The US House Judiciary Committee released a report on Saturday outlining the constitutional grounds for presidential impeachment. The report does not refer to specific allegations against President Donald Trump but rather, lays out the history and constitutional law of presidential impeachment. A similar report was issued during Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton’s impeachment inquiries. The report [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit on Friday affirmed a lower court decision to strike down a Maryland law regulating the publication of online political ads. Writing for a unanimous three-judge panel, Circuit Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson, III described the law as a “compendium of traditional First Amendment infirmities.” The statute at [...]
The US Supreme Court issued an order on Friday granting certiorari to a new case for their current term. Carney v. Adams challenges the constitutionality of a Delaware law limiting the appointment of judges based on their political affiliation in order to achieve balance on the court. Within Delaware’s Constitution, the Article IV, Section 3 provision [...]
US President Donald Trump on Friday requested that the Supreme Court bar the House of Representatives’ request for his financial documents from two banks. Trump argues that the subpoena goes beyond legislative power, and he therefore has a right to keep the documents private. This is not Trump’s first request to bar subpoenas for financial [...]
India’s Cabinet on Wednesday approved the Citizenship Amendment Bill 2019, to allow religious minorities persecuted in neighboring countries to seek citizenship. The draft legislation proposed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been criticized for being discriminatory and unconstitutional, as the term “religious minorities” excluded the Muslim community. Amending the Citizenship Act 1955, Section 2 [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit lifted preliminary injunctions against some of the Trump administration’s restrictions against immigrants in need of public benefits Thursday. The Trump administration implemented a “public charge” rule against immigrants in need of government assistance, such as Medicaid or food stamps. Judges Jay Byebee and Sandra Ikuta stated [...]
Following a violent crackdown on protesters in Iran, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet issued a statement Friday calling Iran’s reaction “clear violations of international norms and standards on the use of force, and serious violations of human rights.” The protests were largely in response to a massive tax hike on gas prices [...]
Suppose someone posts a message on social media suggesting he might shoot up a movie theatre, and punctuates the point with a photo in which he is holding an AK-47-style rifle. Can the government temporarily confiscate the person’s firearms, in order to ensure that he does not pose a threat to himself or members of [...]
Impeachment has always been a combustible mix of constitutional law and constitutional politics, but the way in which impeachment integrates law and politics has evolved from the framing of the Constitution to the mid-nineteenth century to the late twentieth century and may be further evolving at present. The framers designed an impeachment system that would [...]
The last few days have been very tense. Everyone had the same question on their mind: will the Supreme Court of Pakistan allow General Qamar Javed Bajwa to remain as the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) as the expiry of his term and his retirement loomed ever closer on 28th November 2019 and the notification [...]
