Advisory Opinions

Latest Episodes:

Supreme Court Weighs Ban on State Aid to Religious Schools Dec 10, 2021

Show notes

David and Sarah have another action packed pod. First, the US Solicitor General weighs in on whether the Court should hear the case about whether Harvard’s admission policy violates race discrimination laws. Then they talk about a case that was argued this week at the Court that looked at (once again) whether states could refuse to allow voucher money to go to religious schools. Then the 9th Circuit had some feisty dissenting opinions when it upheld California’s ban on high capacity magazines for guns. And lastly, should judges be able to pick their replacements?

Show Notes:

-Wall Street Journal: “Federal Courts Aren’t Royal Ones”

-New Yorker: “On “Succession,” Jeremy Strong Doesn’t Get the Joke”

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Charging a School Shooter's Parents Dec 07, 2021

Show notes

On today’s podcast, David and Sarah discuss charges in Michigan against a school shooter's parents, the possible demise of a key Supreme Court precedent (not Roe), and an intriguing new appeal to the Supreme Court. At the end of the podcast, Sarah answers her critics. Does she get as spicy as Alito?

Show Notes:

-Timeline of Michigan school shooting

-NPR: “Parents of Michigan school shooting suspect are charged with involuntary manslaughter”

-Sue and Settle report

-New York Times: “What Does the U.S. Owe Separated Families? A Political Quandary Deepens”

-Washington Post: “40 acres and a mule: How the first reparations for slavery ended in betrayal”

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The End of Roe and Casey? Dec 02, 2021

Show notes

It's an almost-all-Dobbs podcast, as David and Sarah discuss the oral argument that surprised the nation. Could Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey actually fall? David and Sarah talk about the court's decision-making process from here and the history of judge-flipping post-argument, and they identify the key moments in yesterday's argument. Also, they give their listeners a vital challenge--and if they can meet that challenge, then Advisory Opinions will be the indisputable flagship of the Dispatch podcast fleet. Listen to learn what the challenge is.

Show Notes:

-Dobbs v. Jackson oral argument transcript

-Ginsburg’s remarks on Roe

-David in The Atlantic: “How Roe Undermined Itself”

-Washington Post: “Justice Kennedy’s Flip”

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Prior Restraint and Project Veritas Nov 29, 2021

Show notes

On today’s podcast, David and Sarah open with the puzzling case of Project Veritas and James O'Keefe. Why is a New York appeals court appearing to let stand a prior restraint on the press? They then answer a fascinating reader mail question before wrapping up with an extended discussion of self-defense in the context of an incredibly troubling Texas shooting that was caught on tape.

Show Notes:

-Near v. Minnesota

-New York Times Co. v. United States

-University of Richmond Law Review: “The Meaning of Life (or Limb)”

-Reason: “Are People Allowed to Use Deadly Force to Defend Property?”

-Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: “Widow releases video of Chad Read's fatal shooting in South Lubbock”

-Warning Graphic: Lubbock, Texas shooting video

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Understanding the Rittenhouse Verdict Nov 23, 2021

Show notes

On today’s episode, David and Sarah take a deep dive into the Kyle Rittenhouse verdict with Damon Preston, Kentucky's Public Advocate and a criminal defense attorney with almost 30 years of experience. They discuss self defense law, the difference between the Rittenhouse trial and the trial of Ahmaud Arbery's killer, and the ways in which the criminal justice system could be reasonably reformed. Also, David exults in Mississippi's stinging defeat at the Supreme Court as the court turned back the Magnolia State's greedy attempt to keep Tennessee from drinking water from its own wells.

Show Notes:

-Mississippi v. Tennessee

-French Press: “Kyle Rittenhouse, Open Carry, and the Breaking of Self-Defense Law”

-David in The Atlantic: “Kyle Rittenhouse’s Acquittal Does Not Make Him a Hero”

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The Insular Cases Nov 18, 2021

Show notes

On today’s show, David and Sarah bring Neil Weare, president and founder of Equally American, on the pod to teach us interesting things about the Constitution and history, with an emphasis on the unique history of American territories. And then Sarah and David dive into the controversies at Yale Law School and try to answer the question, "What the heck is going on?"

Show Notes:

-French Press: “An Airing of Grievances Against Diversity Training”

-Reuters: “Yale Law students 'blackballed' for refusing to lie about professor, lawsuit says"

-Reason: “More Shenanigans at Yale Law School”

-David Lat: “The Newest Insanity Out Of Yale Law School”

-David Lat: “Yale Law School And the Federalist Society: Caught In A Bad Romance?”

-David Lat: “Doe v. Gerken: A Lawsuit Against Yale Law”

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5th Circuit Extends Stay of Vaccine Mandate Nov 16, 2021

Show notes

On today’s podcast, David and Sarah dive into vaccine mandates, religious exemptions, and the Civil War. They analyze a recent court ruling blocking the Biden OSHA mandate, and then discuss what a “sincerely held religious belief” is in the eyes of the law. Finally, they conclude with a discussion of the Constitution, Abraham Lincoln, and whether he was an authoritarian who “broke” the Constitution before it was rebuilt by the Civil War amendments.

Show Notes:

-5th Circuit extends stay of OSHA vaccine mandate

-Noah Feldman: “This Is the Story of How Lincoln Broke the U.S. Constitution”

-New York Times review of Feldman’s “The Broken Constitution”

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Supreme Court Weighs Death Row Prayer Wish Nov 12, 2021

Show notes

On today’s podcast, David and Sarah talk to Erin Busby, Supreme Court co-counsel for John Ramirez in a critical death penalty religious liberty case. They walk through oral arguments and discuss the mysterious "silent justice." Then David and Sarah talk billboards. Yes, billboards. And they wrap with a discussion of misconceptions of self-defense and the Kyle Rittenhouse case.

Show Notes:

-Ramirez v. Collier oral argument

-City of Austin, Texas v. Reagan National Advertising of Texas Inc. oral argument

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5th Circuit Blocks OSHA's Vaccine Mandate Nov 09, 2021

Show notes

On today’s podcast, David and Sarah briefly preview key Supreme Court arguments before diving into the 5th Circuit's stay of the new Biden administration vaccine regulations, discuss the role of race in jury challenges (with an emphasis on jury selection in the Ahmaud Arbery murder case in Georgia), and finish with the latest developments in John Durham's investigation of the Trump-Russia investigation, complete with thoughts on the infamous Steele dossier.

Show Notes:

-5th Circuit blocks OSHA's vaccine mandate

-The Dispatch: “A Vigilante Killing in Georgia”

-National Review: “The Unwritten Law That Helps Bad Cops Go Free”

-National Review: “The Steele Dossier, Hillary Clinton’s Malignant Gift to America”

-National Review: “Shame on Buzzfeed”

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New York Gun Law Faces the Supreme Court Nov 06, 2021

Show notes

On today's episode, David and Sarah are on the road at the Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy on the campus of the University of Tennessee. Before a live audience they discuss Supreme Court oral arguments in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, a case challenging a New York law that places strict limits on carrying guns outside the home. Plus, David and Sarah share more thoughts on the Texas abortion law case before the Court, and they take audience questions.

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