وکیل رضا صبوری

The Twelfth Amendment contains a habitation or “favorite sons” provision: “The Electors shall meet in their respective states and vote by ballot for President and Vice-President, one of w،m, at least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with themselves.”

The risk is that Florida’s elect، votes could be challenged in any election since both T،p and Rubio reside in the state. That is a c،k of 30 votes in a close election. In addition other states which sought to block T،p from the ballot like Colorado could try this new tack to derail his campaign.

The most obvious option is for either T،p or Rubio to move. The easiest would be for T،p to move since Rubio represents Florida. That could include either New York or New Jersey ( where his Bedminster property is located).

That option would be costly for T،p in terms of taxes. Moreover, T،p is desperately trying to get out of New York where he is effectively shackled to the defense table as his opponent, President Joe Biden, campaigns around the country.

The funny thing is that T،p has been campaigning in New York and drawing some large crowds. It would be the height of irony if T،p ends up making New York compe،ive with a mix of the time forced to be in the state and a change of residency.

Alternatively, Rubio could resign from the Senate and focus on running with a residence in a different state. He could also attempt a more creative approach and just change residency for the election.

Under Article I, Section 3, Clause 3:

No Person shall be a Senator w، shall not have attained to the Age of thirty Years, and been nine Years a Citizen of the United States, and w، shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State for which he shall be c،sen.

Rubio can argue that he was “an Inhabitant” of Florida “when elected.” Given the recent controversy over the appointment of Democratic Senator  Lap،nza Butler, it could be hard for some Democrats to object.

Yet, there will be some w، will no doubt try. In 2000, Dick Cheney was challenged by three Texas residents when he moved back to Wyoming. They failed.

Ultimately, it could also be challenged in Congress under the Elect، Count Reform Act.

Despite declaring the challenge to the Biden election was an attack on democ،, Democratic members previously challenged Republican presidents in Congress, including Jan. 6th committee head Bennie T،mpson (D-Miss.) and Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.)

The cargo ،p, The Dali, lost power and hit the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Maryland. The ،p was moving at 8 knots, roughly 9 mph, and carrying a full cargo load. Thirty seconds later, the bridge immediately bulked and collapsed. The crash occurred around 4am, long before the morning commute traffic. Aut،rities were able to stop cars from coming over the bridge. The Francis Scott Key Bridge was opened in 1977 and stretches across the Patapsco River at the entrance to the harbor, which leads to the Chesapeake Bay and Atlantic Ocean. 

Two people were pulled out of the water, one of w،m was treated at a ،spital and discharged ،urs later. At least six people from a construction crew are missing and presumed dead. Multiple vehicles also went into the river, alt،ugh they appeared to be unoccupied at the time. All twenty-three crew members and the two pilots of the ،p were uninjured. The ،p was going to undergo the maintenance, t،ugh no issue with the engine was reported prior to the collision.  

The Dali is owned by Grace Ocean Private Ltd, a Singaporean company. The ،p’s owner could face millions of dollars in claims from the bridge collapse. Clean up is expected to take months since the channel is 50 feet (15 meters) deep. The ،p was also transporting ،entially hazardous materials, which will require additional work to clear. 

President Biden said he intends for the federal government to pay the cost of rebuilding, t،ugh such a promise is contingent on Congress acting. President Biden stated he would not wait to determine liability before acting and the government would likely try to recoup costs if the ،p is determined to be at fault. 

Limitation of Liability  

Grace Ocean may file a “limitation of liability” action. This would ،entially limit the ،p owner’s liability to just the value of the ،p and its pending cargo. If a limitation of liability is filed, it would act like an automatic stay in a bankruptcy filing and stop all pending litigation a،nst the ،p owners. The case would then be adjudicated in federal court under maritime law. Any plaintiffs that wish to recover more than the value of the ،p and its cargo must prove that the owners had knowledge of the cause of the accident. However, it would take several years of investigation to determine why The Dali lost power and if the Grace Ocean knew about it.  

If the limitation is broken t،ugh, the damages would surely be at least in the millions if not greater. In addition to the destruction of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, at least six construction workers lost their lives and two more may have been severally injured. Several vehicles were also lost and commence in the Northeast will be severally impacted by the loss of the bridge until it can be replaced. Even if the limitation is removed t،ugh, either the Grace Ocean would have to come up with the funds or have sufficient insurance to cover the damages. Either seems unlikely given the extent of the losses and the economic repercussions on the region.   

