Legal News
Reports on lawmaking, constitutional issues, and court cases. The Daily Signal combines news reporting with conservative commentary and legal analysis.
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- News
After Declining to Make a Wedding Cake, He’s Going to the Supreme Court. Here’s How That Journey Challenged His Faith.
LAKEWOOD, Colorado—”How did we end up at the Supreme Court? It’s a long story,” Jack Phillips, owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop, told The Daily Signal. The story began in 2012, when two men walked into his family-run bakery, and asked Jack to create a custom cake for their same-sex wedding ceremony. Because of his Christian faith,…Kelsey Bolar -
- Opinion
Podcast: The Move That Will Get Judicial Nominees Confirmed Faster
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, announced he won’t hold up two judicial nominees any more because of “blue slips.” We explain. Plus: drama at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and Prince Harry’s engagement to American actress Meghan Markle.Katrina Trinko -
- Opinion
What the Supreme Court Is Up to Ahead of Christmas
The Supreme Court’s final sitting of 2017 begins this week, and the justices will hear oral arguments in a number of high-profile cases involving the Fourth Amendment, free speech and religious liberty, federalism, and property rights. Here’s a look at the cases coming up. Property Rights of Patent Holders On Nov. 27, the Supreme Court…Elizabeth Slattery -
- Opinion
This Senator Is Putting an End to Democrat Stonewalling on Judicial Picks
Don’t say we didn’t warn you, Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, told Democrats at a rocky Senate Judiciary meeting last week. When Democrats blew up the 225-year-old judicial confirmation rules in 2013, Grassley said they’d regret it. Now, four years later, the left is finding out just how right he was. Sure, clearing the way for…Tony Perkins -
- News
Gorsuch Touts Originalism, Textualism in Address to Conservative Legal Society
Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch touted the importance of faithfulness to the Constitution in an address during the 2017 National Lawyers Convention in Washington, D.C. “A person can be both a committed originalist and textualist and be confirmed to the Supreme Court of the United States,” Gorsuch said at the event Thursday hosted by the…Rachel del Guidice -
- Opinion
Group That Rates Trump’s Judicial Nominees Has History of Liberal Advocacy
The consideration of federal judges with lifetime appointments is perhaps the most important and long-lasting work the Senate will do between now and the end of the year. Every senator, Republican and Democrat, took an oath to perform this duty. Nobody took an oath to outsource this duty to any outside organization. Unfortunately, some of…Sen. Ben Sasse -
- Opinion
Democrats Berate Conservative Judicial Nominee for Politically Incorrect Tweets
This week, two nominees to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee, facing fierce opposition from Democrats. President Donald Trump nominated Don Willett and James Ho to seats on the federal appeals court based in Texas. Willett, currently a justice on the Texas Supreme Court, is known as the…Elizabeth Slattery -
- Opinion
Senate Confirms 5 Trump Judicial Nominees in Strong Week for Rule of Law
The Senate confirmed five new federal judges this week, bringing President Donald Trump’s total to date to 13 jurists. The Senate voted to confirm Amy Barrett from Indiana to the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Joan Larsen of Michigan to the 6th Circuit, Allison Eid of Colorado to the 10th Circuit, Stephanos Bibas of…Elizabeth Slattery -
- Opinion
NPR Legal Reporter Criticizes Gorsuch for Citing the Constitution
The newest Supreme Court justice, Neil Gorsuch, has made headlines since joining the court last spring—and not just for his written opinions. Pedantic. Boorish and juvenile. Annoying. In his colleagues’ faces. These are some of the harsh things liberal Court watchers have had to say about Gorsuch. It’s hard to square these comments with the…Elizabeth Slattery -
- News
NY Attorney General Opens Investigation Into Weinstein Allegations
The New York attorney general announced his office will be looking into possible civil rights violations within The Weinstein Co., following a series of sexual assault allegations against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein. State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman will be looking to see whether the allegations against Weinstein violated women’s civil rights or reveal possible gender discrimination…Amber Randall -
- Opinion
