Monday, August 29, 2011

Breaking: Supreme Court Rules Social Security Is Constitutional

Ok, as everyone who was paying attention in High School knows, this news actually broke in 1936. But Rick Perry was not paying attention so this is for him. You might enjoy it also.

Rick Perry, world renowned Constitutional scholar and bloviator of inanities par excellence, has issued his legal opinion that Social Security is unconstitutional. Perry originally issued this opinion in his book, and he restated his opinion in a political event.

And beyond expressing the results of his extensive legal research Perry has said Social Security is a lie and a ponzi scheme.

This is, of course, utter horse pucky as explained in a really great article from the hard working civil servants at the Social Security Administration designed for third grade readers that even Perry might comprehend.

The case that decided the Constitutionality of Social Security was Helvering v Davis. It was decided simultaneously with cases challenging the unemployment insurance provisions of the Social Security Act.

Now before getting to Mr Perry's position there is an important point to remember. Rick is entitled to the view that the Social Security is bad policy and he may disagree with the Helvering decision, but he is not entitled to the view that the law is Unconstitutional. As a guy who allegedly graduated from high school and went to Texas A&M he should know that since the decision in Marbury v Madison in 1803, it is settled law that the Supreme Court is the final arbiter on the question of whether a law is Constitutional. He can agree with or disagree with Supreme Court decision, but if the Court decides that a law is Constitutional that is the final word until such time as the Court reverses itself, which happens but rarely. (A&M is a school with a proud tradition and all A&M alumni should petition the school to investigate whether he truly did graduate.)

Moving on, the principle issue in the case was whether Social Security violated the Tenth Amendment. That is the provision which most Constitutional scholars say is a restatement of a truism,

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.


Or, stated another way, "the Federal Government, which did not exist before this document was ratified, and which exists only by reason of the provisions of this document, only has the powers granted to it by this document. Therefore, accordingly and obviously, all the other rights and powers that existed in the world before this document that were not given to the Federal government by this document continue to reside wherever they reside."

The Court explained that since there were provisions in the Constitution that gave the Federal Government the powers it was exercising through Social Security, there was no Tenth Amendment problem. First, the Court said,

Congress may spend money in aid of the "general welfare." . . . There have been great statesmen in our history who have stood for other views. We will not resurrect the contest. It is now settled by decision. . . . The conception of the spending power advocated by Hamilton and strongly reinforced by Story has prevailed over that of Madison, which has not been lacking in adherents. Yet difficulties are left when the power is conceded. The line must still be drawn between one welfare and another, between particular and general. Where this shall be placed cannot be known through a formula in advance of the event. There is a middle ground, or certainly a penumbra, in which discretion is at large. The discretion, however, is not confided to the courts. The discretion belongs to Congress, unless the choice is clearly wrong, a display of arbitrary power, not an exercise of judgment. This is now familiar law.


Now it would seem that is something that Perry and would warm right up to. The Court is saying that Congress has broad discretion and the Court shouldn't second guess their judgement.

But the Court didn't stop there. It went on to talk about how the needs of the Nation can change and that Congress can respond to those changes.


Nor is the concept of the general welfare static. Needs that were narrow or parochial a century ago may be interwoven in our day with the wellbeing of the Nation. What is critical or urgent changes with the times.

The purge of nationwide calamity that began in 1929 has taught us many lessons. Not the least is the solidarity of interests that may once have seemed to be divided. Unemployment spreads from State to State, the hinterland now settled that, in pioneer days gave an avenue of escape. . . . Spreading from State to State, unemployment is an ill not particular, but general, which may be checked, if Congress so determines, by the resources of the Nation. If this can have been doubtful until now, our ruling today in the case of the Steward Machine Co., supra, has set the doubt at rest. But the ill is all one, or at least not greatly different, whether men are thrown out of work because there is no longer work to do or because the disabilities of age make them incapable of doing it. Rescue becomes necessary irrespective of the cause. The hope behind this statute is to save men and women from the rigors of the poor house, as well as from the haunting fear that such a lot awaits them when journey's end is near.


Wow, that's some heady stuff. It's reasonable for Congress to recognize the calamities befalling the Nation and its people and try to address them.

