[EL] stay in John Doe case/contempt for Lois Lerner/more news
Rick Hasen
rhasen at law.uci.edu
Wed May 7 17:53:04 PDT 2014
Breaking: 7th Circuit Issues Stay in Wisconsin John Doe Case
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61310>
Posted on May 7, 2014 5:51 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61310>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Via the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
<http://www.jsonline.com/news/statepolitics/halt-to-john-doe-probe-lifts-obstacle-to-scott-walker-re-election-bid-b99264574z1-258293621.html>,
you can find the unanimous order of a three judge 7th Circuit panel
(Wood, Bauer and Easterbrook) at this link
<http://media.jrn.com/documents/courtdecision.pdf>.
I am completely unsurprised by this stay order, once I heard
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61292> (a) that the judge well may have
been acting in excess of his jurisdiction; and (b) the judge order the
destruction of evidence while the case was up on a /preliminary
injunction. /Here's what the appellate court wrote:
Whether or not the district court determines that the appeal is
frivolous, the portions of the injunction that require defendants to
return or destroy documents will remain stayed as long as
proceedings continue in this court. Compliance with those portions
of the injunction could moot some or all of the issues on appeal.
Whether or not any pre-injunction order is appealable, the
preliminary injunction is itself open to appeal under 28 U.S.C.
§1292(a). It would be inappropriate to implement the injunction in a
manner that effectively prevents appellate review. Plaintiffs'
interests, pending the review authorized by §1292, can be protected
if defendants hold the information in confidence and not use it.
I wouldn't read too much into the overall merits of the case. But
suffice it to say that when a district court pulls stuff like this, it
is a big red flag in the appellate court.
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>,
chicanery <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=12>
"Split Definitive: How Party Polarization Turned the Supreme Court
into a Partisan Court" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61308>
Posted on May 7, 2014 5:27 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61308>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Neal Devins and Larry Baum have posted this draft
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2432111>on SSRN.
Here is the abstract:
Starting in 2010 the Supreme Court has divided into two partisan
ideological blocs, with all the Court's Democratic appointees on the
liberal side and its Republican appointees on the conservative side.
Correspondingly, since 1990 there has been a dramatic increase in
the ideological gap between Democratic and Republican appointees. In
this article we make use of original empirical research to establish
that this partisan division is unprecedented in the Court's history,
and we undertake a systematic analysis of how it came about. We show
that it is linked to growing partisan polarization among political
elites, polarization that has shaped the Court in multiple ways. The
sorting of elites into the two parties on the basis of ideology has
greatly reduced the numbers of conservative Democrats and liberal
Republicans who might be selected as Justices. The same sorting has
prompted presidents --- for the first time ever --- to make ideology
the dominant factor in appointing Justices.
Finally, political elites that tended to lean in a
moderate-to-liberal direction during the 1960s through much of the
1980s have become far more polarized along ideological lines. As we
show through original research on the voting patterns of Justices
over the past forty years, Justices who once might have been drawn
toward moderation are increasingly reinforced in their liberal or
conservative orientations. One key reason is that the rise of the
conservative legal network has worked against the "drift" of
Republican appointees toward more moderate positions that was common
a few decades ago. This analysis indicates that the current partisan
division on the Court is not a temporary phenomenon; rather, it is
likely to continue as long as the current partisan polarization
continues.
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Posted in political parties <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=25>,
political polarization <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=68>, Supreme
Court <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>
"Judge refuses to stay order over voter citizenship"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61306>
Posted on May 7, 2014 5:25 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61306>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
AP
<http://ksn.com/2014/05/07/judge-refuses-to-stay-order-over-voter-citizenship/>:
"A federal judge in Wichita has refused to stay his order for federal
election officials to immediately enforce Kansas and Arizona laws
requiring new voters to document their U.S. citizenship."
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Posted in election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>,
Election Assistance Commission <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=34>,
NVRA (motor voter) <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=33>, voter
registration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=37>
"A Federal Judge Just Called an End to Scott Walker's Recall Probe;
It's the latest example of Wisconsin politics playing out in the
courts." <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61304>
Posted on May 7, 2014 5:23 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61304>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
/National Journal /reports.
