The Supreme Court heard a case today from a law school trying to declare that the Solomon amendment, requiring that universities that accept federal money must allow military recruiters the same access as they do other recruiters, is unconstitutional. I believe the argument of the law schools is that by threatening them with removal of federal funds they are squelching their free speech. Anyhow, here is an exchange between the Law school's attorney and Chief Justice Roberts:
When the law schools' attorney, Joshua Rosenkranz, complained that the purpose of the law was "to squelch even the ... most communicative aspects of the law schools' resistance," Chief Justice John Roberts cut him short.
"I'm sorry, but the most communicative aspect is saying what you think about a particular policy," Roberts said. "This is conduct: denying access to recruiters."
When Rosenkranz tried to argue that the law - which now requires that the military have the same access to students as other employers - was tightened to stifle campus protest, the chief justice pounced again.
"It (the Solomon Amendment) doesn't insist you do anything. It says that if you want our money, you have to let our recruiters on campus," Roberts said.
Roberts said the government hasn't forbidden schools from questioning military policy regarding homosexuals, so long as they don't exclude recruiters from campus.
"And when they do it," Rosenkranz replied, "the answer of the students is, `We don't believe you.'"
"The reason they don't believe you is because you're willing to take the money," Roberts said. "What you're saying is this is a message we believe in - strongly - but we don't believe in it to the detriment of $100 million."
DOH!!
Somehow I think the Supreme Court is going to be a little more interesting in the new few years...