As the pandemic continues, there have been more and more examples of government intervention. Police ticketed people attending church in their cars on Easter. One Florida county introduced curfews. And localities across America are mandating face masks in certain situations. What is the government allowed to do, and what is it not? John Malcolm, head of the Meese Center for Legal and Judicial Studies at The Heritage Foundation, unpacks the legal scenarios.
We also cover these stories:
About 13.5% of America’s labor force has filed for unemployment over the past 5 weeks.
New York’s non-essential businesses will remain closed until May 15.
Los Angeles is letting businesses deny entry to someone without a mask.
Today's episode breaks down the latest threat by Donald Trump to "adjourn" the House and Senate, and explains why a) you shouldn't be scared and b) he's unlikely to do it. This is a stunt designed to distract us from how badly Trump has handled COVID-19; we recognize we're sort of falling for it, so we're bringing you a deep dive on appointments and good news as well!
We begin, however, with that good news, including an update on the HUGE VICTORY for the forces of democracy in Wisconsin in the aftermath of the Supreme Court's shameful decision that we discussed in Episode 376. And, to pile on, we talk about good news in all of the abortion cases, even those in Texas!
After that, it's time for the main segment breaking down whether Trump can adjourn the House and Senate (probably), whether he will (almost certainly not), and why not (because there's not much to be gained and a ton to risk). Along the way, we'll do a deep dive into NLRB v. Noel Canning, a 2014 Supreme Court decision that constrains Presidential "recess appointments" -- which is what Trump would presumably adjourn the Senate to do.
Then it's time for a brand new #T3BE about an aunt who changes her mind about selling her business to her niece. Can she be sued? Listen and find out! And, as always, if you want to play along on social media just share out this episode along with your answer!
Appearances
None! If you’d like to have either of us as a guest on your show, event, or in front of your group, please drop us an email at openarguments@gmail.com.
The White House Thursday offered a blueprint for states to re-open. It starts with a decline in confirmed cases of COVID-19 and includes extensive testing that does not yet exist. Johns Hopkins epidemiologist Jennifer Nuzzo told NPR's Rachel Martin that the lack of testing means the outbreak is still largely unpredictable.
In the past four weeks, 22 million people have filed for unemployment, nearly wiping out all the job gains since the Great Recession.
Democrats win a stunning upset in Wisconsin, Joe Biden wins the endorsements of Barack Obama, Bernie Sanders, and Elizabeth Warren, and Data for Progress polling guru Charlotte Swasey joins Jon and Dan to break down brand new polling that details which arguments about Trump’s handling of the coronavirus are most persuasive to voters.
Italy is beginning its first tentative steps towards ending its lockdown. These are small steps, opening a few shops in areas where virus transmission has seen big falls. Part of the reason for this controlled strategy is that there are real concerns over a potential resurgence of the virus,
Around the world there are now hundreds of trials on drug treatments for Covid-19. Results so far are mixed, with antivirals developed for Ebola and HIV showing positive signs, but antimalarial drugs, championed by President Trump in particular have been shown to have dangerous potentially life threatening side effects.
A warning from history, more than 500 years ago suggests the western US in particular is entering an extreme drought, a ‘Megadrought’. When this last happened it led to war, depopulation and the spread of disease.
And its 10 years since the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Studies of fish in the region suggest they are still affected by oil from that spill and more recent lesser known pollution events.
(Photo: Italy, shops begin to open. Credit: European Photopress Agency)
This week saw the latest salvos in the battle for the future of money.
Libra announced that it would be moving away from a single currency that was backed by a basket of national currency to a model of numerous individual fiat-pegged currencies. While the original model was akin to a disruptive implementation of John Maynard Keynes original concept for a global basket currency (which he called a “bancor”), this model seems more to position Libra to help existing central banks digitize their currencies.
China meanwhile steamed forward with its digital currency and blockchain plans. Screenshots of an app from the Agricultural Bank of China show how the DCEP (Digital Currency Electronic Payment) is currently being tested, giving us insight into functionality, geographies and players involved.
China also announced the 71 members of its National Blockchain Council, as well as went live with their Blockchain Service Network. The BSN in particular has potential significance on a world scale as China tries to build and control a key piece of global digital infrastructure.
Sarah and Mike continue into the depths. With Dr. Pazder home from Mexico, he and Michelle continue their journey into her subconscious, and the stories continue to get weirder. This episode contains kitten sacrifice, and the first—but not the last—dead baby of the Satanic panic.
The Christmas tree that was the relief package that moved through Congress recently did manage to avoid some particularly bad ideas in its final form. Still, those ideas will be back, according to Diego Zuluaga.
