[EL] ELB News and Commentary 6/15/15
Rick Hasen
rhasen at law.uci.edu
Sun Jun 14 20:53:59 PDT 2015
Dahlia Lithwick Interviews Douglas Smith About Evenwel One Person,
One Vote Case at #SCOTUS <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73487>
Posted onJune 14, 2015 8:49 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73487>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
It’s the second half ofthis week’s Amicus podcast.
<http://www.slate.com/articles/podcasts/amicus/2015/06/a_spotlight_on_clarence_thomas_and_an_explainer_on_one_person_one_vote.html>
The first half has an interview with Carrie Severino about Justice
Thomas’s role on the Roberts Court.
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Posted inredistricting <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=6>,Supreme Court
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>
“Clinton: I never saw Hillary ‘study a list of my contributors'”
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73485>
Posted onJune 14, 2015 8:32 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73485>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
The Hill reports.
<http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/244938-clinton-i-never-saw-hillary-study-a-list-of-my-contributors>
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Posted incampaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
“The Right to Vote: 1785″ <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73483>
Posted onJune 14, 2015 8:26 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73483>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Mark Graber
<http://balkin.blogspot.com/2015/06/the-right-to-vote1785.html>with an
interesting post at Balkinization.
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Posted inUncategorized <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>
Goodwin Liu is No Antonin Scalia <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73481>
Posted onJune 14, 2015 8:22 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73481>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
ButDavid Ettinger
found<http://www.atthelectern.com/a-thimble-full-of-sarcasm/>a thimble
full of sarcasm in a recent opinion by Justice Liu.
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Posted inUncategorized <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>
“Donors Speed-Date the G.O.P. Hopefuls”
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73478>
Posted onJune 14, 2015 8:43 am
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73478>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
NYT reports.
<http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/13/us/politics/donors-speed-date-republican-presidential-hopefuls.html?ref=politics&_r=0>
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Posted incampaign finance
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>,Plutocrats United
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=104>
“Looking for clues to Supreme Court’s final rulings in Ginsburg’s
good mood” <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73476>
Posted onJune 14, 2015 8:42 am
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73476>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
AsI’ve noted <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=72557>, RBG is “notorious”
for dropping clues about upcoming forthcoming SCOTUS rulings.Bob Barnes
reads the tea leaves.
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/courts_law/looking-for-clues-to-courts-final-rulings-in-ginsburgs-good-mood/2015/06/14/b9690b46-1288-11e5-89f3-61410da94eb1_story.html>
The Justice also talked about her celebrity status:
Liu showed slides of T-shirts celebrating the Notorious RBG, as
thepopular Tumblr
account<http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/courts_law/looking-for-clues-to-courts-final-rulings-in-ginsburgs-good-mood/2015/06/14/http:/notoriousrbg.tumblr.com/notoriousrbg.tumblr.com/>has
dubbed her. Another says “You Can’t Spell Truth Without Ruth.”
“It’s amazing,” agreed Ginsburg, who was 60 when she joined the
court. “An icon at 82.”
Ginsburg said law clerks had to explain that her new nickname was
based on the late rapper the Notorious B.I.G., but she noted that
they were both “born and bred in Brooklyn.”
Next month the opera “Scalia/Ginsburg,” based on her relationship
with her friend and antagonist Justice Antonin Scalia, will get its
premiere. And she talked about an upcoming movie that will star
Natalie Portman and focus on Ginsburg’s work as a crusading feminist
lawyer. At its center will be a gender discrimination case she took
on with her late husband, Martin Ginsburg.
Portman told the justice that the project was briefly delayed,
Ginsburg said, because the actress had insisted that the director be
a woman.
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Posted inCelebrity Justice <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=109>,Supreme
Court <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>
Plutocrat Promises to Pressure CA Legislature if #SCOTUS Kills
Independent Redistricting for Congress
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73474>
Posted onJune 14, 2015 8:37 am
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73474>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Dan Morain reports.
<http://www.sacbee.com/opinion/opn-columns-blogs/dan-morain/article23884351.html>
It would be nice if the question of independent redistricting were up to
neither Charlie Munger nor the Supreme Court, but instead the people of
the state of California.
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Posted incitizen commissions
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=7>,redistricting
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=6>,Supreme Court
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>
101 Year-Old Woman Writes of Troubles Getting TX Voter ID
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73472>
Posted onJune 14, 2015 8:32 am
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73472>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Mary Lou Miller:
<http://www.mysanantonio.com/opinion/commentary/article/Photo-ID-not-that-easy-to-obtain-6324060.php>
When I was 7 years old, the 19th Amendment granting the right to
vote for women was ratified, and I availed myself of that right and
privilege as soon as I turned 21 in 1934. Over the years, I have not
only participated in the electoral process by voting in almost all
elections, I have also registered voters, taken voters to the polls,
conducted voter education programs, and worked to ensure that all
have the right to vote and have their vote counted.
