats likely to attempt to fight this nomination?

3. How are people predicting the way he might rule on abortion cases that reach the court?

4. How would you describe his views on religious freedom?

5. What opinions about the role of judges does he share with former Justice Scalia?

6. What percentage of all federal court cases end up being decided by a split SCOTUS?

7. What does that tell you about the vast majority of federal court cases?

8. Why do people think that Gorsuch will have an important role in swaying "swing vote" Anthony Kennedy on so many issues?

Answers

1. "Neil Gorsuch [is] a 49-year-old federal appeals court judge on the 10th Circuit."

2. "A Democratic filibuster motivated by Republicans’ successful obstruction of President Obama’s nominee, Merrick Garland, for this same seat last year is a certainty for any nominee."

3. He believes in a right to life, so he is likely to vote that way as well.

4. He's a bit too broad for my liking on his views of religious freedom, and I think his views run the risk of letting citizens abuse it, but that's just me.

5. They both primarily believe in just looking at the Constitution and other written laws. "Both are textualists, concerned primarily in the literal text of laws and less in their legislative history or social context of passage."

6. "Supreme Court cases that don’t result in a unanimous decision account for only 0.014 percent of all federal court cases."

7. We don't know about most of 'em 'cause most don't make headline news.

8. "Beyond his overall jurisprudence, however, he would be the first justice ever to serve alongside a justice for whom he clerked, namely Anthony Kennedy... That gives conservatives some hope that Gorsuch will be able to sway Kennedy on crucial cases, solidifying the conservative bloc and ensuring a 5-4 conservative majority on key issues."

Blog 3.5

1. Describe the way most judicial branch nominations went down in Obama's first term.

2. How did Senate Democrats change the rules for nominations in Obama's second term?

3. How did Senate Republicans respond when they gained control of the Senate in 2014?

4. How many vacancies are there in the District Court level?

5. How will the Senate Republicans' gamble pay off significantly now that Trump is the president?

6. When is the hearing on Trump's travel ban Executive Order?

7. What type of court would this be since it's the first time hearing the case?

8. Who are the plaintiffs?

9. How is the lawsuit going to try to turn this into a "class action"? (You definitely remember what a class action lawsuit is, right?)

Answers:

1. "Obama was president, and Democrats controlled the Senate. Republicans largely agreed that, in some sense, this meant he was entitled to fill judicial vacancies with Democratic Party appointees." Generally, the more moderate judges would have the least resistance, but overall, the Republicans made sure to put up a fight against most nominees.

2. They made it impossible to filibuster judicial appointees.

3. They shut down confirmations altogether.

4. "Right now, 10 percent of the seats on the federal district court benches are vacant."

5. The appointment of Neil Gorsuch will go more smoothly.

6. "During a 7:30 pm emergency hearing Saturday in a Brooklyn courthouse, a federal court will consider whether to temporarily halt the deportation of two Iraqi visa-holders detained at JFK International Airport Friday night — and dozens or even hundreds of others who have been detained in airports around the country as a result of the ban." - January 28th

7. It'd be a case of original jurisdiction.

8. Hameed Khalid Darweesh and Haider Sameer Abdulkhaleq Alshawi are "the two men on whose behalf the suit was originally filed."

9a. There are many other people being affected by this ban; the lawyers will, as a result, try to let this decision affect all of those affected by the ban.

9b. Class Action Lawsuit - lawsuits in which a small number of people sue on behalf of all people in similar circumstances

Blog 3.4

1. How did the Obama Administration prepare for the Trump Administration's plans for the EPA?

2. What does Trump have to do to policies that Obama enacted by Executive Order instead of Congressional action?

3, What policies did Obama's Administration pass through the rule-making process, and what does Trump have to do to get rid of these?

4. What history does Trump's pick for head of the EPA have with the agency?

5. What is the main way that Congress can limit the effectiveness of the EPA?

6. How could Trump and Congress alter the future of all EPA rule-making? (What would the REINS Act do?)

7. Based on what you know about environmental protection and Congress, what do you think the impact of this would be if it were to pass?

Answers

1. "The Obama administration raced to finish a bunch of environmental regulations before leaving, though it had yet to publish four energy efficiency rules that will now be put on hold."

2. It takes merely a memo to cancel the Executive Orders of the Obama Administration.

3a. "Under the Obama administration, the EPA also issued a number of more complex regulations that went through the formal rulemaking process. That includes fuel economy standards for cars and trucks, the Clean Power Plan to reduce CO2 from power plants, rules around mercury and ozone pollution, and much, much more."

3b. "If Trump wants to repeal or modify these rules, he can’t just do so with the stroke of a pen. The EPA would have to formally start the time-consuming rulemaking process all over again. That means notifying the public of any rule changes, soliciting public comment for those changes, responding to all those public comments, and then rigorously justifying their new rules — likely before the courts."

