Bill of Rights
The right to vote is not in the Constitution
If you’re looking for the right to vote, you won’t find it in the United States Constitution or the Bill of Rights. Two of the most important cases at the Supreme Court this year address voting rights, and both legal controversies focus on the right to vote. But rather than denials of the right to […]
History and media panel weighed in on current First Amendment controversies
In a forum held by the Columbus Metropolitan Club on Wednesday, Mike Thompson moderated a panel discussion with professionals in the media and academic fields about ways that the first amendment is being challenged now and where that leaves the state of journalism in the future. Panelists also contemplated the impact social media platforms have for the spread of misinformation.
Our new Republican activist U.S. Supreme Court is assaulting the separation of church and state
American politicians fear-mongering over moral and religious decline, and advocating for state sponsorship of religion, is as old as the founding of the Republic. The key original battle took place in Virginia between “Give me liberty, or give me death,” Patrick Henry, an astute political opportunist who opposed the U.S. Constitution, and the “Father of […]
COVID brings front and center the tug between individual rights and the public good
By Janice Ellis It seems that getting control of the coronavirus has brought front and center the question: When should an individual’s right become more important than what is in the best health and welfare of the people, the country? The Bill of Rights places high priority on individual freedoms — the bedrock of our democracy that […]
Plot to kidnap Michigan gov grew from the militia movement’s toxic mix of constitutional falsehoods and half-truths
The U.S. militia movement has long been steeped in a peculiar – and unquestionably mistaken – interpretation of the Constitution, the Bill of Rights and civil liberties. This is true of an armed militia group that calls itself the Wolverine Watchmen, who were involved in the recently revealed plot to overthrow Michigan’s government and kidnap […]