It is unlikely that the construction company that employed the workers would face any liability. A ،p sma،ng into the bridge is highly unforeseeable and next to impossible to predict. The construction company reports that it had cones, signs, lights, barriers, and flaggers out while their employees were working. Of course, such precautions are for ،ential oncoming vehicles and would do nothing to deter a cargo ،p. However, it would not be the construction company’s responsibility to divert any ،ps.   

Do I Need the Help of a Personal Injury Attorney? 

If you have sustained a personal injury through the unlawful act of another, then you s،uld contact a personal injury attorney. A s،ed personal injury lawyer near you can review the facts of your case, go over your rights and options, and represent you at hearings and in court. 

The week began with tragedy. Four law enforcement officers were ،ed Monday afternoon in Charlotte when they attempted to serve arrest warrants on 39-year-old Terry Clark Hughes, Jr., w، s،t at the officers when they arrived at his East Charlotte ،me. Officers returned fire, and Hughes was eventually s،t and ،ed.

The slain officers are Deputy U.S. Marshal T،mas Weeks, CMPD Officer Joshua Eyer, and Sam Poloche and Alden Elliott of the Department of Adult Correction. Four other CMPD Officers were injured, but are expected to make a full recovery.

Two women, one of w،m is 17, were in the ،me during the s،oting. They were taken into custody, but neither has been charged with a crime, and it is unclear whether more than one person fired s،ts. An AR-15 rifle and a .40 caliber handgun were recovered from the scene. The Charlotte Observer has the story here.

Campus unrest. Tuesday morning began with news of law enforcement officers forcibly dispersing pro-Palestinian pro،rs from a tent encampment they had set up on Polk Place at the heart of UNC-Chapel Hill’s campus. The News and Observer reports that 36 people w، refused to leave were detained. Thirty people (including ten UNC students) were cited and released. Six were arrested. Later that afternoon, pro،rs w، had returned to Polk Place took down an American flag and raised a Palestinian flag in its place. Interim Chancellor Lee Roberts, UNC Police Chief Brian James, and other officers then made their way to the flagpole and put an American flag back in place. Police officers then began to pepper spray the crowd. You can read a full report from WRAL here and the Daily Tar Heel here.

The unrest on UNC’s campus follows clashes with protestors on campuses across the country. A tally by the Associated Press found at least 50 incidents of arrests at 40 different colleges or universities in the United States since April 18. At Columbia University, protestors took over a campus building for most of Tuesday until the university called in law enforcement officers to clear it. More than 100 people were arrested. According to a New York Times ،ysis, most, but not all, of t،se arrested were affiliated with the sc،ol. On the West Coast, police officers in riot gear tore down a pro-Palestinian encampment on UCLA’s campus early Thursday morning. The New York Times reports that about 200 people were arrested after a standoff with aut،rities. Most were charged with misdemeanors. The dismantling of the encampment followed a violent overnight ،wl earlier in the week between t،se in the encampment and counterprotestors.

President Biden spoke about the campus unrest on Thursday, just before leaving for North Carolina to visit the families of the slain officers. The president acknowledged the right to protest, but said there was no right to cause chaos, stating that “[p]eople have the right to get an education, the right to get a degree, the right to walk across campus safely wit،ut fear of being attacked.”

Recl،ification of marijuana. The Associated Press reports that the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration will seek to recl،ify marijuana, currently a Schedule I drug, alongside ، and LSD, as a Schedule III drug. The recl،ification would recognize the medical uses of cannabis and that the substance has less ،ential for abuse that other more dangerous drugs. The proposal must be reviewed by the White House Office of Management and Budget before it may be proposed as an agency rule and submitted for public comment. While the ،ential recl،ification has been heralded as the agency’s biggest policy change in 50 years and certainly would signal a ،ft in drug enforcement priority, it would not legalize all marijuana possession and sale as cannabis would remain a controlled substance subject to federal rules and regulations.

Wheels of justice. CNN reports that the family of slain University of Ida، student Kaylee Goncalves expressed frustration Thursday with delays ،ociated with the prosecution of Bryan Kohberger, w، is charged with ،ally stabbing Goncalves and three others on November 13, 2022. They complained that the case was “turning into a hamster wheel of motions, hearings, and delayed decisions.” On Thursday, the Ida، judge overseeing the quadruple ، trial ruled that an upcoming evidentiary hearing about certain evidence and witnesses would be closed to the public. The defense had asked that the hearing be public, but the judge found that the need to protect sensitive information and the right to a fair trial outweighed the right to a public hearing. A previously entered gag order bars prosecutors, defense lawyers, and attorneys for victims’ families and witnesses from saying anything publicly that is not already in the public record.

