Joshua Z. Rokach, a graduate of Yale Law School and a retired energy lawyer, lives in Silver Spring, Maryland.
Joshua Z. Rokach
By Joshua Z. Rokach
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Community The SCOTUS Masterpiece Cakeshop Decision Doesn’t Say What You Think It Says
On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court decided the long-awaited “Colorado Cake Case,” Masterpiece Cake Shop, Ltd. v. Colorado Human Rights Commission. The case arose when Jack Phillips, the owner of Masterpiece, refused to create a cake for a same-sex couple’s wedding. Both sides claimed constitutional protections: the vendors under the First Amendment and the couple…
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Opinion Why Giving Sermons With Supper Is So Dangerous
On May 3 — National Prayer Day — President Trump issued an executive order strengthening the role of religion in the affairs of state. The order establishes a Faith and Opportunity Office within the White House. The executive branch will increase its focus on alleged religious discrimination in national life, and President Trump will appoint…
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Community Supreme Court Throws The Dice In Sports Betting Ruling
In a landmark ruling, the US Supreme Court, by a vote of 6-3, held that states may now legalize sports betting. The case, Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association, (May 14, 2018) declared unconstitutional the 1992 Act of Congress that kept most states from “authorizing” gambling on games. The Court did not categorically eliminate federal…
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Community The Supreme Court Was Right: You Can’t Sue Terrorists
On April 2, the United States Supreme Court squelched the attempts of U.S. citizens, victims of the second intifada, to collect damages from the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority. A decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York had dismissed the lawsuit. A jury had awarded over…
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Community How Renowned Conductor Toscanini Defied The Nazis — And Paid A Price
In the space of 24 hours, the Jewish world saw a singular exhibition of political cowardice that may endanger the lives of unfortunate refugees. After seeking to deport thousands of Africans from Sudan and Eritrea who fled for their lives to Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the United Nations reached a compromise. Half the…
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Community Has The Free Exercise Clause Become A Free Pass to Discriminate?
The First Amendment to the Constitution forbids the government to take actions “prohibiting the free exercise [of religion.]” The Free Exercise Clause should protect individuals. Society should not impose its beliefs on anyone. Government actions cannot stand in the way of a person’s religious practices. By the same token, an individual cannot impose his religion…
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Community Justice Breyer’s Dissent for the Ages
On February 27, the United States Supreme Court hid behind legal technicalities to give its stamp of approval to a heartless policy that goes against what we stand for as a country. As Justice Breyer said in his dissent, the outcome violates the Constitution’s Fifth and Eighth Amendments.The case, Jennings v. Rodriguez, involves class actions…
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Community Is It Constitutional For The Government To Honor Billy Graham?
On February 28 and March 1, 2018, the body of Rev. Billy Graham will lie “in honor” in the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol. Previously, in our Nation’s history, Congress has accorded this privilege to only four private citizens — Pierre L’Enfant, Rosa Parks and two Capitol Police officers killed in the line of duty….
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