McConnell Wants to Ditch the Blue Slip for Judicial Nominees, and He’s Right
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., supports an important step toward fixing the backlog of judicial nominations that are piling up in the Senate. McConnell told The Weekly Standard that blue slips—the practice of asking senators from a nominee’s home state for their opinion before the Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing—should no longer be…Elizabeth Slattery -
- News
Congress, Courts Must Help Tame Bureaucracy, Trump’s Regulatory Chief Says
President Donald Trump’s regulatory chief said reining in the administrative state is going to require leadership from all three branches of government, but the president’s team is making progress. “The president’s agenda is working,” @Neomi_Rao says. Shortly after taking office, Trump issued an executive order that for every single regulation adopted, an agency must drop…Fred Lucas -
- Opinion
There Should Be No Religious Tests for Judicial Nominees
Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, spoke Monday on the Senate floor about the case of Amy Coney Barrett, President Donald Trump’s nominee for the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. In a hearing, Democrat Sens. Dianne Feinstein of California and Dick Durbin of Illinois, brought up the religious beliefs…Sen. Jeff Flake -
- Opinion
The Supreme Court’s Next Term Will Be One for the Books. Here’s Why.
Monday, Oct. 2 marks the start of a new Supreme Court term. While the arrival of Justice Neil Gorsuch made major headlines, the cases last term did not gain much attention. The court’s 2017-2018 term, however, promises to be one for the history books. In their first few weeks back, the justices will tackle several…Meagan Devlin -
- News
Sen. Dianne Feinstein Defends Comments on Judicial Nominee’s Faith
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., on Sunday defended her controversial statements about one of President Donald Trump’s judicial nominees. Amy Barrett, Trump’s nominee for the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, was questioned about her Catholic faith by Feinstein at a confirmation hearing Sept. 6. “The dogma lives loudly within you, and that’s a concern,” Feinstein…Casey Ryan -
- News
Judicial Crisis Network Launches Ad Against Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s ‘Religious Litmus Test’
The Judicial Crisis Network is launching ad campaigns against two Democratic senators who are blocking President Donald Trump’s judicial nominees. The two campaigns are against Sens. Al Franken, D-Minn., and Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. Franken is refusing to return the blue slip for Justice David Stras, nominated to serve on the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of…Casey Ryan -
- News
Deputy Attorney General Says Rule of Law Is About ‘Character of the People’ Enforcing the Law
The Constitution’s 230th anniversary is Sept. 17, and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein says it is incumbent on the American people to help preserve the rule of law as the Founders intended. “On Constitution Day, it is appropriate to keep in mind that although the power of the federal government is vast, it is expressly…Rachel del Guidice -
- News
University Presidents Defend Trump Judicial Nominee Questioned About ‘Dogma’
Two presidents of prestigious educational institutions have come to the defense of a Catholic nominee for an appeals court after she was questioned by a United States senator about her faith during a Senate confirmation hearing. In two separate letters, the Rev. John I. Jenkins, president of the University of Notre Dame, and Christopher L….Rachel del Guidice -
- Opinion
How to Stop Democrats From Stonewalling Judicial Nominees
Oregon’s two Democratic senators, Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, have announced they will seek to block the confirmation of 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals nominee Ryan Bounds. Last week, the senators announced they will not return blue slips to Senate Judiciary Chairman Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, for Bounds, whom President Donald Trump nominated to a…Elizabeth Slattery -
- Opinion
Al Franken Obstructs Judicial Nominee Because He’s ‘in the Mold’ of Thomas and Scalia
Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., seems determined to block a judicial nominee from his home state. On Tuesday, Franken announced his intent to obstruct Minnesota Supreme Court Justice David Stras, the president’s nominee to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, by refusing to return Stras’ blue slip. Why jam up the confirmation of a well-respected state…Tiffany Bates