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Opposition to Voter ID 
Once Republicans swept into power in most state legislatures in 2011, eight states enacted "voter ID" laws to cut down on fraudulent voting. These laws typically require a voter to present a government-issued identification before voting. Since 2003 a total of 21 states have passed some form of voter ID requirement, although many are too weak to be meaningful. 05-05-12
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Justices Scalia and Alito Disagree Again
One of the big feuds on the U.S. Supreme Court is not between liberals and conservatives, or between Democrats and Republicans. Rather, it is the sharp disagreement in legal philosophy between Justices Antonin Scalia and Samuel Alito. 04-24-12
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Are Lies About Military Valor Free Speech?
Is there a constitutional right to speak falsehoods? That simple question has vexed scholars for decades. There is no constitutional right to tell a lie that injures someone else -- that is defamation. But there is a constitutional right to express false opinions about public figures. 04-14-12
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Court Takes Works Away from the Public
The "public domain" consists of writings, expressions, drawings, music, and anything else creative which may be used and copied freely by the public. Anything created prior to 1923 is in the public domain in the United States and, unless laws other than the Copyright Act apply,these works can be copied by anyone. 03-15-12
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9-0 Court Tells EEOC To Back Off of Churches
When the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) sued a small grade school affiliated with the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, the second largest Lutheran denomination in America, the school fought back. 02-29-12
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Vermont Court Pierces Sovereign Immunity
For centuries, sovereign immunity has protected government against lawsuits for the harm caused. Its history dates back to English law. If a king recklessly hurt someone,the victim could not sue him for damages. 02-18-12
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Global Warming Invoked by Ninth Circuit
President Clinton appointed 12 of the 25 active judges on the Ninth Circuit, President Carter selected three, and Obama picked one, giving Democratic-appointed judges a commanding 16-9 majority there. 02-10-12
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Canadian Court Affirms Traditional Marriage
The war on traditional marriage, predictably, has opened the door to demands for polygamy. After all, if same-sex marriage becomes constitutional, then why wouldn't polygamy be constitutional also? Both are between consenting adults, and both find support among libertarians. Their misguided view that government should "get out of the business of marriage," and allow people to enter into any private relationships of their choosing, might allow polygamy too. 01-28-12
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The Future of ObamaCare
The United States Supreme Court scheduled an extraordinary 5.5 hours for oral argument in the legal challenge to ObamaCare, formally known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. This is nearly unprecedented in recent times, and may bode well for the overturning of the law. 01-13-12
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Court Hangs Up on Indiana Ban on Robo-Calls
"Robo-calls" are automated, prerecorded phone calls to thousands of voters, providing them information about candidates. Robo-calls are often used to endorse a candidate or a position on a referendum just prior to an election. 12-28-11
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Court Bans Jesus from Public Prayer
In a stunning ruling, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has prohibited a city council from allowing mention of Jesus during its invocations. The Court interpreted the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment as requiring censorship of references to Jesus in prayers allowed by public officials. 12-11-11
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Court Changes Outcome of Election
Judicial supremacy reached new heights -- or depths -- in September when a New Jersey trial court changed the outcome of an election for reasons other than a recount. The Court allowed the loser to become the winner based on a review of the substance of a campaign communication and a few alleged violations of state election law. 11-28-11
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Stage Is Set for Supreme Court to Decide ObamaCare
The United States Supreme Court accepts for review and consideration only about 1% of the cases brought to its attention. 99 out of every 100 cases brought on petition to the U.S. Supreme Court are rejected without comment. 11-20-11
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Do Legislators Have a Free Speech Right to Vote?
