What Trump Can Teach Us About Con Law

Informações:

Synopsis

Professor Elizabeth Joh teaches Intro to Constitutional Law and most of the time this is a pretty straight forward job. But with Trump in office, everything has changed. Five minutes before class Professor Joh checks Twitter to find out what the 45th President has said and how it jibes with 200 years of the judicial branch interpreting and ruling on the Constitution. Hosted by acclaimed podcaster Roman Mars (99% Invisible, co-founder Radiotopia), this show is a weekly, fun, casual Con Law 101 class that uses the tumultuous and erratic activities of the executive branch under Trump to teach us all about the US Constitution. Proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.

Episodes

  • 58- Executive Privilege, SB 8 update, and Rust

    01/11/2021 Duration: 27min

    An update on SB 8, Executive Privilege of presidential records connected with January 6th, and a short digression into criminal law about the tragic death on a movie set 

  • 57- The Eastman Memo

    06/10/2021 Duration: 28min

    John Eastman, a mainstream conservative lawyer working for Trump, outlined a plan for VP Pence to declare Trump the winner of the 2020 election regardless of the votes. It didn't happen, but should we be worried about the memo when it comes to future elections?

  • 56- Shadow Docket

    09/09/2021 Duration: 32min

    The "Shadow Docket," Texas's SB 8, and the state of abortion rights in the US

  • 55- Double Dose of Jacobson

    03/08/2021 Duration: 26min

    As people argue over public policy regarding the COVID vaccine, Jacobson V. Massachusetts is invoked a lot. Plus, Trump is in court and the first Capitol riot conviction.

  • 54- Bong Hits for Jesus

    02/07/2021 Duration: 33min

    This episode contains explicit language quoted from a cheerleader.Recorded on Monday 6/28, Professor Joh walks us through three recent decisions that came in at the end of the term and how they relate to court precedent.California v. TexasMahanoy Area School District v. B.L.Lange v. California

  • 53- Hate Crimes

    31/05/2021 Duration: 27min

    On May 20, 2021, President Biden signed the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act. This bill made special mention of hate crimes against Asian Americans. This was in stark contrast to his predecessor who stoked hate by using racist terms for the coronavirus.  What exactly is a hate crime and what does the Constitution say about them?

  • 52- Pattern and Practice

    03/05/2021 Duration: 26min

    What can a President do when it comes to reforming  the approximately 18,000 locally governed police departments around the US? The infamous Rodney King video  showing him being graphically beaten by police officers helped catalyze a giant 1994 crime reform bill that brought the pattern and practice of local police departments under federal scrutiny. How does it work?

  • 51- The Capitol Mob and their cell phones

    27/03/2021 Duration: 27min

    On January 6th, a mob stormed the US Capitol to try to stop the certification of the presidential election results. Many of the insurrectionists will be tracked down and charged with crimes, in part, because their cell phone placed them in the Capitol Building during the attack. The case of Carpenter v. United States is the closest the Supreme Court has come to weighing in on the matter of historical cell phone data, but the decision didn’t not offer an opinion on law enforcement’s use of a location specific cell phone tower data dump without an individual suspect in mind. This brings up questions about the way warrants usually work under the Fourth Amendment.

  • 50- Deplatforming and Section 230

    27/02/2021 Duration: 32min

    Following the January 6th riot on Capitol Hill, the major social media platforms banned former President Donald Trump, and many accounts related to far-right conspiracy theories. In response, conservative activists have called for the repeal of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, saying it would prevent ‘censorship’ of right-wing viewpoints in the future. But what does Section 230 actually say? How are the social media companies determining what can be on their platforms?

  • 49- Incitement

    30/01/2021 Duration: 33min

    On January 13th, former President Donald Trump became the first person ever to be impeached twice by the House of Representatives. But with Trump out of office, it’s unclear if there will be enough votes to reach the two-thirds majority needed to convict him in the Senate. With the trial looming, we look at whether Trump has a good argument against the charge he incited a riot on Capitol Hill, and whether or not it’s constitutional to impeach someone after they leave office.

  • 48- The Final Days

    26/12/2020 Duration: 39min

    How Trump is failing to overturn the election and how he might use his pardon power in his final days. This episode was recorded on December 21, 2020.

  • 47- Lame Duck

    26/11/2020 Duration: 35min

    In late November, most states have certified the Presidential election for Joe Biden and his running mate, Kamala Harris. But Donald Trump continues to deny the results of the election and insist (without a shred evidence) that he lost because of voter fraud. What does the constitution have to say about the transfer of power? What if Donald Trump fails to concede? What does the constitution say about the period of time after an incumbent loses but remains in power?

  • 46- Counting Votes

    31/10/2020 Duration: 31min

    During the 2000 Presidential Election, it wasn’t immediately certain who had won the electoral college votes in Florida, throwing the entire process into chaos. Eventually, the SCOTUS had to step in to rule on the outcome. With the 2020 election only a few days out, we take a look back at how the Supreme Court played a role in adjudicating the election in Bush v. Gore, and then we look forward to what might happen this time around.

  • 45- SCOTUS without RBG

    26/09/2020 Duration: 33min

    On September 18th, Ruth Bader Ginsburg died at the age of 87. She was a trailblazing jurist who fought for the equality of women before the law. But her legacy is in peril, as Donald Trump and Senate Republicans prepare to nominate a conservative successor. What can Democrats do to alter the course of the SCOTUS? And what does the constitution tell us about so-called ‘judicial supremacy’?

  • 44- The Hatch Act and The Election

    29/08/2020 Duration: 28min

    With only two months before the election, the Republican Party got a lot of attention - and scorn - for using the White House as a backdrop during their nominating convention. The convention appeared to be in contradiction of The Hatch Act, which forbids federal employees from political campaigning while they’re on duty. Even if the convention broke the law, will anyone be held accountable? Plus, we tackle the President’s recent comments casting doubt on mail-in balloting.

  • 43- The Trump SCOTUS Term

    01/08/2020 Duration: 43min

    We review some of the big cases that were decided during the SCOTUS term and assess the constitutionality of the federal policing of the Portland protests

  • 42- Police, Race, and Federalism

    27/06/2020 Duration: 30min

    As people around the world continue to protest police brutality, Republicans and Democrats in Congress have proposed bills that would reform policing across the U.S. But in the American system, states are given a lot of latitude over law enforcement, down to the use of tactics like chokeholds and tear gas. Given the constitution, what can the federal government actually do to make things better? Also, why was the ever-obscure Third Amendment trending last month?

  • 41- The Socially Distanced SCOTUS

    30/05/2020 Duration: 35min

    The Supreme Court may not be able to meet in person, but they are still doing business over conference call. This month, they've considered three cases about Donald Trump's finances, and whether they should be released to Congressional committees and prosecutors in New York. What does history tell us about these cases which could have major consequences for executive power?

  • 40- Jacobson and COVID

    24/04/2020 Duration: 30min

    In mid-April, 2020, states are beginning to explore ways to re-open their economies amid the global coronavirus pandemic. But with states devising their own paths forward, many are wondering what powers the government has, even during a national emergency. Are the states violating our civil liberties by enforcing these lockdowns? To answer this question, many legal scholars are looking to a 115-year-old Supreme Court case for answers, Jacobson v. Massachusetts.

  • 39- Quarantine Powers

    17/03/2020 Duration: 32min

    During a health crisis, what is the government allowed to do? As the novel coronavirus spreads across America, there have been closures and lockdowns across the country. In this episode, we look to history to understand who has the power to quarantine, and how the office of the president can be used to slow down a pandemic.

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