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11 Apr 2011 23:47

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Politics: For second time, federal appeals court finds Arizona immigration law unconstitutional

  • Immigration station: Though its prominence in the news cycle has faded, the fight over Arizona’s controversial immigration law is anything but over; in fact, it’s taken a rather significant turn. Quick recap: When Governor Jan Brewer signed a possibly-racist anti-immigration bill into law last year, the Justice Department successfully sued to block its implementation, arguing that it usurped federal jurisdiction. Brewer appealed the ruling, and today, the appeals court issued its verdict: the Arizona law does in fact encroach on federal authority, and the injunction against it will remain in place. This one could make its way up to the Supreme Court; considering that lower courts’ rulings often influence the decisions of higher courts, this is an important development. source

12 Dec 2009 11:00

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Politics: ACORN finally gets some good news from the courts

  • They have been singled out by Congress for punishment that directly and immediately affects their ability to continue to obtain federal funding, in the absence of any judicial, or even administrative, process adjudicating guilt.
  • Judge Nina Gershon • On her decision to overturn the House ban on grants for ACORN, which was ruled unconstitutional yesterday. Gershon and others argue that the bill equated to a “bill of attainder,” which punishes a group without the benefit of a trial. Conservative groups perhaps played their hand a little too loosely on this case. Even though ACORN screwed up, they didn’t commit any crimes other than large amounts of idiocy. So this decision was the right one. source