http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-court-cases-fall-2017-story.html Trump and the travel ban Religious liberty and gay rights Partisan gerrymandering Cellphone tracking and privacy Employees and group arbitration Jail before deportation Voting rolls and purges Sports betting Public employees and union fees Job discrimination and gay employees
it would be very interesting to hear people rank the three topics they are most interested in hearing a SC ruling on. I'll start. Partisan gerrymandering Voting rolls and purge Employees and group arbitration I put gerrymandering first because I think it is responsible for the so much of the team play in America today.
1. Travel ban I don't like it, but I see it as perfectly legal. Elections have consequences. EDIT: Congress expressly granted the power to the Executive to implement these kinds of things. Obama did similar bans, including the list of countries, using that very power. The feds do have the authority to regulate immigration - that's spelled out specifically in the constitution. 2. Religious liberty and gay rights I'm never a fan of government telling people what to do or how to worship or what to believe. I think it's the most asinine thing for someone to refuse a good or service because of someone's orientation. The gay person has rights, so does the cake baker. 3. Gerrymandering Democrats will absolutely want to draw districts that consist almost solely of minority neighborhoods. This is OK by me, because it does give minorities a better chance to elect the most sympathetic officials. To deny republicans the right to draw districts to favor their constituents is completely unfair. 4. Cellphone tracking The government is far overreaching in its ability to spy on us. Politicians (thanks Obama! see unmasking scandal) have abused it. A warrant must be specific as to place or thing. 5. Employees and group arbitration Employee/employer relations are a contractual situation. It seems to me that the civil courts are where these issues belong. 6. Jail before deportation Indefinite detention is clearly unconstitutional AND unamerican. 7. Voting role purges The states run the elections. Unless there's a compelling argument that they're violating civil rights, they should be able to purge their voter roles of people who haven't voted or responded to requests for verification. 8. Sports Betting There is no compelling interest for government to even regulate it. They can make it a crime for minors to gamble. Otherwise, it's a perfectly harmless activity between consenting people. 9. Public employee and union fees Unions should be voluntary associations, which are protected by 1st amendment. Forcing someone to join or pay, by law, is also a violation of the 1st. Basically, the union can set its own rules and dues. If you want to be a member, obey their rules. 10. Job discrimination and gay employees Employment is a contractual situation between people. Seems like a civil issue, not a criminal one. That said, if businesses collude with one another to deny people jobs, that's criminal.
>>> The government has no business interfering in whom you hire or don't hire. Not much disagreement here. Just a few comments embedded.
