U.S. Constitution News
The Daily Signal provides reporting and analysis on the U.S. Constitution, including court rulings, separation of powers, and the defense of individual rights.
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Note to Ketanji Brown Jackson: The First Amendment Should ‘Hamstring’ the Government. That’s the Entire Point.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government strong-armed Big Tech companies into censoring as “disinformation” Americans’ true experiences while effectively mandating government propaganda, which itself turned out to be misinformation. The Supreme Court is currently considering whether that strategy violated the First Amendment. Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson suggested during oral arguments Monday that…Tyler O’Neil -
Gun Control Activists Admit They Overreacted to This Concealed Carry Case
Gun control advocates have spent the past two years losing their minds over the Supreme Court ruling in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, a case that affirmed citizens’ right to publicly carry a firearm for self-defense. One of the commonly repeated criticisms of Bruen has been that the high court’s ruling…Amy Swearer -
14 Defensive Gun Uses That Show Armed Citizens Promote Public Safety
Hawaii’s high court last week thumbed its nose at the U.S. Supreme Court’s Second Amendment jurisprudence, declaring that the right to bear arms in public clashes with the “Aloha spirit” and therefore doesn’t really apply in that state. That’s right. The Hawaii Supreme Court believes it can water down and reinterpret the federal Bill of…Amy Swearer -
Tech Titans’ First Amendment Court Case Tries to Have It Both Ways
Big Tech is back at the Supreme Court. Appealing from a big loss they suffered at the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, social media platforms are challenging Texas’ social media law that prohibits those companies from engaging in viewpoint discrimination when curating their platforms. They claim Texas’ law violates their First Amendment rights for compelling them to host content. In…Joel Thayer -
Self-Defense Stories Debunk Anti-Gun Activists’ Claims
As 2023 drew to a close, millions of peaceable Americans geared up for a new year that will bring with it many new limitations on their constitutional right to keep and bear arms. In California, for example, Jan. 1 was the date to ring in the state’s plethora of new restrictions on carrying concealed firearms…Amy Swearer -
California’s Ban on Guns in Public Places Takes Effect Despite Ongoing Legal Challenges
California’s new law banning firearms in most public places took effect Monday while legal challenges continue. Last month, U.S. District Judge Cormac Carney, a George W. Bush appointee, blocked the law from taking effect in a Dec. 20 decision that found it to be “sweeping, repugnant to the Second Amendment, and openly defiant of the Supreme Court.”…Katelynn Richardson -
11 More Times When Gun Owners Defended Themselves or Others in Dangerous Circumstances
As cities across the country reel from explosive crime rates, many politicians at the local, state, and federal levels are too preoccupied with disarming peaceable American gun owners to identify, arrest, and prosecute actual criminals adequately. Two masked attackers met their match last month when they attacked Los Angeles resident Vince Ricci as he walked…Amy Swearer -
EXCLUSIVE: Lawsuits Challenge Gun Restrictions in 2 Nebraska Cities
FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—A conservative legal group was set to file lawsuits Monday against Nebraska’s two largest cities, arguing that they are defying a state law on gun rights. The Liberty Justice Center is challenging gun restrictions enacted in Lincoln and Omaha, contending that the ordinances flout a state law passed earlier this year…Fred Lucas -
ACLU Teams With Conservative Religious Liberty Group to Sue DC Metro Over Ad Restrictions That Violate First Amendment
The American Civil Liberties Union joined with the conservative legal group First Liberty Institute on Monday to challenge the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority’s restrictions on advertising as First Amendment violations. The two groups filed a lawsuit on behalf of WallBuilder Presentations, an organization that raises awareness about the “moral, religious, and constitutional foundation on which America…Katelynn Richardson -
Big Tech, Big Government Jackboots Trample Free Speech Rights