In state and local government, politicians (or their aides) can have financial interests that might influence their views about specific issues under their consideration as government officials. Some states pass laws prohibiting certain conflicts of interests, but if what a politician says, and how he votes, are protected as free speech under the First Amendment, then laws cannot limit it. 10-23-11
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Court Shuts Down Global Warming Lawsuit
The U.S. Supreme Court slammed the door on an attempt by liberals to obtain by court order what they cannot persuade Congress to pass: rationing of energy production based on the unproven theory of man-made global warming. American Electric Power Co. v. Connecticut, 180 L. Ed. 2d 435 (2011). This 8-0 decision against global warming alarmism was a stunning victory in many ways. 10-16-11
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Court Looks at Modern Debtors' Prison
Debtors' prison was common in the English-speaking world during the colonial period, but was supposedly phased out along with slavery. Slavery is indeed gone, but debtors' prison is back with a vengeance in the form of sending fathers to jail over small child support disputes. 10-10-11
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Court Limits Class Actions
"Class action" lawsuits have been tools for trial attorneys to extract enormous legal fees by suing and settling a case on behalf of thousands or millions of people who never hired the attorneys or approved the lawsuit. This is an exception to the general rule that lawsuits should typically be brought only by specific persons alleging specific injuries. 10-02-11
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Supreme Court Orders Release of Many Prisoners
Crime has long plagued California, and its prisons are overcrowded and overflowing. The population of California increased by 2.4 times between 1960 and 2009, but its number of serious crimes increased more: murders increased by a factor of 3.2 and robberies by a factor of 4.2. 9-14-11
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Supreme Court to Decide Scope of Prosecutorial Immunity
Usually prosecutors cannot be held liable for damages they cause. In legal terms, they enjoy absolute immunity. But how far does that immunity extend? This fall, the U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether an official who acts as a "complaining witness" in presenting perjured testimony before a grand jury is immune from damages for the harm he caused. Rehberg v. Paulk, No. 10-788. 8-15-11
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Court Ends Right to Resist Unlawful Arrest
The right to resist an unlawful arrest dates back to the Magna Carta, and ever since it has been one pillar of the general right to self-defense by law-abiding citizens. But an activist 3-2 ruling of the Indiana Supreme Court -- in a decision written by an appointee of Governor Mitch Daniels -- erased all that. Many other states have passed statutes abrogating it too. 8-11-11
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Illegal Aliens Lose in Big Case
Illegal Aliens will have a harder time after a 5-3 decision by the U.S. Supreme Court upholding the Legal Arizona Workers Act of 2007. It compels employers in Arizona to use the internet-based EVerify system to confirm that a new employee is lawfully in the U.S. The E-Verify system -- which was set up by the federal government for voluntary use -- is simple and easy-to-use. Arizona made this voluntary system mandatory: if a business fails to use E-Verify and knowingly hires illegal aliens, then Arizona can revoke its license to do business. 7-24-11
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No Liability for Withholding This Evidence
Usually it is Harry Connick Jr. of New Orleans who is making the most news in his family. He's won several Grammys as well as an Emmy, and has appeared in numerous films. This time it was his dad, Harry Connick Sr., who was the subject of a 5-4 decision by the U.S. Supreme Court. The elder Connick was the District Attorney in New Orleans when John Thompson was charged with murdering another man. The publicity led to victims of an armed robbery identifying him as their attacker. Thompson was first convicted of attempted armed robbery, and then tried for the murder. 7-18-11
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The Internet Influences Courts
"I checked the Citizens Clean Elections Commission website this morning, and it says" such-and such a judge declared to an attorney representing the owner of that website. "Why isn't that clear evidence that" you should lose your case? 7-05-11
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Court Monitor Archives
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For brief reviews of all books: readgoodbooks.net
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The New Reagan Revolution
The New Reagan Revolution: How Ronald Reagan's Principles Can Restore America's Greatness, Michael Reagan shares fresh insights into the life and legacy of his father, former U.S. President Ronald Reagan. This book serves an important and timely purpose. It comes at a point in American history when we desperately need strong leadership. We are strapped with debt and unemployment, with a critical presidential election on the horizon. We have more government and less freedom in our lives than at any other time in our history. 04-25-12
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Of Thee I Zing: America's Cultural Decline from Muffin Tops to Body Shots
With her usual acerbic wit, Laura Ingraham takes on the modern culture's complete lack of redeeming qualities. The disturbing lack of manners and common sense of an entire generation of Americans has given rise to this latest tome. Laura covers everything from "prostitots" to Segways and TSA airport screenings to appallingly disgraceful grammatical skills. 04-08-12
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Being George Washington: The Indispensable Man as You've Never Seen Him
The life story of George Washington is "a miracle." In his new book, Glenn Beck brings the "father of our country" and first president to life. He puts the reader in Washington's shoes, complete with dialogue -- based both on the record and logical paraphrasing related to circumstances and context. Being George Washington reads like a suspense novel combining a war story with adventure, heroism, spies and double agents, and hardship beyond the modern-day imagination. 04-03-12
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Lead Like Reagan: Principles of Dynamic Leadership
"How Did Ronald Reagan do it?" So begins this work which examines the leadership style of one of the most humble and successful presidents in modern history. Scanlon illustrates how Reagan appealed to our best hopes and dreams. His approach to leading our great nation relied heavily on his faith in God and the faith that his fellow human beings, when given appropriate encouragement, could accomplish remarkable things. 02-26-12
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After America: Get Ready for Armageddon
If you are hungry for good news, After America: Get Ready for Armageddon probably shouldn't be next on your reading list. But if you are prepared to hear the truth about America's decline, Mark Steyn delivers it with uncommon style and wit. He even elicits a few chuckles at the many absurdities contributing to our downward spiral. 02-14-12
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Suicide of a Superpower: Will America Survive to 2025?
