Blagojevich Skips Impeachment Trial, Governor Takes Fight against "the System" to The View, Good Morning America, Geraldo Rivera, Nightline, Larry King Live...

Yesterday the Illinois Senate began the impeachment trial of embattled governor Rod Blagojevich. He is boycotting the impeachment proceedings, opting instead for an all out media blitz, "talking to Americans to let them know what's happening in the land of Lincoln."

The Washington Post reported that although he has not challenged the impeachment process in court, Blagojevich has opted not to attend, be represented, or present any defense in his impeachment trial. His argument? It's a "kangaroo court" in which he is not allowed to call the witnesses he wants or have access to his wiretapped conversations in their entirety.

Blagojevich's purported problem with his impeachment is that it is based on still unproven criminal allegations. As the Chicago Tribune reports, federal prosecutors requested, and Illinois legislators agreed, that Blagojevich's impeachment proceedings not interfere with the ongoing criminal case against him. This was written into the rules passed by the Illinois legislature for Blagojevich's impeachment trial. This means no calling certain witnesses and no access for Blagojevich to the entirety of the wiretapped conversations.

As Cornell law professor Michael Dorf blogs, the Illinois procedure set up for Blagojevich do pose problems for him, but they also probably passes muster under current Supreme Court precedent.

Blagojevich's mission now? To save America from the dangerous precedent of legislators undoing the will of the people by removing an elected official without his unfettered defense. As he informed reporters, "this is much bigger than me and Illinois."

About him? Blagojevich said he thinks of the obstacles faced by men such as Mandela, Ghandi and Martin Luther King to help keep himself going. And about the stuff on the tapes? "There's embarrassment there, obviously... in private conversations," he explained when ambushed by Geraldo Rivera outside The View. But during all of the expletive laden conversations captured on tape, Blagojevich assured NBC's Amy Robach that no women were on the line.

The future? His impeachment trial continues, as does his criminal case. The New York Times reports that the impeachment trial will feature the public playing of four of the infamous taped conversations. Criminally, he’s been charged with solicitation of bribes and conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. These carry 10 and 20 year possible sentences. And the Chicago Sun Times reports that key defense counsel Edward Genson has quit. Time quotes Genson as saying, "I have practiced law for 44 years.  ... I never require a client to do what I say, but I do require clients to listen to what I say."

But the WSJ Washington Wire reports a bright spot for Blagojevich. He has competing offers to host Chicago radio shows. One is from WGN executives impressed in part by the "remarkable facility with banter displayed by Gov. Rod Blagojevich," and the fact that Blagojevich is "ratings gold." WGN is owned by the Tribune Corporation. One of the allegations against Blagojevich is that he threatened to hold up the Tribune Corp.'s sale of Wrigley Field unless the Chicago Tribune fired certain anti-Blagojevich editorial staff.

• Blagojevich's Articles of Impeachment (FindLaw)
• Blagojevich's Criminal Charges (including portions of recorded conversations) (FindLaw)
• Illinois General Assembly Impeachment Homepage
• ABC News: Blagojevich's Poetry Obsession Explained
• Blagojevich with Geraldo, on Larry King Live, on Good Morning America, and on Nightline

CA High Court to Review Prop. 8

The California Supreme Court agreed Wednesday to hear a legal challenge to California's Proposition 8 gay marriage ban, a ballot measure approved by state voters on November 4th. The state's top court also issued an order Wednesday that will keep the ban in place at least until any ruling is issued.

The court's deliberation and decision on Proposition 8 could rest on whether the gay marriage ban is a mere "amendment" to the state's constitution, or rises to the level of a constitutional "revision" (see "The Law and Prop. 8" from the L.A. Times for more information on legal issues raised by the measure). Placed on the California ballot largely in response to a May 2008 California Supreme Court decision that found the state's ban on gay marriage unconstitutional -- and which opened the door to the thousands of same-sex marriage marriages that have since taken place in the state -- Proposition 8 changes the state constitution to limit the legal definition of marriage to a union between a man and a woman.

