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San Francisco Chronicle
14 hours ago
- Politics
- San Francisco Chronicle
As National Guard case moves through courts, Trump gains advantage
President Donald Trump's takeover of California's National Guard to fend off immigration protesters in Los Angeles, halted briefly by a federal judge, is starting to climb up the judicial ladder, with a federal appeals court hearing scheduled Tuesday. And the higher it gets, the friendlier the territory would appear to be for Trump. Thursday's ruling by U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer of San Francisco that the president had exceeded his authority was 'probably out of the mainstream' among current U.S. courts, said Anthony Ghiotto, a teaching professor at the University of Illinois College of Law and a former judge in the U.S. Air Force. Ghiotto said he agreed with Breyer's decision, but doubted it would survive in a U.S. Supreme Court that has shielded Trump from criminal prosecution from official acts. It's also a court that in 2018 upheld Trump's ban on travel to the United States from a group of nations, most of them with a majority of Muslim inhabitants, said Jon Michaels, a UCLA law professor. Opponents said the ban was discriminatory, but the court majority deferred to the president's assertion that he was protecting national security — one of his main arguments in the current case, Michaels noted. Breyer, a former Watergate prosecutor appointed to the judiciary by President Bill Clinton in 1997, ruled that Trump had exceeded his authority by taking control of the state's National Guard and sending 4,000 of its members to Los Angeles to combat protests against workplace raids by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Breyer said the president had violated a federal law requiring him to consult with Gov. Gavin Newsom before transferring the National Guard from state to federal control. And he said the evidence did not support Trump's claim that the Los Angeles protests amounted to a 'rebellion' against the U.S. government or made it extremely difficult for ICE agents to enforce the law, the grounds specified by U.S. law for federalizing the National Guard. Just over two hours later, a panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals granted the Trump administration's request to put Breyer's order on hold, allowing the National Guard to return to the streets, while the court considers the administration's appeal. The panel, randomly selected from the court's judges, consisted of two Trump appointees, Mark Bennett and Eric Miller, and Jennifer Sung, appointed by President Joe Biden. They ordered a hearing for Tuesday and are likely to rule within a week or two. The losing side could then ask the full appeals court, whose 29 judges include 16 appointed by Democratic presidents, for a new hearing before an 11-judge panel, also chosen at random. The final appeal would be to the Supreme Court, and if the court agrees to review the case, it may not be resolved until sometime next year. Ghiotto predicted the Supreme Court would take up the case, regardless of the outcome in the 9th Circuit, because of Trump's invocation of national security. 'The court has shown a willingness to tackle these issues,' the Illinois law professor said. And he noted that after federal judges in New York and Washington state issued injunctions against Trump's renewed attempt to ban transgender troops from the U.S. military, the Supreme Court put those rulings on hold and allowed the ban to take effect. 'It's indicative that they'll defer to the president when it comes to federalizing the militia,' Ghiotto said, referring to the state's National Guard. 'I hope I'm wrong.' Breyer said in his ruling that Trump had failed to present credible evidence that the Los Angeles protests were creating a danger of 'rebellion' or were making it unacceptably difficult to enforce immigration laws and protect ICE agents. But Michaels, who teaches constitutional law at UCLA, said the law generally leaves those assessments to the president. 'Members of the court are not experts in issues of security and public safety,' he said. 'I probably would trust Judge Breyer, but that's not how the statute is written. We wouldn't want the typical president to be encumbered in this fashion.' On the other hand, said Rory Little, a law professor at UC College of the Law in San Francisco, Breyer rightly found that Trump had failed to comply with the law by not consulting with Newsom before taking over the National Guard. And he said the judge had a basis for concluding that Trump had failed to meet the law's other requirements for federal control. 'The president has to have some evidence to show a rebellion, and there was none in the record,' said Little, a former Supreme Court law clerk. He said the case was somewhat reminiscent of the Supreme Court's 1952 ruling rejecting President Harry Truman's attempt to seize control of the nation's steel mills during the Korean War. A 6-3 majority found that neither the Constitution nor Congress authorized the takeover of private property. Breyer, in Thursday's ruling, cited Justice Robert Jackson's concurring opinion in that case, which said that 'emergency powers are consistent with free government only when their control is lodged elsewhere than in the Executive who exercises them.' While the current Supreme Court is more conservative, Little said, it is not in 'lockstep' to rule in Trump's favor, and Chief Justice John Roberts might be able to find a compromise. And if Trump was looking for a reasonable solution, Little said, 'he would withdraw the troops and keep his powder dry.'