The NBC News/WallStreet-Journal poll, conducted jointly by Democrats and Republicans, reports that 74% of Americans think our government is taking us in the wrong direction, and only 17% think we are on the right track. Other polls are similar, with Gallup reporting 85% dissatisfied with the way our country is headed. Presidential candidates don't seem to understand this; none has achieved majority support with the public. 01-22-12
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The Thomas Sowell Reader
This comprehensive compendium of articles, book excerpts and biographical sketches, compiled and edited by the author himself, will give readers who are unfamiliar with the writings of this respected conservative economist insight into the wide-ranging fields in which he has written over the years. 12-29-11
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How Evil Works
Today's most sensational news stories tell of an America that is more polarized than at any time since the Civil War. We find people who are attempting to surgically morph into the opposite gender, celebrities who appear to have everything self-destructing, and increasing numbers of Americans treating mental-emotional-spiritual problems with powerful psychotropic drugs while ignoring the causes of these problems. 12-27-11
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Be the People
Carol Swain, a professor at Vanderbilt University, has written a very useful handbook for people who are concerned about the way America is headed today and need to be reassured that we still live in the greatest country on earth, but that it is the job of the grassroots to preserve the route to the American dream. 11-27-11
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Saving the Bill of Rights
Frank Miniter believes that the Bill of Rights is under attack. His book's subhead is Exposing the Left's Campaign to Destroy American Exceptionalism, and that's exactly what this book does. Miniter describes how our liberties expressly protected in the Bill of Rights are being eroded and ignored by leftist politicians, activist judges, and special-interest groups. 11-13-11
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The Notes: Ronald Reagan's Private Collection of Stories and Wisdom
It was a Eureka Moment when the Reagan Library in Simi Valley, California was getting a housecleaning in 2010 and someone came across a cardboard box inscribed on the side with the handwritten words "R.R.'s desk." 10-24-11
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How Einstein Ruined Physics
The ancient Greek Pythagoras thought that the Earth revolved around the Sun, and that the world could be explained by mathematics. Aristotle correctly figured out that the Earth was round, but argued that we would feel the motion if it were moving. 10-09-11
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Manning Up
Women are now making more money and getting more higher education degrees than men. Many single women in their 20s and 30s have achieved their dream of a successful career. They are leading successful, educated, exciting lives and seem to have it all, except one thing: a good husband.. 9-20-11
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Deconstructing Obama
If you like both detective stories and politics, you will realize the political importance of Jack Cashill's newest book, Deconstructing Obama: The Life, Loves, and Letters of America's First Postmodern President. 8-26-11
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Change to Chains
"We need change, real change," said Barack Obama in 2008. But what kind of change will we get and what will be its effect? William Federer answers that question in a summary of the struggle for power over the past 6,000 years. 8-10-11
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The Flipside of Feminism
Suddenly feminism is a hot topic in the Mainstream Media, and The Flipside of Feminism provides an analysis that definitely is not Politically Correct. 7-10-11
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Book Monitor Archives
Chronological listing of all books posted.
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