Should the Left Play Constitutional Hardball?

David Pozen will be discussing whether the Left can (or should) play constitutional hardball– political maneuvers that can shift constitutional understandings. As Professor Pozen noted in a recent article, “Senate Republicans have played vigorous hardball [...] most obviously by refusing to consider Merrick Garland’s nomination, and there is a strong desire among many Democrats to respond with equal or greater vigor.” Should Dems respond in turn, or play "anti-hardball" by insisting on neutral rules of good governance? Non-pizza lunch will be served. Co-Sponsored by Yale Law Democrats. 

David Pozen is a Professor of Law at Columbia Law School, and inaugural visiting scholar at the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University. He teaches and writes about constitutional law, national security law, and information law, among other topics. From 2010 to 2012, Pozen served as special advisor to Harold Hongju Koh at the Department of State. Previously, Pozen was a law clerk for Justice John Paul Stevens on the U.S. Supreme Court and for Judge Merrick B. Garland on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, and a special assistant to Senator Edward M. Kennedy on the Senate Judiciary Committee. Pozen's scholarship has been discussed in the New Yorker, New York Times, Washington Post, Harper's, Politico, Salon, Time, American Scholar, and numerous other publications.