Democratic presidential candidates hold fourth primary debate
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Twelve Democratic presidential candidates debated in Westerville, Ohio Tuesday: Joe Biden, Cory Booker, Pete Buttigieg, Julián Castro, Tulsi Gabbard, Kamala Harris, Amy Klobuchar, Beto O'Rourke, Bernie Sanders, Tom Steyer, Elizabeth Warren, and Andrew Yang.
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Gabbard and Steyer were the only candidates in this group who did not participate in the third Democratic debate in Texas on Sept. 12. With 12 candidates on stage, it was the largest single presidential primary debate. Republicans held the previous record with 11 candidates on stage during the September 2015 debate.
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The candidates discussed impeachment, healthcare, tax policy, foreign policy, gun violence, antitrust laws, fitness, abortion, and the Supreme Court. Elizabeth Warren had the most speaking time at 23 minutes. Tom Steyer spoke the least at 7.2 minutes.
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For highlights from the debate for each candidate, click here.
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Eight more debates are scheduled in the Democratic presidential primary. The next debate will be held on November 20, 2019, in Georgia.
Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) dies at 68
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Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) died due to complications from longstanding health challenges Thursday, according to a statement from his congressional office. He was first elected to Congress in 1996. Before that, Cummings served 14 terms in the Maryland House of Delegates and was the first African American in Maryland to be named Speaker Pro Tempore. He was the Chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
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Cummings won re-election in 2018 with 76% of the vote. He received 91.5% of the vote in the 2018 Democratic primary for the 7th District in a five-candidate field.
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Democrats currently hold a 234-197 majority in the House of Representatives, with one independent member and three vacancies. In November 2020, all 435 seats will be up for election.
SCOTUS hears cases regarding the Appointments Clause, immigration documents, statute of limitations, and juvenile sentencing
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October 15
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Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico v. Aurelius Investment, LLC, concerns the U.S. Constitution's Appointments Clause. The case is consolidated with Aurelius Investment, LLC v. Puerto Rico, Official Committee of Debtors v. Aurelius Investment, LLC, United States v. Aurelius Investment, LLC, and UTIER v. Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico.
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In 2016, Congress enacted the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act. The act created the Financial Oversight and Management Board and authorized the board to begin debt adjustment proceedings on behalf of the Puerto Rico government. After the board began proceedings in 2017, Aurelius Investment, LLC, ("Aurelius") and the Unión de Trabajadores de la Industria Eléctrica y Riego ("UTIER") challenged the board's authority in U.S. District Court, arguing the board members' appointment violated the Constitution’s Appointments Clause.
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The District of Puerto Rico ruled against Aurelius and UTIER. On appeal, the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the district court in part, holding the board members "must be, and were not, appointed in compliance with the Appointments Clause."
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The issue: Whether the Appointments Clause governs the appointment of members of the Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico.
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October 16
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In Kansas v. Garcia, Ramiro Garcia, Donaldo Morales, and Guadalupe Ochoa-Lara were convicted of identity theft in Johnson County, Kansas. In each case, prosecutors used Social Security numbers found on I-9 and W-4 employment forms. Garcia, Morales, and Ochoa-Lara appealed their convictions, arguing the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) preempted their prosecution. On appeal, the Kansas Supreme Court reversed the three convictions.
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The issue: (1) Whether IRCA expressly preempts states from using any information entered on or appended to a federal Form I-9. This includes common information such as name, date of birth, and Social Security number, in a prosecution of any person (citizen or alien) when that same, commonly used information also appears in non-IRCA documents, such as state tax forms, leases, and credit applications. (2) Whether the Immigration Reform and Control Act indirectly preempts Kansas' prosecution of Garcia, Morales, and Ochoa-Lara.
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In Rotkiske v. Klemm, Kevin Rotkiske accumulated credit card debt between 2003 and 2005. Rotkiske's bank referred the matter to Klemm & Associates (Klemm) for collection. Someone accepted service for a debt collection lawsuit on Rotkiske's behalf without his knowledge. Klemm obtained a default judgment of approximately $1,500. Rotkiske sued Klemm for violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), arguing the statute of limitations to file a suit begins when the plaintiff knows of his injury.