With my history of civic engagement, I am especially disappointed
that my vote will not be counted in San Antonio’s mayoral runoff
election.
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Posted inThe Voting Wars <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>,voter id
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=9>
“Executive Chutzpah” <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73470>
Posted onJune 13, 2015 5:41 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73470>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Steven Mazie
<http://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2015/06/president-and-supreme-court>:
But however the justices are about to rule, court commentary from
the president’s bully pulpit is, at best, fruitless. At worst, it
does symbolic harm to the principle of the separation of powers. The
parties have had their say and the matter is in the justices’ hands.
The president would be wise, at this point, to rest his case.
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Posted inSupreme Court <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>
“The FEC’s Cry for Help” <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73468>
Posted onJune 13, 2015 11:26 am
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73468>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Ruth Marcus WaPo column
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-fecs-cry-for-help/2015/06/12/b287be84-1121-11e5-9726-49d6fa26a8c6_story.html>.
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Posted incampaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>,federal
election commission <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=24>
“Republican operative sentenced to 2 years in landmark election
case” <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73466>
Posted onJune 12, 2015 7:52 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73466>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
WaPo
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/crime/feds-want-nearly-4-year-sentence-for-republican-operative-convicted-of-illegal-coordination/2015/06/11/7ecbdc72-0ed0-11e5-9726-49d6fa26a8c6_story.html>:
A former Republican political operative convicted in the first
federal criminal case of illegal coordination between a campaign and
a purportedly independent ally was sentenced Friday to two years in
prison — a lighter punishment than prosecutors sought but one that
still served as a sharp warning.
Under questioning from U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady, Tyler
Harber said: “I’m guilty of this. I knew it was wrong when I did
it.” But Harber said he was not motivated by greed or a lust for
power — he simply wanted to win an election and believed that what
he was doing was a common, if illegal, practice.
“I got caught up in what politics has become,” said Harber, 34, a
resident of Alexandria.
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Posted incampaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>,campaigns
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=59>,chicanery
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=12>
“‘Government of Few’ Report Highlights New Tools Exposing our Broken
Democracy” <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73464>
Posted onJune 12, 2015 2:35 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73464>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Rob Richie
<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rob-richie/government-of-few-report_b_7573308.html>:
FairVote today releasedGovernment of the Few in the “Decided Dozen”
— Frozen Representation and the Distorted Demographics of Decisive
Primary Elections
<http://www.fairvote.org/assets/Decided-Dozen-Report/Government-of-the-Few-June2015.pdf>.
Report authors Andrew Douglas and Zack Avre zero in on the “Decided
Dozen”–12 states where control over the state legislature and the
outcome of the great majority of general election races is never in
doubt, leaving the only meaningful choices and power to voters in
low turnout, unrepresentative primary contests.
This “Decided Dozen” consists of Georgia, Idaho, Hawaii,
Massachusetts, Missouri, New York (State Assembly only], Rhode
Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming.
Legislative elections in these states share three common elements: a
change in majority party control would require enormous and unlikely
shifts in voters’ partisan preferences; few individual districts are
likely to be competitive; and candidates rarely find ways to win on
their opponents’ turf. Furthermore, voters in the dominant parties’
primaries in these states – the only group to which majority
legislators owe their power – are highly unrepresentative of their
states’ voters more broadly. This is true not only of their partisan
ideological views, but also for demographic measures like age and
ethnicity.
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Posted inalternative voting systems <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=63>
“Candidates & Super PACS: The New Model in 2016″
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73462>
Posted onJune 12, 2015 12:42 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73462>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Brennan Center
<https://www.brennancenter.org/publication/candidates-super-pacs-new-model-2016>:
As voters begin to assess presidential candidates ahead of the 2016
election, they’ll face a new world in which ostensibly outside
groups — which often have extremely close ties to the candidates,
but are theoretically separate from them because they aren’t
“controlled” by the candidate and don’t give their money directly to
her campaign — could dominate political spending. That’s because
super PACs and other groups conceived after the 2010/Citizens
United/decision may raise money without limits, while candidates
cannot. While many have understood that super PACs would make a
significant impact on American elections, few could have predicted
the speed with which they have evolved and moved to the center of
our political system.
