US Constitution

Read the latest US Constitution news and the Bill of Rights on Newser.com

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Courts Dump Anti-Gay Marriage Laws in Arkansas, Mississippi

Both orders on hold, though, as states consider appeals

(Newser) - Arkansas and Mississippi became the latest two states yesterday to have their gay marriage bans overturned by federal judges, but both orders are on hold for possible appeals. Both states had voter-approved constitutional amendments passed in 2004 that defined marriage as being between one man and one woman. In Arkansas,...

Cop: Obama Ignores the Constitution, So I Will Too

Officer Richard Recine resigns after heated remark

(Newser) - A New Jersey police officer has resigned after saying that he can ignore a citizen's Constitutional rights—because President Obama has already "decimated the friggin' Constitution." Special Police Officer Richard Recine made the heated remark Monday in a confrontation with a resident of Helmetta, NJ, who had...

Judge: No-Fly List Is Unconstitutional

Air travel an 'aspect of liberties,' she says

(Newser) - In today's world, international travel isn't a "mere convenience or luxury," but "a necessary aspect of liberties sacred to members of a free society," a federal judge has decided, striking down the government's post-9/11 no-fly list procedures as unconstitutional. The judge ordered the...

Oops: Rolling Stone Gets Constitution Tattoo Wrong

Louis-Dreyfus has Hancock in wrong place

(Newser) - Oops: Julia Louis-Dreyfus appears nude with the preamble to the US Constitution inked on her back for the cover of the latest Rolling Stone—but with one big mistake: There's a large John Hancock just above her rear. Hancock, however, put the most famous signature in American history on...

Court: Gays Can't Be Excluded From Juries

Ruling extends legal protection for gays, lesbians

(Newser) - Another big step forward for gay rights: A federal appeals court has ruled that keeping gays and lesbians off juries because of their sexual orientation is just as unconstitutional as excluding women or minorities, reports the San Jose Mercury News . The ruling came in connection with a legal battle between...

IOC: Take 'We the People' Off US Goalie Mask

Constitution quote is 'propaganda,' Olympic bosses say

(Newser) - The goalie for the American women's hockey team has been told to remove a quote from the US Constitution from her helmet because it counts as "propaganda." The illustration of the document including the line "We the People" has been scrubbed from Jessie Vetter's helmet...

Judge: NSA Spying 'Almost Certainly' Unconstitutional

Meanwhile, White House says no amnesty for Snowden

(Newser) - The NSA's massive collection of phone metadata is "almost certainly" unconstitutional, a federal judge declared in a blistering statement today. Judge Richard Leon issued an injunction banning the agency from spying on the plaintiffs in the lawsuit he was reviewing—legal analyst Larry Klayman and one of his...

Public: Obama Needs Congress' Blessing on Syria

80% say White House shouldn't go it alone

(Newser) - The American people aren't excited about the prospect of attacking Syria, and they overwhelmingly believe that President Obama should get congressional approval before doing it. In a new NBC News poll, a whopping 80% said the White House should get the OK from Congress before attacking. While the Constitution...

Family: Cops Violated Our ... 3rd Amendment Rights?

They say officers were 'quartering' at their house

(Newser) - The first, second, fourth, and fifth amendments are pretty well-known—but when's the last time you cited the third amendment? As a refresher, it states that "No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of...

Holmes Judge to Hear Challenge to Insanity Law

Defense says it's unconstitutional

(Newser) - The judge in the Aurora movie theater shooting case will listen to defense lawyers' arguments against the constitutionality of Colorado's insanity defense law, Reuters reports. The law is unconstitutional, lawyers say, because it says James Holmes can't summon mental health experts of his own choosing—rather than court-appointed...

N. Carolina Lawmakers Want to Declare State Religion

They say Constitution forbids Congress, not states, from doing so

(Newser) - The US Constitution might have a problem with merging church and state on the federal level, but two lawmakers in North Carolina say that shouldn't apply to their state or any other, reports the Raleigh News & Observer . The two Rowan County Republicans have introduced the Defense of Religion...

'Double Jeopardy' Could Block Knox Extradition

Experts say case could put US courts in uncharted territory

(Newser) - Amanda Knox won't be going back to Italy for her new murder trial , but if she is found guilty in absentia and appeals fail, she could be facing a mammoth legal battle at home in the US. If Italy seeks her extradition, American courts will have to decide whether...

Georgia Reps: Time to Revoke 17th Amendment

Scrap the direct election of senators, they say

(Newser) - GOP state representatives in Georgia say it's time to end direct elections of national senators, the Douglas County Sentinel reports. Instead, state assemblies should pick senators, as it was before the 17th amendment, says Kevin Cooke, a sponsor of a bill calling on Congress to take action. "This...

Mississippi Finally OKs 13th Amendment Banning Slavery

...148 years after it cleared Congress

(Newser) - Mississippi has officially ratified the 13th Amendment to the Constitution—a mere 148 years after the amendment outlawing slavery cleared Congress and was sent to state legislatures for approval. Mississippi's legislature voted to ratify the amendment in 1995, but it never became official because the state never notified the...

2nd Amendment: Remnant of Revolution or Pro-Slavery?

One writers say it was to protect freedom; another to protect slavery

(Newser) - The debate over gun laws brings renewed attention to the debate over the Second Amendment, with two very different takes today from the left and right:
  • Noble intent: Erick Erickson as RedState offers a history lesson. "On April 19, 1775, British regulars marched on Lexington and Concord to seize
...

Do We Really Need the Constitution?
 Do We Really Need 
 the Constitution? 
OPINION
Dec 31, 2012 12:29 PM CST

Do We Really Need the Constitution?

Louis Seidman: Why should long-dead white men be calling the shots?

(Newser) - A Constitutional scholar has an announcement to make: That old document is obsolete. "Our obsession with the Constitution has saddled us with a dysfunctional political system, kept us from debating the merits of divisive issues, and inflamed our public discourse," writes Louis Michael Seidman in the New York ...

Judge Scalia: Constitution Doesn't Allow Gay 'Sodomy'

Supreme Court justice also dishes on death penalty, abortion

(Newser) - Hot-button constitutional issues? No problem, says Justice Antonin Scalia—who supports the death penalty, opposes abortion, and believes in criminalizing gay sex. "The death penalty? Give me a break. It's easy," he said to a few hundred people gathered at the American Enterprise Institute. He described his...

Ryan Doesn't Meet Mitt's Requirement for President

Romney echoed argument for 3 years of business experience

(Newser) - Mitt Romney sets a high bar for anyone seeking the presidency—too high, it seems, for his own running mate to match. At a May speech in Las Vegas, Romney avidly recounted the story of a local businessman who wanted a new Constitutional requirement for presidential candidates: that they have...

Georgia to Execute Man Deemed Mentally Retarded

State isn't convinced he meets the definition, despite court ruling

(Newser) - The US Supreme Court declared that the death penalty for mentally retarded criminals was unconstitutional in 2002. Georgia, however, is set to execute a prisoner so labeled next week, reports the Guardian . The execution of Warren Hill is proceeding because Georgia, alone among the states, says that learning disabilities must...

What John Roberts Is Up To
 What John Roberts Is Up To 
OPINION
Jun 28, 2012 1:56 PM CDT

What John Roberts Is Up To

Commentators see ulterior, conservative motive behind Roberts' vote

(Newser) - John Roberts upheld the Affordable Care Act today, and "in doing so, he gave a lot of people who don't pay attention a reason to celebrate him on Twitter," writes Mobutu Sese Seko of Gawker . "They're idiots." Seko and some other observers believe Roberts...

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