Monthly Archives: January 2021

“Please Don’t Follow This Money”

January 20, 2021, 7:04 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

NYT: A new Supreme Court case is calling into question the sincerity of corporate America’s reckoning with political giving. Many companies and trade groups say they are re-evaluating political donations after the riot in the Capitol, demanding accountability for lawmakers… Continue reading

Watch Archived Video of Ben Ginsberg, Pam Fessler and Me Discussing: “What Has to Change to Protect Our Vulnerable Election System”

January 20, 2021, 7:02 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Great conversation yesterday accessible here.

“New Republican named to MI elections board that certified Biden win”

January 20, 2021, 6:59 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Michigan Public Radio: There will be a new Republican serving on the bipartisan state board that certifies election results – most recently President-elect Joe Biden’s Michigan victory last November. Governor Gretchen Whitmer – a Democrat – selected Tony Daunt… Continue reading

Michigan Journal of Gender and Law – Call for Papers

January 20, 2021, 6:54 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

The Michigan Journal of Gender & Law is seeking submissions for its Fall 2021 issue centered on the topic of gender and democratic processes. The Journal welcomes all submissions that deal with, for example, the role of gender in election… Continue reading

“Steve Schwarzman, a Trump Adviser, Stays Loyal Till the End”

January 19, 2021, 4:03 pmUncategorizedRichard Pildes

The NYT has broken a story that includes coverage of confidential meetings I’ve been involved in with the country’s business leaders since the election about what role they can play in supporting the stability of American democracy. I think the… Continue reading

Lincoln Project Will Back Democrats’ New Election Reform Project in the Senate

January 19, 2021, 9:46 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Greg Sargent on Lincoln Project backing the For the People Act,

Matt Shugart Makes the Case for Proportional Representation in Congress to Save the Country from Authoritarian Wing of Republican Party

January 19, 2021, 9:41 amalternative voting systemsRick Hasen

Shugart: Because the constitutional emergency is likely too deep to just turn the page, small-d democrats face an emergency of another kind. The need to adopt proportional representation has never been greater. The country simply can’t afford the risk that… Continue reading

Republican on Gwinnett County (GA) Elections Board Wants to Make Voting Harder to Help Her Party

January 19, 2021, 9:38 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Oh my: GOP chair of the Gwinnett County elections board on why she wants GA legislature to impose new restrictions on voting. “They don’t have to change all of them, but they’ve got to change the major parts of them… Continue reading

“Big businesses say they are responsible, but too often they fuel conspiracy theories”

January 19, 2021, 8:57 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Michael Porter and Bruce Freed USA Today oped: U.S. corporations and their leaders are speaking out forcefully about the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and the need to transition quickly to the Biden era. However, they face a serious… Continue reading

“Lawmakers who objected to election results have been cut off from 20 of their 30 biggest corporate PAC donors”

January 19, 2021, 8:55 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

WaPo reports. The 147 Republican lawmakers who opposed certification of the presidential election this month have lost the support of many of their largest corporate backers — but not all of them.The Washington Post contacted the 30 companies that gave… Continue reading

How Misinformation Emerges and Spreads

January 19, 2021, 4:56 amUncategorizedRichard Pildes

This is an illuminating story from the Austin American-Statesman about the spread of misinformation. The context is whether President Trump would lose his pension, travel stipend, and other benefits if convicted in the Senate trial. The false information here is… Continue reading

“FBI investigating whether Capitol assault suspect tried to sell Pelosi computer to Russian intelligence service”

January 18, 2021, 8:14 pmchicaneryRick Hasen

ABC News: The FBI is investigating whether a woman who allegedly participated in the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol stole a computer or hard drive from the office of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi with the intention of… Continue reading

“Biden to ban special bonuses for appointees, expand lobbying prohibitions in new ethics rules”

January 18, 2021, 7:58 pmlobbyingRick Hasen

WaPo: President-elect Joe Biden will ban his senior presidential appointees from accepting special bonuses akin to “golden parachutes” from former employers for joining the government, while putting in place other expanded revolving-door restrictions in his first days in office.The new… Continue reading

“QAnon adherents discussed posing as National Guard to try to infiltrate inauguration, according to FBI intelligence briefing”

January 18, 2021, 7:47 pmchicaneryRick Hasen

WaPo: The FBI privately warned law enforcement agencies Monday that far-right extremists have discussed posing as National Guard members in Washington and others have reviewed maps of vulnerable spots in the city — signs of potential efforts to disrupt Wednesday’s… Continue reading

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The law of politics and the politics of law