[EL] ELB News and Commentary 3/7/14

Rick Hasen rhasen at law.uci.edu
Fri Mar 7 08:53:12 PST 2014


    Obama Campaign $ Bundler Nominated to Replace Norm Eisen as Czech
    Ambassador <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59314>

Posted on March 7, 2014 8:02 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59314>by 
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

CPI reports. 
<http://www.publicintegrity.org/2014/03/07/14365/lawyer-selected-czech-ambassadorship-also-major-obama-fundraiser>

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, 
campaigns <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=59>


    Bauer Replies to Ryan on Distortion
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59312>

Posted on March 7, 2014 7:23 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59312>by 
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Here. 
<http://www.moresoftmoneyhardlaw.com/2014/03/distortion-really-quick-reply-paul-ryan-campaign-legal-center/>

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, tax law 
and election law <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=22>


    "New Arizona Super PAC Ready To Support GOP Congressional Candidates
    Tobin, McSally (Others?); Pushing Boundaries of Coordination"
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59310>

Posted on March 6, 2014 4:49 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59310>by 
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Arizona's Politics reports 
<http://arizonaspolitics.blogspot.com/2014/03/following-money-in-arizonas-politics_6.html>.

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>


    "Obama Civil Rights Nominee Knew He Was Doomed But Wanted Debate,
    Harry Reid Says" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59308>

Posted on March 6, 2014 4:47 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59308>by 
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

HuffPo 
<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/06/harry-reid-debo-adegbile_n_4912790.html?utm_hp_ref=tw>:

    During a Thursday sitdown with reporters, Reid said that Adegbile, a
    respected civil rights lawyer who previously led the NAACP Legal
    Defense and Educational Fund, met privately with Reid and Senate
    Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) for nearly an
    hour before the vote. The three of them went through the pros and
    cons of proceeding with what would likely be a loss. In the end,
    Adegbile said he wouldn't withdraw his name, even though Republicans
    and even some Democrats were ready to block him over the fact that
    he once helped get convicted murderer Mumia Abu-Jabal off death row.

    "He said, 'I'm 47 years old. ... I've spent all my life trying to do
    the right thing,'" Reid said. "'I didn't step into a courtroom for
    this man. I didn't write a word for the briefs for this man. ...
    I've done nothing wrong. I think if I'm going to be voted down, it's
    a good time to start a discussion on civil rights in America.'"

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Posted in Department of Justice <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=26>


    "Outside groups dwarf candidate spending in Florida special
    election" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59306>

Posted on March 6, 2014 4:44 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59306>by 
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

CPI reports. 
<http://www.publicintegrity.org/2014/03/06/14337/outside-groups-dwarf-candidate-spending-florida-special-election>

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>


    "FEC Complaint Calls for Investigation of Possible Illegal
    Contributions & Coordination by Montana Congressional Candidate &
    Super PAC He Founded" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59304>

Posted on March 6, 2014 3:01 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59304>by 
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

See this press release 
<http://www.campaignlegalcenter.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2393:march-5-2014-fec-complaint-calls-for-investigation-of-possible-illegal-contributions-a-coordination-by-montana-congressional-candidate-a-super-pac-he-founded&catid=63:legal-center-press-releases&Itemid=61>.

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>


    "Paterson Councilman Rodriguez and wife indicted on mail-in ballot
    fraud charges" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59302>

Posted on March 6, 2014 2:52 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59302>by 
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

News from NJ. 
<http://www.politickernj.com/71854/paterson-councilman-rodriguez-and-wife-indicted-mail-ballot-fraud-charges>

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Posted in absentee ballots <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=53>, 
chicanery <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=12>


    "Former IRS Official Lerner Gave Interview to DOJ"
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59300>

Posted on March 6, 2014 10:44 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59300>by 
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Interesting WSJ report. <http://t.co/T7fVuELWMg>

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, tax law 
and election law <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=22>


    "New Effort to Assist Military/Overseas Voters"
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59298>

Posted on March 6, 2014 10:43 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59298>by 
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

That's the lead story in this week's/Electionline Weekly./ 
<http://www.electionline.org/index.php/electionline-weekly>

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Posted in absentee ballots <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=53>, 
election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, military 
voting <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=48>


    "Why is Bob Bauer Distorting our Position on IRS Rules?"
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59296>

Posted on March 6, 2014 10:42 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59296>by 
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Paul Ryan blogs 
<http://www.clcblog.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=549:why-is-bob-bauer-distorting-our-position-on-irs-rules>.

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, tax law 
and election law <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=22>


    Senator Ted Cruz Distorts Supreme Court's Voting Rights Holding
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59294>

Posted on March 6, 2014 9:03 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59294>by 
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

By all indications Sen.Ted Cruz is a brilliant lawyer. So I take his 
mischaracterizing 
<http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/372648/cruz-reacts-nro-story-sensenbrenners-voting-power-grab-alec-torres> 
of the Supreme Court's Shelby County case as being disingenuous and not 
simply misguided. Sen. Cruz writes:

    It is disturbing that new efforts are being made in the House and
    Senate to resurrect voting rules that were recently deemed
    unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. We should protect the civil
    rights of every American, and other sections of the Voting Rights
    Act already provide strong protections against racially
    discriminatory voting practices. The Supreme Court held that
    circumstances have changed dramatically in the last 50 years, and
    the old justifications for preclearance are no longer
    constitutionally applicable. We should respect the Supreme Court's
    judgment.