The Los Angeles Times reports that "The court may hold a hearing on the lawsuits as early as March, a timetable that scholars said was swift considering the complexity and importance of the legal issues." According to Reuters, the case "pits two fundamental concepts of U.S. democracy against one another, with gay marriage advocates saying the proposition would open the doors to systematic repression of minorities and opponents saying courts must recognize the will of the people under separation of powers doctrine."

• Wednesday's California Supreme Court Order on Prop. 8 [PDF file] (FindLaw)
• News Release: California Supreme Court Takes Action on Proposition 8 [PDF file] (California Courts)
• Proposition 8 Cases and Documents (California Courts)
• L.A. Times: Prop. 8 Gay Marriage Ban Goes to Supreme Court
• Reuters: California Court to Hear Gay Marriage Ban Case
• Prop. 8 and the Future of Same-Sex Marriage in CA (FindLaw's Common Law Blog 11/10/08)
• Same-Sex Couples and the Law (FindLaw)

Time Off to Vote: Your Employee Rights

Does your employer allow you to take time off from work to go to the polls and vote? Is your company legally required to provide such time off, according to your state's laws? And if so, is time off to vote considered paid time off? Just in time for November 4th, get up-to-date information on voters' rights to time off on Election Day, with FindLaw's State-by-State Employee Time Off to Vote Laws, compiled in partnership with JustVote.org.

An important tool for American voters looking for information on their legal voting rights as employees, State-by-State Employee Time Off to Vote Laws is easy to understand, with key information to help voters make it to the polls on November 4, including downloadable posters outlining employees' rights to take time off to cast their ballots. This feature is part of the "Voting Rights Law" content in FindLaw's Special Edition: Election 2008. Additional features include State-by-State Absentee and Early Voting Laws, State-by-State Voter Registration Information, State-by-state Voter ID Laws, and State-by-State Voting Systems Information, provided by the Pew Center on the States and the Early Voting Information Center at Reed College.

• State-by-State Employee Time Off to Vote Laws (FindLaw)
• Special Edition: Election 2008 (FindLaw)
• Politics and Election News (FindLaw)
• FindLaw Press Release on Voting Rights Resources and Partnership with JustVote.org
• JustVote.org

Courts: Ohio Early Voting OK

Federal and state courts in Ohio on Monday issued separate rulings allowing Ohio citizens to register to vote and submit an absentee ballot on the same day. Those court decisions open a seven-day Ohio "early voting" window that starts today, in what is seen as a key battleground state for this year's Presidential election.

According to the Columbus Dispatch, Monday's court decisions concerned "an overlap period between the start of absentee voting today and Monday's voter-registration deadline for the Nov. 4 election." (See State-by-State Voter Registration Deadlines, from the U.S. Election Assistance Commission) In the past, Ohio voters were required to be registered at least 30-days before receiving an absentee voting ballot. Monday's rulings -- from the Ohio Supreme Court and federal district courts in the state -- effectively upheld a directive requiring Ohio county elections boards to implement processes allowing Ohio citizens to register to vote and submit absentee ballots on the same day. The Washington Post reports that, across Ohio, "[g]et out the vote efforts have been mobilized to take advantage of the window. . .and lock down votes from individuals who otherwise might not register or send in the absentee forms."

• Columbus Dispatch: Three Courts Rule on Absentee Issue
• Washington Post: Courts Allow Same-Day Vote Window to Go Forward in Ohio
• Wall Street Journal Blogs: Ohio's Battle Over Early Voting
• Ohio Election Officials Brace for Early Voting (AP/FindLaw News)
• Ohio Secretary of State: Federal Court Upholds Registration, Voting Overlap
• Register to Vote Now (U.S. Election Assistance Commission)
• State-by-State Voter Registration Deadlines [PDF file] (U.S. Election Assistance Commission)
• State Election Office Contact Information (U.S. Election Assistance Commission)
• Voters and Voting Rights (FindLaw)

FindLaw.com Survey: Americans Trust, Aren't Swayed by Political Polls

How much attention do Americans pay to the results of political polls? Do they trust the accuracy of the polls? And do the poll results influence how they vote? A new national survey conducted by FindLaw.com sheds some new light on what Americans think about political opinion polls.

