Advisory Opinions

Latest Episodes:

Known Unknowns Jan 08, 2021

Show notes

During a press conference on Thursday, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi called for President Trump’s removal from office. “Yesterday, the president of the United States incited an armed insurrection against America,” Pelosi said, shortly before demanding the invocation of the 25th Amendment. On today’s podcast, our hosts talk about the possibility of impeaching President Trump, the legal machinations surrounding the 25th Amendment, and the social media crackdown against President Trump. Stick around for their thoughts on Merrick Garland as Biden’s attorney general pick.

Show Notes:

-Articles of impeachment prepared by Representatives Ted Lieu, David Cicilline, and Jamie Raskin.

-“Divided We Fall: America's Secession Threat and How to Restore Our Nation” by David French in The Dispatch.

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C'mon Man Corollary Jan 04, 2021

Show notes

After a holiday hiatus from podcasting, our hosts have quite a bit of news to catch up on. Did Trump commit election fraud during his phone call with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger? Will Trump’s election conspiracy theorizing depress Republican turnout in Tuesday’s Georgia Senate races? What should we expect when Congress convenes on Wednesday to count the Electoral College votes? All things considered, Biden will take office on January 20. But when it comes to GOP officials’ ongoing attempts to overturn the results of the election, David argues that “the futility of this effort should not excuse its malice.” Our hosts wrap up their first episode of 2021 with David’s spirited defense of Wonder Woman 1984.

Show Notes:

-“POLITICO Playbook: The backstory of Trump’s Georgia call” by Marc Caputo.

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Listener Mailbag Part I Dec 21, 2020

Show notes

On today’s holiday mailbag edition of the podcast, David and Sarah answer a series of listener questions ranging from legal history to college football. Do you have to admit guilt to accept a pardon? Are there any wrongfully decided Supreme Court cases that are still on the books? Is there a secular argument for prohibiting abortion or does restricting the practice entirely depend on adopting religious doctrine in the public square? Are tier 2 or tier 3 law schools worth attending? What are the best books of the year? What is the constitutionality of factoring race into vaccine distribution? And MORE! Tune in to hear the breakdown.

Show Notes:

-A brief history of pardons from Smithsonian magazine.

-Korematsu v. United States, Buck v. Bell, Roe v. Wade, Kelo v. City of New London, Schenck v. United States, Employment Division v. Smith, Monell v. Department of Social Services, Brandenburg v. Ohio, Skinner v. Oklahoma, Trump v. Hawaii.

-38 states with fetal homicide laws.

-Qualified immunity doctrine.

-“Books to Read If You’re Tired of Hearing About Impeachment” by Sarah Isgur in The Dispatch.

-Sarah’s book recommendations: The Witches: Salem, 1692 by Stacy Schiff, She Has Her Mother's Laugh: The Powers, Perversions, and Potential of Heredity by Carl Zimmer, How Innovation Works: And Why It Flourishes in Freedom by Matt Ridley, Hero of the Empire: The Boer War, a Daring Escape, and the Making of Winston Churchill by Candice Millard.

-David’s book recommendations: Divided We Fall: America's Secession Threat and How to Restore Our Nation by David French, Rhythm of War: The Stormlight Archive, Book 4 by Brandon Sanderson, The Democratization of American Christianity by Nathan Hatch.

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NCAA Meet the Supreme Court Dec 17, 2020

Show notes

The Supreme Court agreed on Wednesday to hear a case concerning whether the NCAA’s eligibility rules for student compensation violate federal antitrust law. Should the NCAA have the right to create a universal regime of amateur athletics? Is this dispute more of a legislative problem? Or is it an antitrust problem that should be resolved by the courts? In their penultimate podcast before Christmas break, David and Sarah discuss whether private employers can mandate COVID-19 vaccines, some hypothetical legal scenarios related to double jeopardy, and the culture wars surrounding Vanderbilt kicker Sarah Fuller. They also respond to a 3L listener’s email about Supreme Court original jurisdiction.

Show Notes:

-NCAA’s cert petition to Supreme Court, 9th Circuit ruling for NCAA antitrust case, and Supreme Court reversal statistics.

-“The College Athletes Who Are Allowed to Make Big Bucks: Cheerleaders” by Tess DeMeyer in the New York Times.

-NCAA v. Board of Regents.

-Trans World Airlines Inc. v. Hardison

-“Can Private Employers Mandate COVID Vaccines?” by Josh Blackman in Reason.

-End of Discussion: How the Left's Outrage Industry Shuts Down Debate, Manipulates Voters, and Makes America Less Free (and Fun) by Guy Benson and Mary Katharine Ham.

-Miracle on 34th Street.

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"Naw Dawg" The Sequel Dec 14, 2020

Show notes

The Supreme Court on Friday declined to hear Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s lawsuit contesting the election results in four battleground states, ruling that “Texas has not demonstrated a judicially cognizable interest in the manner in which another State conducts its elections.” What does the court’s order mean in plain English? Should the justices have said more? Why did Justices Alito and Thomas issue a separate statement? “The bottom line is all nine justices rejected this case,” David explains. “Seven clearly for one reason, two for any number of additional reasons that they didn’t specify.” After breaking down the Texas lawsuit, Sarah and David discuss Trump v. Wisconsin, Bush v. Gore, the counting of the electoral college votes, and what options President Trump might still have to contest the election. They wrap things up by answering some listener mail about the LSAT.

Show Notes:

-Arizona v. California dissent, Supreme Court’s Friday order on Texas lawsuit, Trump v. Wisconsin, Bush v. Gore, Bush v. Palm Beach County Canvassing Bd, 3 U.S. Code § 15.

