To make a point about constitutional rights, a state legislator has filed a bill to create requirements and a registry for journalists and to impose fines and other penalties for violating the provisions. “Every time I turn around, there’s a spin on the Second Amendment,” South Carolina state Rep. Mike Pitts, R-Laurens, told the Index-Journal in Greenwood, S.C. He…
Law-abiding young adults living in Vermont will soon find it much more difficult to defend themselves and their families after state lawmakers passed a bill prohibiting the sale of any firearm to individuals under 21, unless he or she completes a nearly 15-hour hunter safety course with little practical bearing on personal self-defense. The bill…
A Second Amendment advocate fighting against a constitutionally questionable gun ban and certification ordinance in the city of Boulder, Colorado, says he and his daughter have been targeted and bullied as his case winds through the court system. The city last May passed an ordinance requiring gun owners to “certify” their “assault weapons” or remove…
Last month, the Michigan House passed HB 4474—legislation that would expand the state’s existing Ethnic Intimidation Act beyond current protections for religion, ethnicity, and race to categories including sexual orientation and gender identity or expression. HB 4474 would make it a felony hate crime offense to cause someone to “feel terrorized, frightened, or threatened” with…
A powerful congressional committee last night passed a measure to kill one of two controversial pieces of legislation from taking effect in the District of Columbia, moving closer to acting out a historic power play against a bill that critics believe infringes on religious liberty. Opponents of the bill, called the Reproductive Health Non-Discrimination Act,…
Today, the Supreme Court reaffirmed what most Americans no doubt take for granted, that the Constitution prohibits religious discrimination. The 5-4 divide among the justices in Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, however, shows that religious freedom is not fully secure in America. Different state and local governments have developed “school choice” programs that make…
EAST LANSING, Michigan—Michiganders voted “yes” Tuesday on an election-related amendment to their state constitution. The amendment, known as Proposal 2, passed with more than 58% of the vote. “I’d like to thank the millions of Michigan voters who said, ‘Yes’ to Proposal 2 which protects the fundamental right to vote while enhancing security and…
The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled unanimously on Thursday that a Mississippi law that protects religious liberty and the rights of conscience in light of the redefinition of marriage may go into effect. In the decision, the circuit court overruled a previous judgment from a district court judge who had declared the Mississippi…
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat, this month signed into law a bill allowing a person to be temporarily disarmed if a court finds that he or she poses a significant risk of harm to self or others. This makes Colorado the 15th state to enact such a law, known in Colorado as an extreme…
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., on Thursday called for President Donald Trump to “immediately” be removed from office, either through invoking the 25th Amendment or through impeachment. “What happened at the U.S. Capitol yesterday was an insurrection against the United States, incited by the president. This president should not hold office one day longer,”…
With just days before leaving office, President Joe Biden has shared his personal belief that the Equal Rights Amendment is now part of the Constitution. This isn’t the first time that he’s been wrong on both the facts and the law, but, even as personal observations go, this one is particularly absurd. Here, for the…
Missouri voters approved a constitutional amendment Tuesday requiring Kansas City to increase spending on its state-controlled police department, according to The Associated Press. The amendment effectively raises the amount of general revenue the city must use for police from 20% to 25%, the outlet reported. The Missouri General Assembly passed legislation earlier in the year to make that…
The Supreme Court returns for oral arguments Monday in a term that already is shaping up to be an exciting one. The justices already have heard arguments in cases involving the insanity defense; whether Title VII’s prohibition on “sex” discrimination covers sexual orientation and gender identity-based discrimination; and the constitutionality of former President Barack Obama’s…
Voters in three Western states will consider ballot measures this November to repeal marriage amendments previously approved by voters. These measures would add redundant legal fortifications to same-sex marriage in anticipation of the day when the current cultural juggernaut consumes its final momentum. The state ballot measures would have no immediate effect on policy, due…
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…
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas had stern words for his colleagues when the court declined to hear a case challenging California’s handgun laws, saying that the jurists do not understand the importance of self-defense. The case, supported by the National Rifle Association, involves San Diego resident Edward Peruta, who challenged his county’s refusal to grant…
The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments April 25 in the case of Joe Kennedy, a Marine veteran-turned-football coach who made a commitment to God to kneel in prayer on the field after football games and was removed from his job as a result. The case, Kennedy v. Bremerton School District, has the potential to…
Days after Sen. Ted Cruz criticized his party’s leadership for preemptively surrendering to President Barack Obama, those GOP leaders exacted their revenge on Cruz. As the Senate voted Monday on a continuing resolution with taxpayer funding for Planned Parenthood, Cruz attempted to offer an amendment ending all federal funding for America’s largest abortion provider. The…
School isn’t the only thing back in session this fall. The Supreme Court will resume hearing cases when its new term begins Oct. 2. So, what’s on the docket? If you’d like an in-depth analysis of the cases the high court will hear this term, watch The Heritage Foundation’s annual Supreme Court Preview on Wednesday…
In the 2008 case of District of Columbia v. Heller, the Supreme Court recognized the individual right to gun ownership in the home. In the 2010 case of McDonald v. Chicago, it recognized that the right of individual gun ownership extended to states and local municipalities. This week, in New York State Rifle and Pistol…