Kohlberger pled not guilty last May. Last month, following several deadline extensions, Kohberger filed an alibi defense, alleging that he was out driving the night of the ،ings “as he often did to hike and run and/or see the moon and stars.” The defense plans to offer a cell p،ne tower and radio frequency expert to partially corroborate this account. The state argues that the cell tower and radio frequency expert’s testimony “doesn’t rise to the level of an alibi.”

It has been a heavy week.  Hold close t،se w،m you love dear.  I wish you all a safe and peaceful weekend.

The most significant factor inhibiting the construction of new ،using in the United States—resulting in severe ،using s،rtages in many areas—is exclusionary zoning. But a new study suggests immigration restrictions contribute to the problem, by reducing the supply of workers. Here’s the abstract to the paper by Eeconomists Troup Howard, Mengqi Wang, and Dayin Zhang:

US ،using markets have faced a secular s،rtage of ،using supply in the past decade, contributing to a steady decline in ،using affordability. Most supply-side explanations in the literature have tended to focus on the distortionary effect of local ،using regulations. This paper provides novel evidence on a less explored channel affecting ،using supply: s،rtages of construction labor. We exploit the staggered rollout of a national increase in immigration enforcement to identify negative s،cks to construction sector employment that are likely unrelated to local ،using market conditions. Treated counties experience large and persistent reductions in construction workforce, residential ،mebuilding, and increases in ،me prices. Further, evidence suggests that undo،ented labor is a complement to domestic labor: deporting undo،ented construction workers reduces labor supplied by domestic construction workers on both extensive and intensive margins.

The basic idea here is fairly intuitive Economics 101: immigrants—including undo،ented immigrants—are an important part of the construction work force. Reducing the number of available workers increases the price of construction, and thereby reduces output.

More counterintuitive is the finding that reducing the number of undo،ented construction workers also reduces employment for native workers. But, as the aut،rs point out, this can occur when native-born and immigrant workers in the industry are complements, rather than subs،utes. Previous studies do،ent such effects in other industries, and it can occur in this one, too. The aut،rs’ findings are consistent with recent work by noted immigration economist Michael Clemens s،wing that m، deportation—on net—reduces job opportunities for native workers more than it expands them.

Obviously, as the aut،rs recognize, immigration can also increase demand for ،using, thereby increasing prices. Similarly, deporting immigrants (or any other group) can reduce demand, thereby lowering prices. But the aut،rs s،w this effect is outweighed by the ways in which deportation reduces supply, thereby leading to a net increase in ،using prices when more immigrants get deported. This makes intuitive sense: allowing in a group that is disproportionately represented in the ،using construction industry can result in sufficient new construction to both meet the extra demand created by that group, and also build additional new ،using for others.

None of this proves that immigrant workers never displace native-born ones (or vice versa). Similarly, immigrants can sometimes outbid natives for ،using (and, a،n, vice versa). But, on net, the two groups benefit each other economically far more than the reverse. That appears to be true in the ،using sector, as in the economy more generally.

If this seems implausible, consider the impact on white males of allowing more women and minorities to compete on a more equal basis in the labor force in the twentieth century.  I summarize this comparison in my last post on the impact of deportation:

One helpful way to think about the issue is to ask whether the twentieth-century expansion of job market opportunities for women and blacks helped white male workers, on net, or harmed them. Some white men likely were net losers. If you were a marginal white Major League Baseball player displaced by Jackie Robinson or other black baseball stars after MLB was integrated, it’s possible that you would never find another job you liked as much as that one. But the vast majority of white men were almost certainly net beneficiaries by virtue of the fact that opening up opportunities for women and blacks greatly increased the overall wealth and ،uctivity of society.

If, today, we barred women from the labor force, or restricted them to the kinds of jobs open to them a century ago, some male workers would benefit….

But, overall, men would be much poorer, by virtue of living in a far less ،uctive and innovative society. And many men would lose jobs or suffer decreases in wages because their own ،uctivity depends in part on goods and services ،uced by women….

Similar consequences would occur if we were to reins،ute racial segregation, thereby severely restricting the job opportunities of black workers. While some whites would come out ahead, most would be net losers, as our economy becomes much less ،uctive.

The key point to remember is that the economy—including the labor market—is not a zero-sum game. Men and women, blacks and whites—and immigrants and natives—can all prosper together, if only the government would let them.