<http://www.nationaljournal.com/politics/a-federal-judge-just-called-an-end-to-scott-walker-s-recall-probe-20140507>
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
American Idol Overtime <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61302>
Posted on May 7, 2014 5:15 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61302>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Roll Call
<http://atr.rollcall.com/clay-aiken-primary-election-north-carolina-fate-may-not-be-known-for-several-days/>:
"The Democratic House primary between "American Idol" runner-up Clay
Aiken and former North Carolina Commerce Secretary Keith Crisco remained
too close to call
<http://atr.rollcall.com/clay-aiken-congress-primary-north-carolina-results/?dcz=>
following Tuesday's primary. With 100 percent of precincts reporting,
Aiken leads Crisco by 372 votes, according to The Associated Press."
Perhaps Aiken would have had more of a "Colbert bump" if he would have
broken out in song
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2014/05/01/clay-aiken-on-singing-sabbatical-during-campaign-for-congress-video/>.
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Posted in campaigns <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=59>
"Judge rewrites description of Nevada voter measure"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61300>
Posted on May 7, 2014 5:06 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61300>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
LVRJ
<http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/crime-courts/judge-rewrites-description-nevada-voter-measure>:
"A state judge Wednesday rewrote a description that details the effect
of a voter photo identification initiative backed by conservative
activist Sharron Angle."
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Posted in direct democracy <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=62>,
election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, The Voting
Wars <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>, voter id
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=9>
"House Holds Ex-I.R.S. Official in Contempt in Tea Party Case"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61298>
Posted on May 7, 2014 4:26 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61298>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
NYT
<http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/08/us/gop-to-open-assault-on-white-house-over-irs-and-benghazi.html?ref=politics>:
The House voted Wednesday to hold in contempt Lois Lerner, a former
Internal Revenue Service official who is the focus of multiple
investigations into whether the agency targeted President Obama's
opponents. The vote gives a politically charged issue new prominence
in an election year.
In a contentious debate before the vote, Republicans made
allegations of a Watergate-style inside job to cover up high crimes
that helped steal a presidential election. Democrats invoked former
Senator Joseph R. McCarthy and delusions of widespread conspiracy.
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Posted in tax law and election law <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=22>
Weiser and Norden Respond to Tom Edsall Column on Campaign Finance
and Voting Rights <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61296>
Posted on May 7, 2014 3:46 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61296>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Here
<http://www.brennancenter.org/blog/scotuss-inconsistent-treatment-voting-and-campaign-finance>.
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, Supreme
Court <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>, Voting Rights Act
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=15>
"Judge Orders Restoration of Voting Rights for Tens of Thousands of
Californians" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61294>
Posted on May 7, 2014 2:58 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=61294>by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Press release
<http://www.aclusandiego.org/judge-orders-restoration-voting-rights-tens-thousands-californians/>:
An Alameda County Superior Court judge today ruled that Secretary of
State Debra Bowen illegally stripped tens of thousands of people of
their voting rights two years ago. His ruling said people on Post
Release Community Supervision (PRCS) and mandatory supervision under
California's Criminal Justice Realignment Act are eligible to vote.
"Today's ruling is a victory for California's democracy," said
Michael Risher, staff attorney with the ACLU of Northern California.
"By following the plain language of our state's voting laws, the
court's ruling will help ensure that in California, one of the
nation's most fundamental rights -- the right to vote -- will be
protected and not restricted."
In his ruling
<http://cdn.aclusandiego.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Scott-v-Bowen-ORDER.pdf>,
Superior Court Judge Evelio Grillo said the fact that the California
legislature passed the Realignment Act with the legislative goal of
better facilitating the reintegration of people with felony
convictions back into society suggests legislators would have wanted
people on PRCS and mandatory supervision to retain their right to
vote, writing that "the plain language of the statute suggests that
the integration of adult felons into society would be facilitated by
allowing" these individuals to vote.
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Posted in felon voting <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=66>
--
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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