An often-reversed Arkansas judge struck down four new election integrity laws approved by the Republican-controlled state legislature, finding the statutes unconstitutional—but an appeal to the state’s supreme court seems imminent. Pulaski County Circuit Judge Wendell Griffen permanently enjoined the laws—Acts 249, 728, 736, and 973—on March 18 after a four-day trial. The statutes came as part of a nationwide wave of new state-level election laws that followed irregularities during the 2020 presidential election. In court, Griffen reportedly said the defendants, including Arkansas Secretary of State John Thurston, a Republican, hadn’t demonstrated a need for the laws and that the state’s fears about … Continue reading Activist judge strikes down election integrity laws in Arkansas as unconstitutional

Democratic Party activists in Wisconsin have filed a suit in federal court arguing that a pro-Trump senator and two pro-Trump congressmen should be barred from office for speaking out on 2020 election irregularities and allegedly attempting to manipulate the congressional certification of the presidential election results. The Wisconsin Republican lawmakers targeted by the suit are two-term Sen. Ron Johnson, two-term Rep. Tom Tiffany, and freshman Rep. Scott Fitzgerald. All are seeking reelection in November. The suit claims the lawmakers cannot serve in Congress because the disqualification clause in Section 3 of the 14th Amendment forbids it. That rarely invoked constitutional provision was … Continue reading Democrats sue to disqualify 3 GOP congressmen from 2022 Ballot, alleging role in insurrection, election manipulation

Wisconsin Republicans are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to reject an electoral map drawn by the state’s Democratic governor, Tony Evers, which they say is racially skewed, in favor of one crafted by the Republican-controlled state legislature. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court of Wisconsin voted 4–3 to adopt congressional and legislative districts drawn by Evers over those prepared by the legislature. The maps adopted still reportedly favor Republicans, but by smaller margins than the Republican-drafted maps. Republicans approved maps in 2011 when they controlled the legislature and the governorship, but this time, the Democratic governor and the Republican legislature … Continue reading Wisconsin GOP appeals redistricting loss to Supreme Court

Two days after being sued by a Roman Catholic nun who provides free medical services to the poor, the District of Columbia seemed to capitulate on March 11 by granting the nun a religious exemption to the district’s COVID-19 vaccination mandate for health care workers. But Sister Deirdre Byrne’s attorney said on March 12 that the lawsuit isn’t going away—at least not for the time being—because the exemption may be revoked by the D.C. government at any time. Byrne is a member and superior of the Little Workers of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, and a retired U.S. Army colonel … Continue reading DC provides dubious vaccination mandate exemption to nun-physician 2 days after lawsuit filed

A federal court ruled that Illinois violated the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) when it refused to provide an election integrity group with access to the state’s voter roll. “Election officials must allow citizens to see what they are doing,” said J. Christian Adams, president of the Public Interest Legal Foundation (PILF), the successful plaintiff in the case. Indianapolis-based PILF describes itself as “the nation’s only public interest law firm dedicated wholly to election integrity.” The nonprofit organization “exists to assist states and others to aid the cause of election integrity and fight against lawlessness in American elections.” PILF regularly uses the Public Disclosure Provision … Continue reading Illinois illegally denied elections group access to voter records, federal court rules

The Supreme Court ruled unanimously that a burglar’s 10 prior convictions arising from a single criminal episode don’t count as multiple convictions under a federal three-strikes sentencing law. The often-litigated federal Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA) of 1984 was enacted in response to concerns that a small number of repeat offenders commit a disproportionate number of offenses. The statute requires that a 15-year minimum sentence be imposed on individuals found guilty of illegally possessing a firearm who have three or more prior convictions for a violent felony such as burglary “committed on occasions different from one another.” A violent felony … Continue reading Supreme Court reverses 6th Circuit, tosses enhanced sentence for convicted burglar found with gun

The Supreme Court may be on the verge of clawing back some of the sweeping regulatory authority it unwisely gave the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 15 years ago at the height of Al Gore-promoted global warming hysteria. This about-face by the high court could come if conservative justices have the courage to do the right thing in West Virginia v. EPA, which the court heard Feb. 28. In all, 19 states are challenging how much power the federal Clean Air Act gives the agency. West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, a Republican leading the legal challenge, told this writer recently he is concerned … Continue reading A Supreme crackdown on the Environmental Protection Agency? Is the agency becoming a “central energy planning authority”?

