I’d underline this about the radicalism of this 11th Cir conversion therapy decision: it’s only about *licensure* of therapists. The panel majority is saying the 1A forbids authorities regulating this harmful practice among people it grants licenses to. media.ca11.uscourts.gov/opinions/pub/f…
So it’s not about clergy or political groups or all the other crazy that’s out there. It’s about a licensed therapist in Boca Raton attempting to change their minor patients’ sexual orientations. That’s the speech interest at stake.
It’d be like if a licensed driving instructor was teaching 15 year olds to drive into walls at 40mph and then claiming any effort by the state to curtail this dangerous instruction was illegal bc his right to give it and retain his license was protected by the First Amendment.
Because it’s so radical, the potential implications of this decision run far beyond the harm it will do to LGBT teens in the circuit’s jurisdiction.
From the dissent:
As @popehat rightly points out, this isn’t a new issue. The 11th Circuit has also wielded the First Amendment to toss out a Florida law, known as FOPA, that prohibited licensed physicians from asking their patients about gun ownership.
That FOPA opinion three years ago signaled that the 11th Circuit might some day disagree with the 9th Circuit on prohibitions on conversion therapy—a day that’s now come. media.ca11.uscourts.gov/opinions/pub/f…
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To translate from Willy Wonka, the federal judge in the PA case dismissed the pending complaint with prejudice and denied Giuliani’s attempt to amend it. The case is over (pending appeal).
Giuliani’s son — a public employee — endorses the effort to steal the election and destroy American democracy in his bio. via @laraseligman
The younger Giuliani attended his father’s madcap press conference in a small densely paced room at the RNC yesterday afternoon. This morning, he announced he has Covid.
There are some uhh oddities to the Trump campaign's motion for leave to file a second amended complaint, incl:
- the clean version, filed as an exhibit, is the *first* amended complaint
- they--the plaintiffs--went ahead and signed the proposed order on behalf of the judge
Also no attorney signatures appear on the redline (comparing first and second). That's no big deal in itself, but since the plaintiffs didn't file a clean version of the second amended complaint, there's no indication which attorneys if any have signed the new complaint.
This is their second try at filing these documents tonight, btw.
3,999 participants on the call as the Trump campaign hearing in the middle district of PA gets underway
The lawyers, including Giuliani, are mostly present in person. The judge is going through a roll call.
“Who are these other individuals in the back?” He just asked. “Presenting or just dropped by?”
Giuliani says he will be seeking leave to amend the complaint to restore the due process claims he says were mistakenly removed. So I guess @joshgerstein’s reading comprehension is okay after all.