For the Balkinization symposium on David Pozen, The Constitution of the War on Drugs (Oxford University Press, 2024).Louis Michael Seidman                 David Pozen’s carefully researched and brilliantly argued book on the Constitution and the War on Drugs is both illuminating and disturbing.  No surprise there.  Pozen is our country’s most inventive...

This morning Americans woke up to headlines about “violent clashes on campus” at UCLA, a framing that was echoed in the early hours by our university administration, the mayor, and local and national media. Much passive voice was used. Violence “took place.” “Physical violence ensued.” This framing represented a complete success for the side that...

For the Balkinization symposium on David Pozen, The Constitution of the War on Drugs (Oxford University Press, 2024).Rachel E. Barkow You might think the only thing harder than finding something new to say about constitutional law is finding something new to say about the drug war. David Pozen’s new book, The Constitution of the War on Drugs, offers...

This week at Balkinization we are hosting a symposium on David Pozen's new book, The Constitution of the War on Drugs (Oxford University Press, 2024). We have assembled a terrific group of commentators, including Rachel Barkow (NYU), Paul Butler (Georgetown), Orin Kerr (Berkeley), Paul-Emile Kimani (Fordham), Jennifer Oliva (Iowa), Shaun Ossei-Owusu...

In Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, the Supreme Court famously declared that it was returning the abortion question to the voters.  The people could decide whether or not abortion was to be prohibited.  So, when a federal statute required that hospital emergency rooms offer abortions to women who face imminent medical disaster if they continue...

So, we’re supposed to think that the Supreme Court’s decision in Trump v. United States will be one “for the ages,” as Justice Gorsuch pompously said. That self-inflated statement reflects a view of precedent that’s at best naïve, and probably worse: silly. Should another case involving...