But then the Court suggested that Congress should just not have a free hand to act willy nilly, unless it had some facts to back its actions. The Court looked at the record and found that Congress had indeed done its homework. This paragraph is a jem for the ages.

Congress did not improvise a judgment when it found that the award of old age benefits would be conducive to the general welfare. The President's Committee on Economic Security made an investigation and report, aided by a research staff of Government officers and employees, and by an Advisory Council and seven other advisory groups. Extensive hearings followed before the House Committee on Ways and Means, and the Senate Committee on Finance. A great mass of evidence was brought together supporting the policy which finds expression in the act. Among the relevant facts are these: the number of persons in the United States 65 years of age or over is increasing proportionately as well as absolutely. What is even more important, the number of such persons unable to take care of themselves is growing at a threatening pace. More and more, our population is becoming urban and industrial, instead of rural and agricultural. The evidence is impressive that, among industrial workers, the younger men and women are preferred over the older. In times of retrenchment, the older are commonly the first to go, and even if retained, their wages are likely to be lowered. The plight of men and women at so low an age as 40 is hard, almost hopeless, when they are driven to seek for reemployment. Statistics are in the brief. A few illustrations will be chosen from many there collected. In 1930, out of 224 American factories investigated, 71, or almost one third, had fixed maximum hiring age limits; in 4 plants, the limit was under 40; in 41, it was under 46. In the other 153 plants, there were no fixed limits, but in practice few were hired if they were over 50 years of age. [n6] With the loss of savings inevitable in periods of idleness, [p*643] the fate of workers over 65, when thrown out of work, is little less than desperate. A recent study of the Social Security Board informs us that one-fifth of the aged in the United States were receiving old-age assistance, emergency relief, institutional care, employment under the works program, or some other form of aid from public or private funds; two-fifths to one-half were dependent on friends and relatives, one-eighth had some income from earnings, and possibly one-sixth had some savings or property. Approximately three out of four persons 65 or over were probably dependent wholly or partially on others for support. [n7]
Bolding Added.

This was written in 1936. 1936. It could have been written today.

And here is where the Court puts the stake in the heart of the tenthers and their fellow travelers. This is a national problem that cannot be dealt with by the States separately.

The problem is plainly national in area and dimensions. Moreover, laws of the separate states cannot deal with it effectively. Congress, at least, had a basis for that belief. States and local governments are often lacking in the resources that are necessary to finance an adequate program of security for the aged. This is brought out with a wealth of illustration in recent studies of the problem. [n9] Apart from the failure of resources, states and local governments are at times reluctant to increase so heavily the burden of taxation to be borne by their residents for fear of placing themselves in a position of economic disadvantage as compared with neighbors or competitors. We have seen this in our study of the problem of unemployment compensation. Steward Machine Co. v. Davis, supra. A system of old age pensions has special dangers of its own if put in force in one state and rejected in another. The existence of such a system is a bait to the needy and dependent elsewhere, encouraging them to migrate and seek a haven of repose. Only a power that is national can serve the interests of all.


This last paragraph is a verbal back of the hand to all the bozos that existed then and their offspring who are with us today who argued that Social Security would breed dependancy.

Counsel for respondent has recalled to us the virtues of self-reliance and frugality. There is a possibility, he says, that aid from a paternal government may sap those sturdy virtues and breed a race of weaklings. If Massachusetts so believes and shapes her laws in that conviction, must her breed of sons be changed, he asks, because some other philosophy of government finds favor in the halls of Congress? But the answer is not doubtful. One might ask with equal reason whether the system of protective tariffs is to be set aside at will in one state or another whenever local policy prefers the rule of laissez faire. The issue is a closed one. It was fought out long ago. When money is spent to promote the general welfare, the concept of welfare or the opposite is shaped by Congress, not the states. So the concept be not arbitrary, the locality must yield.


Look Rick, the law is Constitutional. You may not like it. Fine. But that doesn't affect its legality. And on a political note. you should tread lightly. Americans know where they've been, know where they are, and know where you want to take them. The hole you are falling in to is really deep.