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
10 years of the Utah Compromise on religion and gay rights
This article was first published in the State of Faith newsletter. Sign up to receive the newsletter in your inbox each Monday night. Ten years ago, Utah passed a landmark pair of bills that combined religious freedom protections with LGBTQ nondiscrimination protections. Five years ago, many of the people behind what became known as the Utah Compromise spoke to me about why their balanced approach to religion and LGBTQ rights hadn't yet caught on nationwide. Last week, I checked in again with one of the key players to hear about where things stand today and whether she's still hopeful that Utah's 'fairness for all' approach will spread to other states. Robin Fretwell Wilson, a professor of law at the University of Illinois College of Law, told me that Utah remains united behind the Utah Compromise and has passed several more carefully constructed religion-related policies in recent years on topics like adoption and conversion therapy. But she added that today, just like five years ago, it's rare to find a lawmaker outside the Beehive State who is willing to plant their flag in the middle ground between opposing groups and champion balanced solutions to contentious conflicts. 'Right now, we're mining a streak of meanness,' Wilson said. 'Fairness for all doesn't feel like it's in the air.' From 2015 to 2020, Wilson and other stakeholders met with policymakers from 10 to 15 other states about the fairness for all approach to lawmaking. That list hasn't grown over the past five years, and the federal Fairness for All Act from 2019, which drew inspiration from the Utah Compromise, hasn't advanced in Washington. However, the act's supporters did score a big win in December 2022 when federal lawmakers passed the Respect for Marriage Act, which strengthened legal protections for married same-sex and interracial couples while affirming religious freedom rights. The Respect for Marriage Act built on aspects of the Fairness for All Act and Utah Compromise, and it likely wouldn't have passed if work hadn't been done in the years preceding its introduction to educate lawmakers about the value of balancing religious freedom and gay rights, Wilson said. But although it was significant, it feels like a missed opportunity to Wilson and others. That's because, instead of holding it up as an example of what's possible when religious liberty advocates and LGBTQ rights advocates work together, the Biden administration chose to put the spotlight on the importance of protecting gay marriage. 'You can't be doing something that marries up the interest of gay folks and religious folks on that scale and forget to say anything about the religious folks,' said Wilson, who was at the White House ceremony for the law. Even before that event, Wilson placed her hope in state rather than federal policymakers because she's long believed they're better-positioned to find balance. Today, as in 2020, as in 2015, she believes that states like Utah will lead the way to a world in which people of faith and LGBTQ individuals — and LGBTQ individuals who are people of faith — can live authentically in public and private without fear of retribution. 'I've never really placed my hopes in Congress. I've always placed my hope in state legislators,' Wilson said. 'I'm hopeful because I've seen fairness for all become a script for Utah.' Supreme Court turns down religious discrimination case over 2 justices' objections Religious teachings are spreading on social media — and sparking a mystery Listen: Pope Francis shares surprise message from his hospital room What should teams do when fan chants turn ugly? Pope receives ashes in the hospital as Christians around the world enter season of Lent How to pray with Chris Pratt Hometown date with Latter-day Saint family introduces 'The Bachelor' to new beliefs — and dirty soda Maaloula, Syria, is a Christian-majority town located about 40 miles from Damascus. It's known for its monasteries and its efforts to keep the Aramaic language alive, according to The Associated Press. Aramaic is the language that Jesus is thought to have spoken. Older residents of Maaloula generally speak it fluently, while younger people there are caught between the town's traditions and the wider society's commitment to Arabic. Keeping Aramaic alive isn't the only challenge Christians in Maaloula face right now. Since the fall of former Syrian President Bashar Assad, the town has dealt with looting and harassment, the AP reported. The violence stems, in part, from some Syrians' belief that Christians supported Assad's reign. 'The Chosen' is a hugely successful TV show, but that doesn't mean all Christians have embraced it. In a recent cover story for America magazine, Joe Hoover acknowledged that it's been met with skepticism among Catholics. Then, he argued that it's worth their time. ''The Chosen' television series has done things for my understanding and engagement with the life of Christ and his disciples that nothing else ever has,' he wrote. Kiandra Browne is a fascinating person and athlete. She chose to convert to Islam and begin wearing a hijab as a teenager, and she's now at the forefront of an effort to make the sportswear market more inclusive, according to The New York Times. Browne advocates for Muslim athletes in college sports as she plays basketball for Duquesne. Since I'm someone who sees the Reddit app as a special treat to be enjoyed at the end of a long day, I loved The Atlantic's recent reflection on what makes it special. Anyone remember when I competed with my baby and a frying pan in a church pancake race last year? The Associated Press wrote about the pancake race tradition again this year.