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On appeal, the 3rd Circuit rejected Rotkiske's argument, affirming the ruling of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and holding that the statute of limitations begins to run when the defendant allegedly violates the FDCPA.
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The issue: Whether the one-year limitation period on a statute of limitations begins to run when a potential plaintiff violates the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, as the 3rd Circuit has held, or begins to run when a potential plaintiff discovers a violation, as the 4th and 9th Circuits have held.
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In Mathena v. Malvo, Lee Boyd Malvo was convicted in 2004 of committing homicides in 2002, when he was 17 years old. Malvo was sentenced to four life terms without parole. In 2012, SCOTUS held in Miller v. Alabama that juvenile defendants could not be sentenced to life imprisonment without parole. In 2016, SCOTUS held in Montgomery v. Louisiana that the rule it established in Miller was retroactive.
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After Malvo filed applications for writs of habeas corpus relief, the district court vacated the four terms of life imprisonment and remanded the case for resentencing. On appeal, the 4th Circuit affirmed the district court's ruling.
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The issue: Did the 4th Circuit err in concluding—in direct conflict with Virginia's highest court and other courts—that a juvenile sentenced to life without parole is entitled to a new sentencing proceeding following SCOTUS' 2016 decision in Montgomery v. Louisiana?
U.S. Senate confirms four U.S. District Court nominees
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The U.S. Senate has confirmed four nominees to U.S. District Court judgeships. Overall, the Senate has confirmed 156 of President Trump’s Article III judicial nominees—two Supreme Court justices, 43 appellate court judges, 109 district court judges, and two U.S. Court of International Trade judges—since January 2017. At the end of the 115th Congress in January 2019, the Senate had confirmed 85 of the president’s judicial nominees.
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The confirmed nominees were:
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David Novak, confirmed to a seat on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. After he receives his judicial commission and takes his oath, the court will have one vacancy, five Republican-appointed judges, and five Democrat-appointed judges.
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Frank Volk, confirmed to a seat on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia. After he receives his judicial commission and takes his oath, the court will have no vacancies, two Republican-appointed judges, and three Democrat-appointed judges.
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Charles Eskridge III, confirmed to a seat on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas. After he receives his judicial commission and takes his oath, the court will have one vacancy, 10 Republican-appointed judges, and eight Democrat-appointed judges.
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Rachel Kovner, confirmed to a seat on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. After she receives her judicial commission and takes her oath, the court will have four vacancies, five Republican-appointed judges, and six Democrat-appointed judges.
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Three of the nominees—Kovner, Novak, and Volk—were confirmed nearly unanimously with the Senate voting 88-3, 89-3, and 92-0, respectively. The Senate vote to confirm Eskridge was closer at 61-31.
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There are 94 U.S. District Courts. They are the general trial courts of the United States federal court system.
Warren leads Democratic presidential candidates in Ballotpedia pageviews for third consecutive week
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Each week, we report the number of pageviews received by 2020 presidential campaigns on Ballotpedia. These numbers show which candidates are getting our readers’ attention.
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Elizabeth Warren’s campaign page on Ballotpedia received 2,734 views for the week of October 6-12. Warren’s pageview figure represents 10.8% of the pageviews for all Democratic candidates during the week. Joe Biden had 10.0% of the pageviews for the week, followed by Andrew Yang, also with 10.0%; Yang and Biden were separated by three pageviews.
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The only Democratic candidates to receive more pageviews last week than the week before were Tom Steyer (up 9.1%) and Amy Klobuchar (up 3.2%).
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Andrew Yang remains the leader in overall pageviews this year with 127,308. He is followed by Pete Buttigieg with 121,736. Last week, Joe Biden surpassed Kamala Harris in overall pageviews this year for the first time, with 111,405 pageviews to Harris’ 110,939.
Is Congress in session?
Both the Senate and the House will be in session next week. Click here to see the full calendar for the first session of the 116th Congress.
Where was the president last week?
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On Monday, Trump had no public events scheduled.
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On Tuesday, Trump received his intelligence briefing and had lunch with the vice president.
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On Wednesday, Trump met with the President of the Italian Republic.
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On Thursday, Trump participated in a roundtable with supporters and spoke at a joint fundraising committee luncheon in Fort Worth, TX.
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On Friday, Trump received his intelligence briefing.
Federal Judiciary update
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