The skyrocketing spending from these groups has left many concerned
that elected officials work mainly for the big spenders that helped
get them into office. In cases like/Citizens United,/the U.S.
Supreme Court has told us not to worry: outside spending cannot
corrupt a candidate, the argument goes, because the candidate cannot
control that spending — it’s not in his control, he may not want it,
or may not approve of the way it is spent. That argument is looking
increasingly divorced from reality. This analysis will discuss
several ways in which presidential candidates in the 2016 cycle are
engaging in even greater collaboration with super PACs and other
outside groups, obliterating the distinction between candidates and
“independent” organizations, which the Court has claimed is so
important.
Download the Report
<https://www.brennancenter.org/sites/default/files/analysis/Super_PACs_2016.pdf>
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Posted incampaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>,campaigns
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=59>
“Appeals court upholds decision to toss results of 2014 Magoffin
County judge-executive election” <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73460>
Posted onJune 12, 2015 12:35 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73460>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Kentucky.com:
<http://www.kentucky.com/2015/06/12/3897292_appeals-court-upholds-decision.html?rh=1>
The three-judge appeals panel did not agree with all of Preston’s
conclusions, but the majority ruled that there was clearly enough
evidence of improprieties to justify his decision to set aside the
election.
“We are not sure which candidate won the election, but we know who
lost: the voters of Magoffin County, who were entitled to confidence
in the fairness and integrity of their election,” the ruling said.
Judges Irv Maze and Debra Lambert agreed to uphold tossing out the
election. Judge Kelly Thompson dissented, arguing there was not
sufficient evidence to vacate the results.
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Posted inchicanery <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=12>
“We Ask California Legislators: Do You Help Draft Bills For
Influential Groups?” <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73458>
Posted onJune 12, 2015 12:32 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73458>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
John
Myers<http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2015/06/12/we-ask-california-legislators-do-you-help-draft-bills-for-influential-groups>for
KQED.
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Posted inUncategorized <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>
“Presidents Should Weigh In on Supreme Court Cases”
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73456>
Posted onJune 12, 2015 9:32 am
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73456>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Jonathan Bernstein
<http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2015-06-12/presidents-should-weigh-in-on-supreme-court-cases>at
Bloomberg View agrees withmy
post<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73414>from yesterday.
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Posted inSupreme Court <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>
“The Role of Three-Judge Courts in Conservative Attacks on Campaign
Finance Reform and Voting Rights” <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73454>
Posted onJune 12, 2015 8:13 am
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73454>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
David Gans
<http://balkin.blogspot.com/2015/06/the-role-of-three-judge-courts-in.html>:
Election law cases have come to the Supreme Court in droves in
recent years, as conservative activists have taken advantage of
federal laws that provide for a direct appeal to the Supreme Court
in certain campaign finance and voting rights cases heard by
three-judge district courts. What is similar about/Citizens United
v. FEC/,/McCutcheon v. FEC/,/NAMUDNO v. Holder/, and/Evenwel v.
Abbott/? In each one of these cases, the Justices agreed to hear a
direct appeal from a three-judge district court. Three-judge
districts courts (composed of two district court judges and one
court of appeals judge) are a rarity in federal law, but play a very
significant role in campaign finance and voting rights law.
Congress has provided for three-judge courts in constitutional
challenges to Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, certain suits brought
under the Voting Right Act, and in constitutional challenges to
state redistricting. A litigant does not have an automatic right to
a three-judge court, and various considerations go into the decision
to convene a three-judge court, but once convened, a case gets
special treatment. Most important, appeals from three-judge courts
go straight to the Supreme Court. In the hands of conservative
activists, immediate appeal to the Supreme Court has been a potent
weapon for deregulating campaign finance law and gutting the Voting
Rights Act. Since John Roberts became Chief Justice nearly ten
years ago, almost every Term has featured a major election law case
coming by direct appeal. And more are on their way.
That’s why it is significant that the Supreme Court this week agreed
to hear/Shapiro v. Mack/, a case concerning the circumstances in
which a single federal district court judge may refuse to convene a
three-judge court. In/Shapiro/, a constitutional challenge to
congressional districting by the State of Maryland, the plaintiffs
argued that the state’s congressional districts were so badly
gerrymandered that they violated the Constitution. The district
court disagreed, finding that the case did not warrant a three-judge
court. Next Term, the Justices will decide whether the case should
have been heard by three judges instead of one.
While/Shapiro/raises only a narrow question of procedure under the
Three-Judge Court Act, the consequences are significant.
I offered similar thoughtshere <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=73263>.
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Posted inredistricting <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=6>,Supreme Court
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>
--
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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