The Supreme Court sided with the Biden administration last week, upholding the longstanding state-secrets evidentiary privilege that prevents the disclosure of information deemed injurious to national security. In both cases, the high court reversed decisions of the often-overturned U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit. Specifically, the Supreme Court blocked testimony by U.S. government contractors about the alleged torture overseas of a suspected Muslim terrorist, and ordered lower courts to reconsider a case in which Muslims claimed the FBI unfairly targeted them in a counterterrorism investigation. In U.S. v. Zubaydah, court file 20-827, an accused terrorist’s lawyer asked the Supreme … Continue reading Supreme Court overturns 9th Circuit in 2 national security-related cases

After questioning the effectiveness of a pandemic-related public health order that allows the government to continue summarily expelling illegal aliens from the United States, a federal appeals court unanimously ruled that the policy may continue, provided that aliens aren’t sent to places where they may be persecuted or tortured. The case deals with expulsions, as opposed to formal deportations, under which the person concerned has the right to a hearing. Critics say the government has been using the public health rationale to justify kicking out aliens without providing due process. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas justified the public health edict … Continue reading Court rules US can’t use CDC order to expel illegal aliens to countries where they may be harmed

Kentucky’s Republican attorney general should be allowed to continue to defend a state abortion law struck down as unconstitutional by lower courts after the state’s Democratic governor refused to do so, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in an 8–1 decision on March 3. Although Kentucky’s abortion law itself wasn’t at issue in the case, this is the court’s first opinion in an abortion-related case since Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s addition to the bench in October 2020 gave its conservative wing a 6–3 majority. The high court examined only whether Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron should be allowed to intervene in the case … Continue reading Supreme Court reverses 6th Circuit, allows Kentucky attorney general to defend abortion law

The Supreme Court was urged on March 2 not to allow an innkeeper near the Canadian border, who sued for being injured by a U.S. Border Patrol agent, to pursue a lawsuit against the agent. The court granted the petition for review (pdf) on Nov. 5, 2021, in Egbert v. Boule, court file 21-147. The case concerns whether the half-century-old Bivens Doctrine, which shields federal agents from legal liability for actions performed in the course of their work, should be expanded to new contexts, such as those with national security implications, something legal observers say the Supreme Court seems unlikely … Continue reading Supreme Court urged to shield Border Patrol agent From liability in incident near Canada border

The Supreme Court has agreed to review the constitutionality of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), which was enacted by Congress in 1978 to prevent non-Indian families from adopting Native American children. On Feb. 28, the court granted the petition for review in the case, Haaland v. Brackeen, court file 21-376, which it consolidated with Cherokee Nation v. Brackeen, Texas v. Haaland, and Brackeen v. Haaland. The lead petitioner is U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland. Chad and Jennifer Brackeen, a white evangelical Christian couple in Texas, tried to adopt a Native American child, although an appellate court ruled that—under the ICWA—Indian … Continue reading Supreme Court to hear appeal of non-Indian couple denied adoption of Indian child

The Supreme Court questioned on Feb. 28 how much authority the Environmental Protection Agency should have to regulate and curb energy production in order to combat the effects of so-called climate change. The case is West Virginia v. EPA, court file 20-1530, which was consolidated with three other cases. The other cases are North American Coal Corp. v. EPA, Westmoreland Mining Holdings LLC v. EPA, and North Dakota v. EPA. The court set aside 70 minutes for the hearing, but ran well over that time limit. West Virginia and 18 other states are challenging the authority the Clean Air Act provides the EPA. The challengers … Continue reading Supreme Court Hears 19-State Challenge to EPA’s Power Under Clean Air Act

In an effort to kick Republican candidates off the ballot for the crime of supporting Donald Trump, Democrats are reaching back more than 150 years to a rarely invoked constitutional provision designed to prevent Confederates from serving in Congress. Democrats and a handful of Trump Derangement Syndrome-suffering Republicans claim the disturbance on January 6, 2021, that delayed formal congressional certification of the 2020 presidential election results for several hours, was an insurrection or rebellion aimed at overthrowing the United States government. Facts are no impediment to this durable leftist fantasy. The facts are that the crowd carried no guns, that … Continue reading Beating Republicans by disqualifying them: Democrats look to Iran and Barack Obama for how to deal with their opponents

An election integrity group is representing a state government whistleblower who claims in a new lawsuit that Delaware is playing fast and loose with state election laws by enforcing statutes that violate the state’s constitution. The Delaware General Assembly approved a law in 2019 that allows early voting in person at least 10 days before the day of a general election. The Delaware State Constitution stipulates that the general election must be held on one specific day only. A Delaware statute also allows registrants to apply to the Department of Elections for something called “permanent absentee status,” even though the state constitution … Continue reading Whistleblower sues Delaware over election laws that unconstitutionally extend voting time