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Important Teacher Free Speech Decision With Ironic Twist

The Ninth Circuit issued a decision on August 19, 2011 which is an important victory for teachers and academic freedom in school. In Farnan v Capistrano Unified School District the court ruled that a high school teacher could not be sued for violating the Constitutional rights of a student who alleged that the teacher had made disparaging comments about religion, and Christianity in particular.

This case is important because it reinforces the academic freedom we expect to be granted our teachers, even those in high school. But it also demonstrates something that lawyers are familiar with but which can be frustrating for others. One of the precedents relied on in this case was a very recent Supreme Court decision that immunized Attorney General John Ashcroft from suit, a ruling that most civil libertarians disagree with. But first, the Farnan case.

The facts in the Farnan case are straightforward. Farnan was a fifteen year old student in an advanced placement course on European history. The course materials made clear that the role of religion would be discussed at length. During the discussions, the teacher, James Corbett, made some very pointed remarks about how serfs were duped by their religious beliefs and how the churches manipulated them. He compared the situation of the serfs to Republican voters in red states who are influenced by religion. He also equated belief in religion to belief in the Spaghetti Monster behind the moon. Here's an example,

I mean, all I’m saying is that, you know, the people who want to make the argument that God did it, there is as much evidence that God did it as there is that there is a giant spaghetti monster living behind the moon who did it. . . .


Farnan the student, took offense, but instead of talking to his teacher, he quit the class and sued. He argued that his first Amendment right to free exercise of religion and against the establishment of religion were violated and that he was entitled to relief under 42 USC 1983. That is the 1871 civil rights statute which is used to sue government officials for Constitutional violations.

The Court noted at the outset that the potential for liability existed because the Establishment Clause applies “not only to official condonement of a particular religion or religious belief, but also to official disapproval or hostility toward religion." Though having reached that threshold, the Circuit dismissed the lawsuit because it found the teacher Corbett was entitled to qualified immunity from suit. It reached this result by applying the two part test for qualified immunity,

(1) whether, taking the facts in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, the government official’s conduct violated a constitutional right, and (2) whether the right was clearly established at the time of the alleged misconduct.


The court noted that you need only meet one part of the test to find immunity and in this case the court held that the second test was not satisfied.

We have little trouble concluding that the law was not clearly established at the time of the events in question — there has never been any reported case holding that a teacher violated the Establishment Clause by making statements in the classroom that were allegedly hostile to religion.


While that was the basis for the decision and could have been the end of the discussion the court went on to describe why it thought Corbett's statements were not Constitutionally inappropriate.

The Supreme Court has long recognized the importance of protecting the “robust exchange of ideas” in education, “which discovers truth ‘out of a multitude of tongues.’ . . . This academic freedom will sometimes lead to the examination of controversial issues. Both parties agree that AP Euro could not be taught without discussing religion. We have no doubt that the freedom to have a frank discussion about the role of religion in history is an integral part of any advanced history course. Indeed, a collective of organizations including the American Association of School Administrators, American Federation of Teachers, National Education Association and National School Boards Association, has long acknowledged that “[b]ecause religion plays a significant role in history and society, study about religion is essential to understanding both the nation and the world.”

. . .

In broaching controversial issues like religion, teachers must be sensitive to students’ personal beliefs and take care not to abuse their positions of authority. . . . But teachers must also be given leeway to challenge students to foster critical thinking skills and develop their analytical abilities. This balance is hard to achieve, and we must be careful not to curb intellectual freedom by imposing dogmatic restrictions that chill teachers from adopting the pedagogical methods they believe are most effective.


It is a good well reasoned decision, but will it stand if it is appealed to the Supreme Court? Well, that's the rub. Because in reaching this decision the Ninth Circuit relied on a two month old Supreme Court decision of al-Kidd v Ashcroft in which The Supreme Court reversed the Ninth's ruling with very harsh language. In that case, Al-Kidd was arrested and detained under the material witness statute. He sued Ashcroft arguing that the statute was used as a pretext to detain him. The Supreme Court said that Ashcroft was eligible for qualified immunity because at the time of al-Kidd's arrest, "not a single judicial opinion had held that pretext could render an objectively reasonable arrest pursuant to a material-witness warrant unconstitutional."

