Political Science 421
Fall 2012
Office Hrs: Mon. & Wed. 12:30-1:30 & by appt.
Website: http://web.pdx.edu/~shortell/
Dr. Chris Shortell
Office: URBN 650J
E-mail: [email protected]
Phone number: 503-725-5139
The Supreme Court and American Politics
Course Description:
This quarter we will be studying the power of the courts, Congress, and the President as
interpreted by the Supreme Court. We will look at issues ranging from whether courts should
get involved in political disputes between the other branches to what extent Congress can
regulate economic transactions to how far the President can go in fighting terrorism.
In each area, we will trace the development of legal doctrines both historically and theoretically,
with an emphasis on applying them to today’s world. The goal of the course is to better
understand and evaluate the law and political theory at the heart of our political institutions.
Special emphasis will be placed on your ability to read legal opinions critically, understand the
decision-making process of courts, and effectively communicate your ideas orally and in writing.
A word of warning: this will be an extremely challenging course. We will be tackling difficult
legal and philosophical issues at a fast pace. The arguments you will be expected to master are
complex and subtle. The reading, while not particularly long, is demanding. It is absolutely
necessary that everyone keeps up with the reading and attends class regularly. Falling behind is
easy to do and difficult to overcome. If you are having trouble with the material or would like to
further discuss any of the issues presented in class, please come see me during my office hours.
The nature of the subject also requires a somewhat fluid approach to the class. The Supreme
Court will begin its new term in October. That may result in some class time spent addressing
and discussing the cases being heard.
*Note that this course fulfills one of the core requirements for the Minor in Law & Legal Studies
Required Texts:
Constitutional Law for a Changing America: Institutional Powers and Constraints, 7th edition by
Lee Epstein and Thomas Walker
There will also be readings available on the internet at http://clca.cqpress.com and D2L.
There is a Desire2Learn (D2L) site set up for this course. The D2L site includes a discussion
board, where I will post questions arising out of the material we discuss, post relevant news, and
answer any questions about the reading or class. This offers an opportunity for you to post
thoughts or questions and participate in addition to the time in the classroom. You can access
this site through http://d2l.pdx.edu. You just need your PSU e-mail address and password to log
in. If you have any difficulties, please contact me.
If you are having a tough time with the legal terms, you can rely on a law dictionary, the classic
one being Black’s Law Dictionary available at the library. There are also several Internet-based
law dictionaries such as http://dictionary.lp.findlaw.com/. And, of course, I am always available
to help.
Assignments and Grading:
Grades will be based on a take-home midterm exam due on Wednesday, October 24th (40% of
grade), a take-home final exam due on Wednesday, December 5th (40% of grade), and class
preparedness (20% of grade). The midterm and final will be essay exams and you will receive
more details on them during the class.
Class preparedness is a grade based on attendance, participation, and briefing of cases.
Attendance and participation in class or on the D2L discussion board is an integral part of
learning for this course. You need to come to each class prepared, having read and briefed the
cases that we will be discussing.
This grading system can be altered in general or individually if I believe it is necessary to
achieve the educational goals of this course or to mark down students who engage in disruptive
behavior such as chronic lateness. Also be aware that I do not offer extra credit for the class.
Class Laptop Policy:
Laptops are wonderful things (I own one myself) and they can be beneficial in an educational
environment. Unfortunately, the temptation and distraction available on a laptop during class
makes them problematic. Were it simply a matter of the owner of the laptop failing to pay
attention to class, that would be less worrisome, since that student’s choice would be reflected in
their grade. However, when students use laptops for inappropriate activities during class (emailing, browsing the internet, IMing friends, etc.) that inevitably distracts those students sitting
around and behind them. Having seen this first-hand, I have adopted a policy which restricts the
use of laptops in my classes, unless necessary for a documented disability. I do not take this step
lightly and I realize that it may present a significant inconvenience to those used to relying on
taking their notes electronically. Nonetheless, in the interest of improving the quality of
engagement and to minimize the unwanted distractions for others, there will be no laptops in this
class.