Our own government has waged “psychological operations” and other attacks on the free speech rights of the American people. That’s according to witnesses at a Thursday hearing of the House Judiciary Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government. The hearing was part of a series following up on last year’s disturbing revelations of…Jarrett Stepman -
After Cruz Applies Heat, Intuit Sees Light and Backs Down on Anti-Gun Policy
Intuit—a company best known for its QuickBooks financial management software for businesses—earlier this year announced a cessation of services for firearms dealers, along with manufacturers of firearms or firearms components. The latest attempt at woke corporate activity resulted in another embarrassing about-face, demonstrating left-wing social policies do not reflect American values and undermine the business…Emily Mohr -
Atlanta Rioter: ‘My Gender Is a Loaded Gun Pointed at Capitalism’s Heart’
Rioters with the "Stop Cop City" movement in Atlanta face domestic terrorism and racketeering charges for repeated attempts to stop the lawful construction of a police and firefighter training facility, including the use of Molotov cocktails to harm police officers and damage construction equipment. The newly revealed journal of Manuel Esteban Páez Terán, an agitator…Tyler O’Neil -
Good Guys (and Gals) With Guns Still Out There, as These 12 Examples Show
The tragic mass shooting last month in Lewiston, Maine, sent gun control activists into their typical attacks on the right to keep and bear arms. Many defaulted to their standard narrative that the real “bad guy” wasn’t the murderer, but the Second Amendment and its supporters. Instead of demanding accountability from the government officials who…Amy Swearer -
3 Absurd Claims About the Lewiston Shooting Made by Gun Control Activists
An Army Reservist and military firearms instructor with a history of serious mental health problems murdered 18 people and wounded 13 others Oct. 25 at a bowling alley and a bar in Lewiston, Maine. Robert Card, 40, led state and local law enforcement agencies on a multiday manhunt that left an entire county of terrified…Amy Swearer -
The Left Calls for Gun Control After Maine Mass Shooting. But Recent Events Show Why We Need Right to Bear Arms.
When evil is committed in this world, the Left creates victims, rather than empowering good people to stop it. On Wednesday, a mass shooter killed more people, 18, in Lewiston, Maine, than the entire number of people slain in the state in 2021. It was a horrific act of wanton murder. Thirteen others were injured….Jarrett Stepman -
The Right Way to Address D.C.’s Gun Crime Problem
The House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime last week held a hearing to explore the issue of the District of Columbia’s high crime rate, and what can be done to dramatically reduce it. As a former assistant U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, but also one who worked in several other district attorney’s offices around…Cully Stimson -
These 12 Defensive Gun Uses Show Absurdity of Attacking Second Amendment Rights
In a legal battle that made national headlines, the governor of New Mexico last month sought to unilaterally suspend the right of residents to bear arms in public. This insanely unconstitutional measure—which courts fortunately brought to a quick halt—would be troubling on its own, given the Supreme Court’s clear defining of the right to keep…Amy Swearer -
Poll: Clear Majority of Democrats Want Free Speech Restrictions
A new poll has revealed that almost half of Democratic voters think that free speech should be legal only “under certain circumstances,” with three-quarters of Democrats also saying that the government should restrict “hateful” social media posts. The poll results indicate a continued emphasis toward censorship on the part of left-leaning voters, even in the…Dan Hart -
Why Are Gun Companies Losing Payroll Services? Cruz Investigation Finds Underlying Culprit
JPMorgan Chase admitted to pressuring the financial software company Intuit into preventing gun sellers from using the company's payment processing services, according to a letter Sen. Ted Cruz sent Monday after looking into the policy. Bank of America, meanwhile, denied pressuring Intuit into banning gun manufacturers from using its famous QuickBooks software. "Woke big banks…Tyler O’Neil -
Harvard’s Free Speech Climate? Below Zero
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, a nonprofit group committed to protecting free speech, and College Pulse last week released their annual report on the state of free speech on American college campuses. For the report, 55,102 students were surveyed across 254 colleges and universities over a six-month period from January to June. Harvard…Anna Low