4. "His pick to run the EPA, former Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, spent a lot of time suing the Obama administration over many of its rules and is familiar with the legal process here, but the courts rejected Pruitt’s arguments over and over again while he was in Oklahoma."

5. "Under a little-used law known as the Congressional Review Act, Republicans in the House and Senate can kill by majority vote certain Obama-era rules finished after late May 2016."

6a. They may attempt to reform the rule-making process in full, thus making it harder to produce new regulations.

6b. "They could try to pass the REINS Act, which would require that every major new EPA rule be subject to an up-or-down vote from Congress (which would kill a lot of new regulations)."

7. We would likely see an increase in pollution, among other harmful results in the environment.

Blog 3.3

1. How does Paste Magazine characterize Cory Booker?

2. Why did Cory Booker vote against an amendment that seems like it would help people?

3. How does Cory Booker justify his vote publicly?

4. Where does Cory Booker get his campaign funding from?

5. What else, besides sources of campaign funding, may impact his vote?

6. Why did Cory Booker testify against Jeff Sessions?

7. Why would voting against the medical bill impact his "national ambitions"?

8. How do his ties to industry and special interest jeopardize those?

9. What will serve as Trump's "bully pulpit"?

10. How are Trump's nominations serving to keep his party happy?

11. Why is it important that Trump get more attention than the policies he is likely to enact?

12. Why would Trump meet with high profile candidates like Al Gore, but chose someone else for the job?

13. In what ways might the role of the Cabinet change under a Trump presidency?

Answer:

1. When Big Money is involved, he'll side with them over all else.

2. "His vote may have had more to do with the concentration of the pharmaceutical industry in his home state."

3. "Booker’s spokesperson cited concerns over the "safety standards" of the prescription drugs that would be coming in from Canada under the amendment."

4. "Jezebel reported that Booker received $267,338 from pharmaceutical companies, which led some on the left to say that this money explained his vote."

5. He's done a lot of work with the private sector before in other fields.

6. Sessions had historically done and said many racist things.

7. He is "stuck between two bad outcomes — defying the industries of their home states, or taking a position that could be broadly unpopular with their national parties."

8. If he acts against the interests of his constituency, they may backlash against him.

9. Twitter, the media, and his own stages events will serve as his pulpit.

10. By giving the jobs to hard-right Republicans, his party gets to pass the sweeping legislation they have wanted for so long.

11. It's like a magic trick. While we're watching "Trump, the Magnificent" waving the magic wand that is his Twitter account in his small, right hand, his equally small left hand is hiding the real trick: sweeping executive orders to the detriment of America.

12. Plain and simple: It's a decoy, a decoy meant to lead us on in this political mess.

13. "The Cabinet could return to prominence under the Trump administration... The trend in recent years... has been for more and more power to accrue to the White House staff at the Cabinet’s expense.... It does seem [though] that the secretaries could get a lot of leeway to run their own shops as they see fit, while the Trump Show gets all the media attention... Alternatively, it’s also possible that the Trump White House could get it together and exert a firm hand on the Cabinet."

Blog 3.2

1. How did the public deal with the attempt to shut down the Office of Congressional Ethics?

2. How did sharing control of the government with Democrats actually end up helping Republicans in Congress?

3. What does the professor from University of Miami mean when saying that the Republicans were more of a "protest party"?

4. Why is Trump a potential problem for Republicans in Congress?

5. In what situations will Trump be willing to oppose Republicans in Congress?

6. How are some Republicans, like the Freedom Caucus, adjusting their stances preparing for a Trump presidency?

7.  How will the public view Republicans differently now that they are in charge of lawmaking?

Answers

1. There was a strong amount of public backlash.

2. "For the past eight years, divided government has inadvertently protected the House GOP from electoral consequences for many of their legislative actions. Even the unpopular GOP-driven shutdown of the federal government in 2013 was soon forgotten by the electorate, since a majority of the voters consistently disapproved of President Barack Obama’s job performance the following year, and voted accordingly."

3. "For the last six years, their organizing strategy has been to be a protest party, and all their actions have been interpreted not as actual governing but as protest."

4. "About two-thirds of Republicans in the House have never served under a Republican president, which means Republicans will have to figure out 'what it means to be the party that controls the House, Senate, and the presidency for the first time in a while.'"

5. If it makes him look good, he'll do it.

6. "There are early signs that the Freedom Caucus — who had styled themselves as the House’s staunchest conservatives — are reinventing themselves as fervent Trump supporters, in many cases because they’ve concluded their base voters care far more about Trump than they do about free-market orthodoxy."

7. "Republicans are the governing party now — which means they’ll face much tougher public scrutiny."