Policy on Academic Dishonesty
The PSU Code of Student Conduct and Responsibility makes it clear that all forms of academic
cheating, fraud, and dishonesty are not permitted at this university. I do not tolerate plagiarism
or academic dishonesty of any kind and will pursue plagiarism cases to the full extent allowed by
PSU rules, including expulsion from the university. At the minimum, based on my discretion,
students found guilty of plagiarism will receive a zero on the assignment and their case may be
referred to the appropriate university offices for further administrative action.
Course Outline:
The readings below should be read by the date listed. If necessary, I will make adjustments to
the schedule if we fall behind. It is more important that everyone understand the legal issues
thoroughly than that we cover a set amount of cases.
Sept. 24- Introduction, Ch. 1
I. The Courts
Sept. 26- Judicial Review: Marbury v. Madison (pgs. 64-71)
Sept. 28- Judicial Review: Martin v. Hunter’s Lessee (pgs. 74-79), City of Boerne v. Flores
(online)
Oct. 1- Jurisdiction: Ex Parte McCardle (pgs. 89-91), DeFunis v. Odegaard (online)
Oct. 3- Justiciability: Luther v. Borden (online), Baker v. Carr
Oct. 5- Justiciability, Standing: Nixon v. U.S. (pgs. 97-107), Zivotovsky v. Clinton (online)
Oct. 8- Standing: Frothingham v. Mellon (online), Flast v. Cohen (pgs. 109-112), Summers v.
Earth Island Institute (online)
Oct. 10- Economic Substantive Due Process- Munn v. Illinois (pgs. 594-598), Allgeyer v.
Louisiana (pgs. 600-602)
Oct. 12- Economic Substantive Due Process- Lochner v. New York (pgs. 603-608), Adkins v.
Children’s Hospital (pgs. 615-618)
Oct. 15- Economic Substantive Due Process- Nebbia v. New York (pgs. 619-622), West Coast
Hotel v. Parrish (pgs. 623-627)
II. Congress
Oct. 17- Necessary and Proper Clause: McCulloch v. Maryland (pgs. 145-152)
Hand out midterm
Oct. 19- Commerce Clause: Gibbons v. Ogden, United States v. E.C. Knight Co. (pgs. 402-412)
Oct. 22- Commerce Clause: Schechter Poultry v. U.S. (pgs. 418-424)
Oct. 24- Commerce Clause: National Labor Relations Board v. Jones & Laughlin Steel
Corporation (pgs. 433-438), Wickard v. Filburn (441-444)
Midterm Due
Oct. 26- Commerce Clause: U.S. v. Lopez, U.S. v. Morrison (pgs. 446-456)
Oct. 29- Commerce Clause: Champion v. Ames, Heart of Atlanta Motel v. U.S. (pgs. 464-470)
Oct. 31- Commerce Clause, Spending Clause: Gonzalez v. Raich (pgs. 456-463), South Dakota v.
Dole (pgs. 527-530)
Nov. 2- Taxing Clause, Health Care: Bailey v. Drexel Furniture Company (pgs. 515-517),
National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius (online)
III. The Executive
Nov. 5- Faithful Execution/Veto Power: In re Neagle (pgs. 195-199), Clinton v. City of New
York (pgs. 202-206)
Nov. 7- Appointment: Morrison v. Olson (pgs. 208-213), Free Enterprise Fund v. Public
Company Accounting Oversight Board (online)
Nov. 9- Executive Privilege and Immunity: U.S. v. Nixon (pgs. 224-228), Nixon v. Fitzgerald
(pgs. 231-236)
Nov. 12- NO CLASS (Veteran’s Day)
Nov. 14- Executive Immunity: Clinton v. Jones (pgs. 236-241)
Nov. 16 – War Powers: United States v. Curtiss-Wright Export Corp. (pgs. 248-249), The Prize
Cases (pgs. 275-279)
Nov. 19- War Powers: Ex Parte Milligan, Ex Parte Quirin (pgs. 279-290)
Nov. 21- War Powers: Korematsu v. U.S., Youngstown Sheet & Tube v. Sawyer (pgs. 290-303)
Nov. 23- NO CLASS (Thanksgiving)
Nov. 26- War Powers/State Secrets: United States v. Reynolds (online)
Nov. 28- Detention: Hamdi v. Rumsfeld (online)
Nov. 30- Detention: Boumediene v. Bush (online)
Hand out final exam
Dec. 5th- Final Exam due at 2:00pm