Survey results show that, while Americans trust the results of political polls, they aren't necessarily swayed by them. While sixty-eight percent of Americans believe that political polling is at least somewhat accurate, four in 10 Americans pay little or no attention to opinion polls on the popularity of presidential candidates, and more than eight in 10 say polls do not influence their vote. Those who consider themselves Democratic (or leaning Democratic) are more likely to pay attention to political polls than those who consider themselves Independent or Republican (or leaning Republican). This may be due, at least in part, to the closely contested fight for the Democratic presidential nomination.

• Americans Trust but Don't Listen to Political Polls, Says New FindLaw.com Survey (Press release)
• Podcast Discussing Survey Results (right-click to download)

Supreme Court OKs Voter ID Law

An Indiana law requiring voters to present government-issued photo identification has been upheld as constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court.

The Indiana "Voter ID Law" requires citizens voting in person on election day -- or casting a ballot in person at the office of the circuit court clerk prior to election day -- to present photo identification issued by the government. A challenge to the law was brought by several groups, including nonprofit organizations representing elderly, disabled, poor, and minority voters. In Monday's 6-3 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the law is valid and relevant to the state's interest in protecting the integrity and reliability of the electoral process, including the interest in preventing voter fraud. The New York Times reports that "[b]ecause Indiana's law is considered the strictest in the country, similar laws in the other 20 or so states that have photo-identification rules would appear to have a good chance of surviving scrutiny." Indiana voters will cast their ballots in the presidential primary on Tuesday, May 6th.

• Read Monday's U.S. Supreme Court Decision (FindLaw)
• Supreme Court Upholds Voter Identification Law in Indiana (N.Y. Times)
• U.S. Supreme Court Center (FindLaw)
• Voters and Voting Rights (FindLaw)

Voters Turn Out on Super Tuesday

Voters in 24 states today are casting their ballots in primary elections for the office of the President of the United States. With more states voting than ever before on "Super Tuesday," presidential primary ballots today will deliver 1,681 delegates to Democratic candidates, and 1,023 to Republicans. The total number of delegates needed to win each party's nomination is 2,025 for Democrats and 1,191 for Republicans. The Washington Post reports that "with Super Tuesday nominating contests taking place from New York to California, the candidates made last-minute appeals for support in the biggest round of primary voting in U.S. political history before scattering to their home states to cast their own ballots and await returns." On CNN.com, you can find a useful State-by-State Guide to Super Tuesday. The Associated Press reports that weather could have an impact on voter turnout on Super Tuesday.

• CNN.com: A Super Guide for Super Tuesday
• Washington Post: As Voters Hit the Polls, Candidates Make Last-Minute Appeals
• Associated Press: Super Tuesday Weather Could Snarl Vote
• Presidential Election News (FindLaw News)

Supreme Court Looks at Voter ID Law

The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments today in a challenge to an Indiana law that requires citizens to present a valid state identification card or U.S. passport in order to vote. According to the Associated Press, "Democrats and civil rights groups challenging the law as unconstitutional call it a thinly veiled effort to discourage elderly, poor and minority voters -- those most likely to lack proper ID and who tend to vote for Democrats." The Los Angeles Times reports that, during questioning of the attorneys during oral arguments, the justices seemed to suggest that the measure would have little impact: "Justice Anthony M. Kennedy characterized the law as posing only 'a minor inconvenience' to a small percentage of voters." The Court is expected to issue a ruling in the case before recessing at the end of June.

• Associated Press: Court Hears Indiana Voter ID Case
• L.A. Times: Supreme Court Cool to Voter ID Challenge
• Voters and Voting Rights (FindLaw)
• U.S. Supreme Court Center (FindLaw)

Election Day 2005

Tuesday, November 8 is election day.  In communities across the U.S. voters will be electing Senators, Governors, Mayors, and deciding on ballot measures.  On FindLaw you can also find a listing of attorneys in Election, Campaign, and Political Law.