We hold that an objectively reasonable arrest and detention of a material witness pursuant to a validly obtained warrant cannot be challenged as unconstitutional on the basis of allegations that the arresting authority had an improper motive. Because Ashcroft did not violate clearly established law, we need not address the more difficult question whether he enjoys absolute immunity.


In writing its decision in Al-Kidd, Scalia castigate the Ninth Circuit for its contrary ruling, saying

We have repeatedly told courts—and the Ninth Circuit in particular, . . . not to define clearly established law at a high level of generality. . . . The general proposition, for example, that an unreasonable search or seizure violates the Fourth Amendment is of little help in determining whether the violative nature of particular conduct is clearly established.


Whether one agrees with the Al-Kidd ruling or not, the standard is clear. And that standard was applied in the Farnan case. A reversal by the Supreme Court would require some legal contortions by Scalia and the rest of the conservatives, the like of which might be difficult even for them.

One final note. This case is in marked contrast to the recent 7th Circuit decision in Vance v Rumsfeld where the court held that Rumsfeld could be sued for violating the Constitutional rights of Americans in a war zone. The court held that Rumsfeld was not entitled to qualified immunity because,

The law was clearly established in 2006 that the treatment plaintiffs have alleged was unconstitutional. No reasonable public official could have believed otherwise.


Here we have the opposite. A case where there is no hint from statutes or prior decisions that the actions are unconstitutional and, beyond that, where the court has serious doubts that they are unconstitutional.

Tuesday, August 09, 2011

First Time. Court Of Appeals Says Rumsfeld Can Be Sued For Constitutional Rights Violations

The Seventh Circuit issued a decision in Vance v Rumsfeld that is a first for a court of appeals. The decision holds the Donald Rumsfeld can be sued in his personal capacity for violating the Constitutional rights of American Citizens. This comes on the heels of the District Court decision last week in Doe v Rumsfeld that also allowed a suit by a citizen against Rumsfeld to proceed.

The court did not rule that the plaintiff's rights had in fact been violated. That is yet to be decided. But it did hold that the case could proceed and Rumsfeld could be personally liable if the allegations are proved.

The Court noted that the government supported its opposition to the case going forward solely on the bases of cases involving suits by non citizens. In rejecting those arguments the Court stated,

Whether or not one agrees with those decisions, the difficult issues posed by aliens’ claims should not lead courts to extend the reasoning in those cases to deny all civil remedies to civilian U.S. citizens who have been tortured by their own government, in violation of the most fundamental guarantees in the constitutional pact between citizens and our government.


Ouch.

The facts in the case tell a lengthy and chilling story. Here are some highlights from the opinion,



Vance and Ertel, two young American civilians, . . .worked for a privately-owned Iraqi security services company, Shield Group Security. . . . Over time, Vance became suspicious that the company was involved with corruption and other illegal activity.

. . . .

While Vance was home in Chicago for his father’s funeral, he contacted U.S. government officials to report his suspicions. He met with an FBI agent, who arranged for Vance to continue reporting suspicious activity back to Chicago. The FBI agent also requested that Vance meet U.S. government officials in Iraq to report his observations.

. . .

Vance told his friend and colleague Ertel that he had become an informant, and Ertel contributed information as well. The plaintiffs were frequently in touch with their government contacts, sometimes multiple times a day.

. . . .

Shield Group Security officials became suspicious about the plaintiffs’ loyalty to the firm. . . . Plaintiffs called their U.S. government contacts in Iraq for help. They were told that they should interpret Shield Group Security’s actions as taking them hostage, and should barricade themselves with weapons in a room of the compound. . . .

They were awakened and arrested, handcuffed, blindfolded, and driven to Camp Prosperity, a U.S. military compound in Baghdad. . . they were placed in a cage, strip-searched, fingerprinted, and issued jumpsuits . . . and held incommunicado in their cells . . . They each had a thin mat on concrete on which to sleep, but the lights were kept on 24 hours a day.

