Monthly Archives: May 2023
Dobbs Sentences #37: Part II A 2
Paragraph 8 of 9 Sentence 2 of 4 On the surface the next sentence seems innocuous, but there’s a sly maneuver happening in this single claim: “That is why the Court has long been ‘reluctant’ to recognize rights that are not mentioned in the Constitution. Collins v. Harker Heights, 503 U. S. 115, 125 (1992).” […]
Dobbs Sentences #36: Part II A 2
Paragraph 8 of 9 Sentence 1 of 4 The next sentence is a single simple claim that makes an important distinction: “In interpreting what is meant by the Fourteenth Amendment’s reference to ‘liberty,’ we must guard against the natural human tendency to confuse what that Amendment protects with our own ardent views about the liberty […]
Dobbs Sentences #35: Part II A 2
Paragraph 7 of 9 Sentence 4 of 4 The next sentence is a single claim: “In a well-known essay, Isaiah Berlin reported that ‘[h]istorians of ideas’ had cataloged more than 200 different senses in which the term had been used.” The essay in question is “Two Concepts of Liberty.” The Court has cited the book […]
Dobbs Sentences #34: Part II A 2
Paragraph 7 of 9 Sentence 3 of 4 The third sentence in this paragraph might look like one claim at first glance, but really it’s two. Neither is really interesting: “As Lincoln once said: ‘We all declare for Liberty; but in using the same word we do not all mean the same thing.’” Here are […]
Dobbs Sentences #33: Part II A 2
Paragraph 7 of 9 Sentence 2 of 4 The next sentence is simple, but can’t really be assessed on its own merits: “’Liberty’ is a capacious term.” Cool. I suppose I could spend some time thinking about this, but let’s see what the Dobbs Court does with it first. For now this claim is undetermined:
Dobbs Sentences #32: Part II A 2
Paragraph 7 of 9 Sentence 1 of 4 The next sentence is three claims: “Historical inquiries of this nature are essential whenever we are asked to recognize a new component of the ‘liberty’ protected by the Due Process Clause because the term “liberty” alone provides little guidance.” Here they are separated: I’ve reversed the order […]
Dobbs Sentences #31: Part II A 2
Paragraph 6 of 9 Sentence 2 of 2 The next sentence contains three claims reiterating the point: “Thus, in Glucksberg, which held that the Due Process Clause does not confer a right to assisted suicide, the Court surveyed more than 700 years of ‘Anglo-American common law tradition,’ 521 U. S., at 711, and made clear […]
Dobbs Sentences #30: Part II A 2
Paragraph 6 of 9 Sentence 1 of 2 The first sentence of the next paragraph contains two claims: “Timbs and McDonald concerned the question whether the Fourteenth Amendment protects rights that are expressly set out in the Bill of Rights, and it would be anomalous if similar historical support were not required when a putative […]
Dobbs Sentences #29: Part II A 2
Paragraph 5 of 9 Sentence 3 of 3 The next sentence is also a single claim, and it’s presented a little dramatically: “Only then did the opinion conclude that “the Framers and ratifiers of the Fourteenth Amendment counted the right to keep and bear arms among those fundamental rights necessary to our system of ordered […]
Dobbs Sentences #28: Part II A 2
Paragraph 5 of 9 Sentence 2 of 3 The next sentence is packed with references: “The lead opinion surveyed the origins of the Second Amendment, the debates in Congress about the adoption of the Fourteenth Amendment, the state constitutions in effect when that Amendment was ratified (at least 22 of the 37 States protected the […]
Cynical Jason 