Any chance he gets, President Trump assails critics of his immigration policies as advocates of “open borders.” Unsurprisingly, he is wrong as a matter of fact; the United States does not have open borders, and the Democratic Party is not arguing for opening them. But what exactly is wrong with open borders? No, really. What exactly…
Author: Luis Fuentes-Rohwer
To be or not to be [brilliant]
Judge Kavanaugh is in line to replace Justice Kennedy on the US Supreme Court. The nomination dance is about to begin in full force. Critics will raise questions about past cases, judicial temperament, law and the judicial role; and supporters will point to his past accomplishments and the judge’s professed belief in judicial restraint [and…
What do Luka Modric and Affirmative Action have in Common?
Luka Modric is a soccer player for Real Madrid and the Croatian national team. He was the best player in this year’s World Cup, the engine that led Croatia to the final and the winner of the Golden Ball as the tournament’s outstanding player. This is a remarkable ascent for a player who was voted…
Changing lives, one seat at a time: The case of New York City’s “specialized high schools”
A few weeks ago, Slate’s political gabfest discussed Mayor De Blasio’s proposal for amending entrance requirement to NYC’s “specialized high schools” — namely, Stuyvesant, Bronx Science, and Brooklyn Tech. Students gain admission to these elite high schools by how they perform on one test that they take as 8th graders. But the test leads to…
Justice Kennedy Retires, and I feel . . . fine?
The unthinkable has happened: Justice Anthony Kennedy, super median on the US Supreme Court, announced his retirement from the Court. Liberals worried about this moment for years, and it has finally arrived. I am ambivalent, at worst. I don’t think this is the end of the Republic. It is not ideal, to be sure, but…
Baking with the Bible
In Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission, Justice Kennedy chastised the Commission for its apparent hostility towards religion and persons of faith. Kennedy’s evidence boiled down to the following statement from a commissioner: Freedom of religion and religion has been used to justify all kinds of discrimination throughout history, whether it be slavery, whether it…
The Trump presidency in a picture
Nothing else needs to be said.
Eichmann at the Southern Border
This is the picture of a two-year-old child crying as she and her mother are detained at the US-Mexico border. This is now the policy of the Trump administration. These “animals” continue to “infest” our country, so we must deter them by any means necessary. The New York Daily News put it best: “Callous. Soulless….
World Cup refereeing as constitutional interpretation
The World Cup is underway in Russia, and not a game goes by when I am not reminded of our very own US Supreme Court and how it interprets the Constitution. This cartoon from the Guardian neatly captures why: This is constitutional interpretation in a nutshell. (If you don’t believe me, read yesterday’s Gill v. Whitford decision…
