Political bias in law schools is larger issue

Whether Iowans should vote to retain three Iowa Supreme Court justices was much in the news before the election.

Those advocating a “no” vote argued that the Supreme Court has unconstitutionally “made law” because of the “politically correct liberal bias” of these appointed judges, and their desire to substitute their views for those of the vast majority of Iowans and the lawmakers elected by the people.

However, a more fundamental issue is how these judges came to have such a distorted view of their role in our constitutional republic, how the law schools are indoctrinating these political elites rather than properly educating them.

Our taxpayer-supported law school in Iowa City is being sued for political bias. The National Association of Scholars has posted documents from this case, Wagner v. Jones, which includes a written admission by Associate Dean Jon Carlson that professors may have opposed an applicant “because they so despise her politics.”

The 50-member faculty has one Republican, hired 26 years ago.

Concerned citizens can view these documents at www.nas.org/pol

Articles.cfm?Doc_Id=1430

The Iowa Association of Scholars, the NAS affiliate for our state, believes this case raises serious concerns about the hiring practices at the Iowa College of Law and the supposed impartiality of our legal institutions generally.

Would it not be better public policy if future lawyers heard from professors with a variety of political and ideological perspectives instead of only one point of view?

Don Racheter

President

Iowa Association

of Scholars

Mount Pleasant