Michael W. McConnell
From dKosopedia
Category: Federal Circuit Court Judges
Michael W. McConnell (born in Louisville, Kentucky, 1955) is a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, having been nominated by President George W. Bush on September 4, 2001, and confirmed by the United States Senate on November 15, 2002.
McConnell graduated from Michigan State University in 1976. McConnell receivied his Juris Doctorate from the University of Chicago Law School Law School in 1979. He was a law clerk for James Skelly Wright, U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, 1979-1980, and for Associate Justice William Brennan, Supreme Court of the United States, 1980-1981. He was an assistant general counsel at the Office of Management and Budget, 1981-1983, and an assistant to the Solicitor General, U.S. Department of Justice, 1983-1985. He was a professor at the University of Chicago Law School, 1985-1996, and then at the University of Utah College of Law, 1997-2002.
McConnell has been mentioned as a potential nominee to the Supreme Court during the George W. Bush presidency. In June 2005, amid expectations that Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist would retire at the end of the Court's term, some sources cited McConnell as a frontrunner for Rehnquist's seat, should it indeed open up. [1] Professor Stephen B. Presser of Northwestern University School of Law has argued that "McConnell is high on the White House's short list", because:
- [McConnell] does believe that the Supreme Court has gone too far in reading the total separation of church and state into the Constitution, and because he ...understands that Roe v. Wade has no firm constitutional foundation. He might appear to be acceptable to the some on the left not only because so many liberal professors support him, but also because he has been public in his criticism of Bush v. Gore and the impeachment of President Clinton.
Contents |
Judicial outlook and record
When McConnell was nominated to the 10th Circuit three years ago, he had the support of liberal law professors who called him Bush's "most distinguished" nominee and signed a letter of support for him. Other liberal groups, on the other hand, fought hard against his confirmation, highlighting his support for expanding the role of religion in the public sphere. How to account for the split? As a respected and well-liked law professor, McConnell was well-placed to win support in the academy, and one of the arguments made on his behalf was that, as an advocate of judicial restraint, he'd be sure to follow the Supreme Court's directives. McConnell wouldn't be similarly bound by precedent, however, if he joined the high court himself. Instead, the combination of his hard-line conservative views and his sunny disposition could make him extremely effective at bringing about change.
Civil Rights and Liberties
In a law review article, argued that the support for school desegregation in Brown v. Board of Education is consistent with the intentions of the framers of the 14th Amendment to guarantee equal protection under the law. McConnell's remains the minority view.
In a Slate magazine dialogue, opposed a constitutional right to assisted suicide.
Before the Supreme Court, represented the Boy Scouts in their successful suit to keep out gay scoutmasters. (Boys Scouts of America v. Dale, 2000)
On the bench, dissented from a ruling in favor of Jessica Gonzales, who sued the city of Castle Rock, Colo., when her three children were killed by her ex-husband after the police failed to enforce a restraining order against him, despite her repeated calls. McConnell said that the majority's ruling would "expand greatly the liability of state and local governments." A Supreme Court ruling is pending in this case. (Gonzales v. City of Castle Rock, 2004)
Separation of Church and State
In a law review article, argued that the framers intended to provide for broader protections for religiously motivated conduct than modern jurisprudence allows for.
In a law review article, questioned the outcome of Bob Jones University v. United States, the 1983 Supreme Court decision that revoked the school's tax-exempt status because it forbade interracial dating. McConnell argued that even if Bob Jones' policy is "morally repugnant to most of us" the rule affected "only those who choose to become part of the religious community defined by Bob Jones" and so should come under the constitution's protections of freedom of speech and freedom of religion.
In a Slate magazine dialogue, backed government-funded school vouchers that can be used at parochial schools. Argued that religious activity in a public setting or paid for by public funds is OK, as long as the government remains neutral rather than supporting a particular faith.
Agreed to grant a preliminary injunction to a New Mexico sect to stop the government from prosecuting its members for using a hallucinogenic tea during worship. In a concurrence, McConnell argued that the sect's interest in religious observance trumped the health risk to the sect's members and the interests of the federal government in enforcing its drug laws. (O Centro Espirita Beneficiente Uniao do Vegetal v. Ashcroft, 2003)
Environmental Protection and Property Rights
For a unanimous panel, upheld a law that Congress passed specifically to permit logging in the Black Hills National Forest in South Dakota. The law upended a court settlement designed to prevent the logging from going forward. (Biodiversity Associates v. Cables, 2004)
Criminal Law
For a unanimous panel, held that the federal prosecution of a child pornographer—who paid a boy to photograph him and transported him across states lines—was consistent with Congress' power to regulate interstate commerce. (U.S. v. Riccardi, 2005)
Abortion
In 1996, signed a statement supporting a constitutional amendment to ban abortion. "We believe that the abortion license is a critical factor in America's virtue-deficit," the statement reads.
Before Congress, testified in opposition to a bill designed to limit the access of protesters to abortion clinics.
Judicial Philosophy
Supports the originalist approach to constitutional analysis, which urges judges to interpret the Constitution in accordance with the understandings of its framers.
Affiliations
External links
- The Supreme Court Shortlist - Slate magazine, Friday, July 1, 2005
![[Main Page]](../../../../upload/banner-blue-135.jpg)