After two days, Vance and Ertel were shackled, blindfolded, and transported to Camp Cropper, a U.S. military facility near Baghdad International Airport. [They were held] incommunicado, in solitary confinement, and subjected to physical and psychological torture for the duration of their imprisonment — Vance for three months and Ertel for six weeks. . . [T]hey were strip-searched while still blindfolded, . . . held in solitary confinement, in small, cold, dirty cells and subjected to torturous techniques forbidden by the Army Field Manual and the Detainee Treatment Act. . . . The lights were kept on at all times in their cells, so that the plaintiffs experienced “no darkness day after day” for the entire duration of their time at Camp Cropper. . . . Their cells were kept intolerably cold, except when the generators failed. . . . There were bugs and feces on the walls of the cells, in which they spent most of their time in complete isolation.

. . .

Vance and Ertel were never charged with any crime or other wrongdoing, nor were they designated as security threats. Instead, both were eventually released and dropped off at the airport in Baghdad to find their way home.



This is a very lengthy decision, much of which is devoted to procedural questions. But its main conclusion is that a suit against a government official for Constitutional violations, a so-called Bivens suit, can be tried even for actions in a war zone. It should also be noted that there was a dissenting judge who thought extension of Bivens remedies into war zones was a step too far.

In order to hear a Bivens case courts do a two part analysis. First, the court must determine if there is an alternative remedy. In this case the Court found none. Second, the Court examines whether there are special circumstances in the case that caution against allowing the case to proceed. In this case the government argued that since the alleged violations occurred in a war zone, that is a special factor which should preclude the case moving forward.

The Court summarized the Government's position thusly,

The unprecedented breadth of defendants’ argument should not be overlooked. The defendants contend that a Bivens remedy should not be available to U.S. citizens for any constitutional wrong, including torture and even cold-blooded murder, if the wrong occurs in a war zone. The defendants’ theory would apply to any soldier or federal official, from the very top of the chain of command to the very bottom.


In rejecting this argument the court stated,

Our courts have a long history — more than 200 years — of providing damages remedies for those whose rights are violated by our government, including our military.

. . .

If we were to accept the defendants’ invitation to recognize the broad and unprecedented immunity they seek, then the judicial branch — which is charged with enforcing constitutional rights — would be leaving our citizens defenseless to serious abuse or worse by another branch of their own government. We recognize that wrongdoers in the military would still be subject to criminal pros-ecution within the military itself. Relying solely on the military to police its own treatment of civilians, however, would amount to an extraordinary abdication of our government’s checks and balances that preserve Americans’ liberty.


If this case goes to trial and if it comes back to this Court on appeal, here is a little taste of the Court's view of the heinous nature of the allegations.

Examining the plaintiffs’ claims against the backdrop of the Supreme Court’s decisions on prison conditions of confinement and prison treatment cases, we remember that abuse in American prisons was once authorized and even thought of as part of the punishment of prisoners. . . chaining inmates to one another and to hitching posts in the hot sun . . . the lashing of inmates with a “wooden-handled leather strap five feet long and four inches wide” as part of authorized corporal punishment program . . . the use of a “Tucker telephone,” a hand-cranked instrument “used to administer electrical shocks to various sensitive parts of an inmate’s body" . . . . . .

Today, the idea that a prisoner in a U.S. prison might be abused in such a manner and not have judicial recourse is unthinkable. While the Constitution “does not mandate comfortable prisons, . . . neither does it permit inhumane ones.” Farmer, 511 U.S. at 832 (citations omitted) (noting that the Eighth Amendment requires that prison officials “ensure that inmates receive adequate food, clothing, shelter, and medical care, and . . . ‘take reasonable measures to guarantee the safety of the inmates’”). If a prisoner in a U.S. prison had his head covered and was repeatedly “walled,” or slammed into walls on the way to interrogation sessions, we would have no trouble acknowledging that his well-pled allegations, if true, would describe a violation of his constitutional rights.

. . .

If a prisoner was kept awake as much as possible, kept in insufferably cold conditions, and not given sufficient bedding or clothing, we would likewise believe that there could well have been a violation of his constitutional rights.

. . . .

The plaintiffs in this case, detained without charges, have pled in detail allegations of such severe conditions and treatment, the likes of which courts have held unconstitutional when applied to convicted criminals in U.S. prisons. The allegations of abuse state claims for violations of the constitutional right not to be deprived of liberty without substantive due process of law.


One last thought. The wheels of justice grind slow but they grind fine.

Also published at September 17, 1787.