But the Supreme Court's judgment in /Shelby County/ 
<http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=4053797526279899410&hl=en&as_sdt=2006> 
was not that preclearance is "no longer constitutionally applicable." It 
was that the old preclearance regime was based on an outdated formula 
when it needs to be tied to "current conditions."  Indeed, Chief Justice 
Roberts writing for the Court majority invited Congress to come up with 
a new coverage formula:

    We issue no holding on § 5 itself, only on the coverage formula.
    Congress may draft another formula based on current conditions. Such
    a formula is an initial prerequisite to a determination that
    exceptional conditions still exist justifying such an "extraordinary
    departure from the traditional course of relations between the
    States and the Federal Government." /Presley,/ 502 U.S., at 500-501,
    112 S.Ct. 820
    <http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=3688033305690759513&hl=en&as_sdt=2006>.
    Our country has changed, and while any racial discrimination in
    voting is too much, Congress must ensure that the legislation it
    passes to remedy that problem speaks to current conditions.

Now there are reasons to believe that the majority's suggestion of a new 
coverage formula was disingenuous 
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2291612>. But let's 
not pretend, as Sen. Cruz does, that the Court has foreclosed a new 
coverage formula.

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Posted in Supreme Court <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>, Voting 
Rights Act <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=15>


    SOCLASS II: Elections, Law and Democracy
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59292>

Posted on March 6, 2014 8:48 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59292>by 
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Looking forward to this event <http://soclass.org/> at Whittier Law 
School on March 28. Here is the conference schedule 
<http://soclass.org/conference-schedule>.  I'll be giving thekeynote, 
<http://soclass.org/elections-law-and-democracy>"Abuse of Discretion: 
The U.S. Supreme Court's Indefensible Use of Evidence in Election Law 
Cases."

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Posted in Uncategorized <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>


    "Lawsuit Filed in NJ Federal Court Challenges Constitutionality of
    Partisan Primary Elections" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59290>

Posted on March 6, 2014 8:23 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59290>by 
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Press release 
<http://ivn.us/2014/03/05/lawsuit-filed-nj-federal-court-challenges-constitutionality-partisan-primary-elections/>: 
"The EndPartisanship.org <http://endpartisanship.org> coalition today 
filed suit in the U.S. District Court in Newark, New Jersey demanding 
that every voter should have an equal and meaningful vote at every stage 
of the state-funded election process, regardless of their party 
affiliation or non-affiliation."

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Posted in political parties <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=25>, 
primaries <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=32>


    "(Mis)Trusting States to Run Elections"
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59288>

Posted on March 6, 2014 8:19 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=59288>by 
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Josh Douglas has posted this draft 
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2405396>on SSRN 
(forthcoming /Wash. U. Law Review/). Here is the abstract:

    Current Supreme Court doctrine defers too readily to states' voting
    systems. In the process, the Court has removed Congress from the
    elections business. The Court has done so not explicitly but through
    two judicial maneuvers, one substantive and the other procedural,
    that place tremendous trust in states: lowering the bar for the
    state interest prong of the constitutional analysis, and forbidding
    facial challenges to state rules on election administration. The
    Court has credited any state assertion of "election integrity," even
    if that is not the actual impetus for the law under review. It also
    will reject a facial challenge to a state voting rule, thereby
    leaving the law in place until a plaintiff has gathered actual
    evidence of the law's impact on particular voters. The Court has not
    treated Congress the same, demonstrating its willingness to
    invalidate a federal voting rule on its face even when Congress has
    asserted a more detailed rationale for the law. This Article
    uncovers this approach to constitutional challenges to voting
    regulations. It also explains why this current jurisprudence is both
    wrong and dangerous. It is wrong because the U.S. Constitution gives
    the federal government significant scope to promulgate election
    regulations, and states are subordinate to Congress under our
    constitutional structure. It is dangerous because the current
    deferential approach emboldens states to pass partisan-based laws
    with an eye toward affecting elections, and all a state needs to say
    to justify a new law is that it is seeking to ensure "election
    integrity." The Court should reverse this current jurisprudence by
    requiring states to provide a more detailed justification for an
    election law and by allowing broader use of facial challenges to
    invalidate state voting laws, when necessary, before they are
    implemented. Voting, as a fundamental right, deserves robust
    protection from the courts. Scrutinizing state election laws more
    closely will help to achieve this worthy goal.

*Number of Pages in PDF File:* 50

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Posted in election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, 
The Voting Wars <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>

-- 
Rick Hasen
Chancellor's Professor of Law and Political Science
UC Irvine School of Law
401 E. Peltason Dr., Suite 1000
Irvine, CA 92697-8000
949.824.3072 - office
949.824.0495 - fax
rhasen at law.uci.edu
http://www.law.uci.edu/faculty/full-time/hasen/
http://electionlawblog.org

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