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Naw Dog Doctrine Dec 10, 2020

Show notes

On Wednesday, 17 state attorneys general filed amicus briefs in support of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s lawsuit contesting the presidential election results in Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan, and Wisconsin. To make matters more interesting, President Donald Trump has said he will join the lawsuit and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz has agreed to argue the case in front of the Supreme Court. Tune in to today’s episode to hear why, in David’s words, “this Texas lawsuit as a legal and evidentiary matter is frivolous.” Today, David and Sarah also give us an update on Sidney Powell’s “Kraken” lawsuits and the Department of Justice’s antitrust lawsuit against Facebook. They wrap things up by answering some reader mail about law school.

Show Notes:

-Supreme Court’s one-sentence order denying injunctive relief to Rep. Mike Kelly.

-French Press: “The Kraken Is Lackin’.”

-Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s new lawsuit against Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan, and Wisconsin.

-The Morning Dispatch: “Checking in on the Trump Campaign Lawsuits.”

-The Federal Trade Commission’s lawsuit against Facebook.

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The Safe Harbor Deadline Dec 07, 2020

Show notes

U.S. federal law’s “safe harbor deadline” means that most presidential election law cases will be resolved by tomorrow, December 8. Today, David and Sarah discuss what’s next for Trump loyalists who have an unshakable belief that the election was stolen. Stay tuned for a conversation about changes to the citizenship test, a 9th Circuit transgender bathroom case where cert was denied, parental and student rights in public education, and why so many conservative lawyers don’t buy the Trump campaign’s legal strategy.

Show Notes:

-U.S. code on meeting and voting of electors, determination of controversy as to appointment of electors, and counting electoral votes in Congress.

-“Preparing for a Disputed Presidential Election: An Exercise in Election Risk Assessment and Management” by Edward Foley in the Loyola University Chicago Law Journal.

-“The ‘Safe Harbor’ Deadline Is upon Us” by Jim Geraghty in National Review.

-Parents for Privacy v. Barr.

-“Why Do So Many Americans Think the Election Was Stolen?” by Ross Douthat in the New York Times.

-Brown v. Hot, Sexy and Safer Productions, Inc.

-“Coronavirus: When a High-Trust Response Is Required in a Low-Trust Time” by David French in The Dispatch.

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You Reap What You Sow Dec 03, 2020

Show notes

With the GOP’s Senate majority hanging by a thread, all eyes are on the Peach State and whether Republican Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler can hold onto their seats in their January runoffs. But could all of these election conspiracy theories that are being circulated by conservative pundits and politicians ironically end up depressing turnout among GOP voters in these races? “Over last night and this morning,” David explains on today’s podcast, “there was suddenly a lot of people who were sowing unfounded accusations of voter fraud, realizing that they may be reaping the loss of the Senate.” Today’s jam-packed episode also features a breakdown of several religious liberty cases, the White House’s alleged pay-for-pardon scheme, the U.S. census case, Attorney General Bill Barr’s special counsel appointment, and HBO’s The Undoing.

Show Notes:

-Donald Trump v. New York oral arguments transcript

-Memorandum on Excluding Illegal Aliens From the Apportionment Base Following the 2020 Census

-Franklin v. Massachusetts

-General powers of special counsel CFR

-October 19 memo from Attorney General Bill Barr

-9th Circuit Harvest Rock Church case

-Supreme Court order on Harvest Rock case

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New Day for Pandemic Law Nov 30, 2020

Show notes

Over Thanksgiving break, the Supreme Court struck down New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s strict coronavirus related occupancy limits to 10 or 25 worshipers in churches and synagogues located in orange and red zones in the state. In a 5-4 per curiam decision, the majority sided with Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn and Agudath Israel, who argued that Cuomo’s COVID-19 regulations treated houses of worship differently from comparable secular institutions, especially considering the religious plaintiffs in question went above and beyond in preventing COVID-19 outbreaks within their doors.

“From the standpoint of the plaintiffs,” David argues, “it’s sort of a double whammy of good facts. One, expressions of animus from public officials and hypocrisy from public officials. And two, they’re coming to the court with clean hands.” Later in the episode, David and Sarah also dive into a host of abortion related lawsuits and the U.S. census case before ending with some thoughts on election litigation.

Show Notes:

-Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, New York v. Andrew M. Cuomo, Governor of New York, Jacobson v. Massachusetts, South Bay United Pentecostal Church v. Newsom.

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Release the Kraken! Nov 23, 2020

Show notes

In Monday’s emergency episode of the podcast, David and Sarah bring us up to speed on the Trump legal team’s latest litigation drama, which has become nothing short of a clown show. One of the most puzzling aspects about all of this is the striking gap between the Trump campaign’s public rhetoric about widespread voter fraud during press conferences and its much more modest—albeit still meritless—legal arguments in the courtroom. No matter how you slice it, the president’s legacy is on the line here. In Sarah’s words: “This is what he’s going to be remembered by.” Our hosts discuss the Trump campaign’s failed Pennsylvania election lawsuit and Thursday’s rather unconventional press conference given by Sidney Powell, Rudy Giuliani, and Jenna Ellis. Then Sarah’s husband, Scott Keller joins the podcast to spar with David about nationwide injunctions.

Show Notes:

-U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Brann’s opinion throwing out Trump’s Pennsylvania lawsuit.

-“Nationwide Injunctions Will Be a Vital Check if Biden Overreaches” by Scott Keller in the Wall Street Journal.

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