On October 3, the Washington Post ran an opinion piece entitled “A shareholder solution to ‘Citizens United.’” As the title indicates, the article presents a way to control corporate campaign financing permitted by Citizens United. Specifically, the article introduces proposed legislation in Maryland that would require corporations to disclose and subsequently receive support from a “majority” of … Continue reading
Dealing with Death: The Time for the Uncomfortable Discussion is Now
Last week, medical author Atul Gawande released his fourth book titled Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End, discussing the current medical procedures during the end of life. I was lucky enough to attend a discussion Mr. Gawande had on this book, and there was one thing that he said that really stuck … Continue reading
Lamenting More Labeling
Nutrition labels have got it all: the trans fats, calories, sodium and vitamins. It seems that much of our food has labels that list just about every aspect of the product. However, it turns out that there are still parts of our food that don’t make the label. Labels on food products list only a … Continue reading
Evading Same-Sex Marriage Ruling: Impact on Political Races
“#VirginiaIsForLovers”, tweeted Senator Mark Warner (D-VA.) in response to the U.S. Supreme Court announcement that it will not hear any of the seven cases brought before the highest court in the land regarding same-sex marriage. While some on the left rejoice that the court’s avoiding this decision is a victory within itself, those facing hotly … Continue reading
$15 Billion Tax Prevented by PIFTA
If the Senate opts in for H.R. 3086, the Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act (PIFTA), $14.7 billion in taxes will be averted every year. During the Internet boom of the 1990s, Congress passed the Internet Tax Freedom Act (IFTA), which prevented state and local governments from collecting Internet specific taxes. Sponsored by Senate Finance Committee … Continue reading
Yes means Yes.: California’s Affirmative Consent Legislation
Last week California passed a law that caught the attention of universities across the state and people across the country. The new law, Senate Bill #967, requires that universities create and implement protocol to address sexual assault of students, faculty and staff on the college campuses. This new bill states that universities who fail to put … Continue reading
Previewing Holt v. Hobbs: Is Hobby Lobby Dispositive?
In an op-ed for The Atlantic, law professor Dawinder S. Sidhu discusses an upcoming case this term, Holt v. Hobbs, which involves the question of whether Arkansas’ Department of Corrections’ grooming regulations violate Holt’s religious freedom. Sidhu asserts that this case should begin and end with Hobby Lobby. Yet, Professor Sidhu ignores one key distinguishing factor: here, unlike … Continue reading
A Good Track Record?
On September 25, 2014, Attorney General Eric Holder announced his resignation. As head of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ), Holder has been extremely proactive, placing the DOJ behind a number of important civil rights issues, including voting rights, immigration, and same sex marriage. His engagement with these issues has earned him both praise … Continue reading
What Uber and School Choice have in Common: A Response
A few days ago, an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) claimed to answer “what Uber and school choice have in common.” Courtavich, the author of the article, juxtaposes two industries–education and transportation–that are facially very different but whose underlying concerns may, in fact, be quite similar. The answer proffered by the … Continue reading
The ACA is in Trouble… Again
This past week, a federal judge in Oklahoma ruled that the federal government cannot provide health insurance subsidies in states that did not set up their own health insurance exchanges. This ruling makes it more likely that the Supreme Court will have a hearing on the issue as this is the third ruling issued on … Continue reading
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