In a 5–4 decision, the Supreme Court today held that the Eighth Amendment prohibits sentencing schemes that result in mandatory life without the possibility of parole (LWOP) sentences for juvenile killers. Writing for the majority, Justice Elena Kagan noted that “youth matters in determining the appropriateness of a lifetime of …
An internal memorandum from the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) reveals that Justice Elena Kagan “substantially participated” in a health care case in San Francisco in which the Justice Department argued over the effect of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). This raises grave new doubts about …
Yesterday, Sen. John Thune (R-SD) spoke at Heritage on the urgent need to rein in federal spending and reform the budget process. As Thune explained, there are 26 committees and subcommittees dedicated to spending, but not one to cutting spending. Afterward, he sat down with us for a short interview …
We have posted several videos from this summer’s Second Amendment Task Force this week. Today’s final installment is of remarks by Dave Kopel, Research Director at the Independence Institute. During his address, Kopel discussed the Kagan nomination in the broader context of the fight to protect gun rights. He specifically …
This Tuesday voters in Missouri, by a 40-point margin, approved a ballot measure rejecting the individual mandate at the core of President Barack Obama’s health care law. Asked what the vote meant to the White House, press secretary Robert Gibbs said: “Nothing.” Yesterday in San Francisco, federal judge Vaughn Walker …
The Senate today commenced debate on the nomination of Elena Kagan to serve a lifetime appointment on the U.S. Supreme Court. Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) opened the proceedings with a strong statement of how conservatives should assess nominees to the High Court. Senator Sessions started with a discussion of “Don’t …
At a Second Amendment Task Force held earlier this summer, Hans Von Spakovsky, Senior Research Fellow at The Heritage Foundation, explained that Elena Kagan’s lack of action in her current job as Solicitor General with regard to the 2nd Amendment speaks volumes about how Kagan would rule on similar cases …
The Senate today commenced debate on the nomination of Elena Kagan to serve a lifetime appointment on the U.S. Supreme Court. The debate opened with Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee setting the tone for liberals in the Senate. The debate expected to last until the …
