Yes, Trump Is (Still) Engaged in an Attempted Coup; and Yes, It Might Lead to a Constitutional Crisis and a Breaking Point

NEIL H. BUCHANAN

UF Levin College of Law professor and economist Neil H. Buchanan explains why Donald Trump’s actions reflect an attempted coup and might still lead to a constitutional crisis. In this column, Buchanan first explains what a coup is and describes the ways that Trump has failed in his attempts thus far. Buchanan warns about how all this could still end in a constitutional crisis that Trump creates and exploits to stay in power.

Read More

Request for an Opinion of the Justices (Quorum under Part II, Article 20)

Docket: 2020-0414

Opinion Date: November 17, 2020

Areas of Law: Constitutional Law, Government & Administrative Law

The New Hampshire House of Representatives certified a question of law to the New Hampshire Supreme Court. The House asked a single question: whether holding a House session remotely, either wholly or in part, whereby a quorum could be determined electronically, would violated Part II, Article 20, of the New Hampshire Constitution. The Supreme Court responded in the negative. "As long as the requisite number of representatives is 'present,' either in person or virtually, meaning that the requisite number is 'at hand' and '[n]ot absent,' Part II, Article 20 is satisfied."