Category Archives: supreme court
Flynt v Falwell Cartoon First Amendment Anniversary
Today is the 20th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Flynt v Falwell decision. It was a very important ruling because it acts as a kind of get out of jail card for cartoonists. Also, it gives me an excuse to quote myself from my book The Recent History of the United States in Political Cartoons: A Look Bok!:
As an endangered industry, political cartooning seeks, and gets, federal protection. It comes in the form of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Flynt v Falwell
Larry Flynt published an over-the-top raunchy cartoon, in his porn magazine Hustler. The cartoon was about Rev. Jerry Falwell and his mother. Falwell sued and the case made its way to the Supreme Court. Falwell claimed the cartoon caused him emotional distress. Of course it did. That was the point, as Chief Justice Rehnquist noted in the court’s unanimous opinion for Flynt:
“The appeal of the political cartoon or caricature is often based on the exploration of unfortunate physical traits or politically embarrassing events… often calculated to hurt the feelings of the subject of the portrayal.”
In order to protect political cartoons the court had to protect Larry Flynt’s offensive cartoon. Not many jobs have a Supreme Court mandate to cause emotional distress.
Even so, it’s not like I keep this date marked on my calendar. I noticed it when I stumbled on this piece about it by Carl Cannon at Real Clear Politics. Cannon had this to say about the court’s ruling:
To decide otherwise, the eight justices reasoned, would effectively outlaw political cartooning. This, too, the high court ruled, would be an unwise and unconstitutional decision to render. Rehnquist quoted approvingly from the words of a cartoonist:
“The political cartoon is a weapon of attack, of scorn and ridicule and satire; it is least effective when it tries to pat some politician on the back. It is usually as welcome as a bee sting, and is always controversial in some quarters.”
First Amendment
Flynt and Falwell eventually went on the road together debating the First Amendment.
Separation of Powers
During his State of the Union speech the president again emphasized his intention to go it alone. He’s his own separation of powers. He’s got a phone and a pen and he doesn’t need no stinking Congress.
Update:
Back in December Law professor Jonathan Turley said that President Obama is “becoming the very danger the Constitution was designed to avoid”.
Update 6/5/14:
Professor Turley now says Obama is the president Nixon always wanted to be.
Little Sisters of the Poor
The Little Sisters of the Poor won a skirmish against Big Gov. The Supreme Court issued an injunction that excused the nuns from filling out a form directing others to provide contraceptives to their employees.
I Have a Pen Speech
President Obama gave his I Have a Pen Speech yesterday. He waved his pen and said he also has a phone.
He then warned Congress that if it doesn’t do his bidding he would have his way by executive order. He would do that with the pen. He would use the phone to rally “non-profit and private sector support” for his agenda.
He didn’t mention recess appointments. In 2012 he declared the Senate in recess, even though the Senate said it was not. He then used the self-proclaimed recess to appoint 2 new members to the National Labor Relations board without Senate approval.
The Supreme Court is not looking kindly on the maneuver.
Gay Marriage Goes Viral
Supreme Court swingman, Justice Anthony Kennedy, wrote the majority opinion overturning the Defense of Marriage Act. After writing that the issue of gay marriage should be left to the states he described its opponents as bigots. Here’s Rich Lowry in Politico:
The majority held that DOMA inflicts an “injury and indignity” on gay couples so severe that it denies “an essential part of the liberty protected by the Fifth Amendment.” It is motivated by a “‘bare congressional desire to harm a politically unpopular group.’” There is, in short, nothing to be said for it or the point of view of its supporters. Period. Full stop.
Those bigots would include Bill Clinton, who signed DOMA into law (but, newly enlightened, is glad to see it go), Barack Obama (until he changed his mind “the day before yesterday”), “342 members of the House, and 85 Senators”. Actually, most members of the human race were on board with the bigots until millions changed their minds – the day before yesterday .
