Senior Fellow in Constitutional Jurisprudence, Independence Institute
Professor Robert G. Natelson is a constitutional scholar and author.
Rob’s constitutional scholarship has been cited repeatedly by justices and parties at the U.S. Supreme Court—as well as by federal appeals courts, and at least 18 state supreme courts.
Rob’s research into the Constitution’s original meaning has carried him to libraries throughout the United States and in Britain, including four months at Oxford University. His books and articles span many different parts of the Constitution, including groundbreaking studies of the Necessary and Proper Clause, the Indian Commerce Clause, federalism, Founding-Era interpretation, regulation of elections, and the amendment process of Article V. He created the first-ever online bibliography for 18th century materials used in constitutional research. He is a contributing author to the Encyclopedia of the Supreme Court of the United States (on Magna Carta). He contributed eight essays to the third edition of the Heritage Guide to the Constitution: five on the amendment procedure and one each on the Guarantee Clause, the Postal Clause, and the Recess Appointments Clause.
U.S. Supreme Court justices have relied explicitly on Rob’s research in 41 citations in 13 separate cases.
United States Senator from Iowa
Senator Grassley has served as one of Iowa’s U.S. Senators since 1981.
He places a high priority on constituent services, helping Iowans to cut red tape and navigate federal services, from Social Security to veterans’ benefits. He holds the record for the longest consecutive voting streak of any senator in the history of the country. He has not missed a vote since 1993 when he returned home to survey historic flood damage. Senator Grassley has conducted at least one meeting in each of Iowa’s 99 counties every year since his public service began in the U.S. Senate. He says “dialogue is the essence of representative government” and that’s why he keeps his commitment to keep in touch with Iowans by every means available. He responds to every phone call, letter, and email from Iowans, and communicates extensively via social media (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, website) to connect directly with constituents. Senator Grassley also prioritizes accessibility with journalists as another vital means to communicate and hold himself and government accountable to Iowans.
Countless congressional hearings, policy debates and constituent feedback shape Senator Grassley’s expansive legislative expertise for Iowa’s benefit. For policies impacting health care, taxes, trade, transportation, agriculture, renewable energy, criminal justice, elder justice, foster care, illegal drugs, human trafficking, the federal budget, patent reform, education, national security and the federal judiciary, Chuck Grassley works to make a difference for Iowans.
As chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senator Grassley understands the critical role Congress serves in our system of checks and balances. No matter which political party controls Congress or the White House, Senator Grassley conducts robust oversight of the federal bureaucracy and expects answers from the executive branch.
Using his key committee assignments to benefit Iowans, Senator Grassley works to lessen excessive regulatory and tax burdens that make it harder for families to get ahead and stay ahead. Our nation’s founders established a constitutional framework for economic freedom, innovation and opportunity to limit government’s role in society. His work on the Senate Budget and Finance committees is driven by an acute understanding that Washington can’t spend, tax and borrow America’s way to prosperity.
Shareholder, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP
As co-chair of the firm’s Government Relations Department, Will Moschella leverages his experience in the Justice Department and Congress to counsel clients on a range of matters, including antitrust, financial services, legal reform, intellectual property and criminal law.
Will served at the Justice Department as principal associate deputy attorney general and as assistant attorney general in the Office of Legislative Affairs. In Congress, Will served on the House Judiciary Committee as chief oversight counsel, and chief legislative counsel and parliamentarian. He was involved in numerous high-profile legislative efforts, including the enactment of the Patriot Act, Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act, and Prosecutorial Remedies and Other Tools to end the Exploitation of Children Today (PROTECT) Act.
In 2008, Will received the Edmund J. Randolph Award for Outstanding Service, the highest award that can be bestowed on a Justice Department official.
Founder, Law Office of Eileen J. O'Connor PLLC
After nearly 30 years as a national tax specialist with the IRS and major accounting firms, Eileen J. O’Connor, now an attorney in private practice, was Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Tax Division for six years during the administration of President George W. Bush and a member of then-President-elect Trump’s Treasury Department Transition Team. She focuses on federal administrative and tax law.
Fellow, The Constitution Project at the Project On Government Oversight
Morton Rosenberg was a senior legal analyst with the Congressional Research Service (CRS) for 35 years specializing in the areas of constitutional law , administrative law and process, congressional practice and procedure, and labor law, and in the problems raised by the interface of Congress and the Executive which involved the scope of congressional oversight and investigative prerogatives, the validity of claims of executive and common law privileges before committees, enforcement of subpoenas, and issues raised by the presidential exercise of temporary and recess appointment. He also served extended details as legal counsel for a special investigative committee and as a legal advisor to the House General Counsel.
Since his retirement from CRS in 2008 he has undertaken a variety of consulting projects and assignments that have tapped into his experience and expertise in constitutional, congressional and administrative law, practice and procedure. This has included an engagement by the Constitution Project to research and write a monograph on congressional investigative oversight in 2009 which was updated and expanded and published in May 2017 entitled "When Congress Comes Calling: A Study on the Principles, Practices. and Pragmatics of Legislative Inquiry." He also served as a consultant to the general counsel of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) and its private counsel in the preparation of briefs and for oral argument before the Supreme Court in Free Enterprise Fund v. PCAOB (2010); and in preparing and submitting an amicus brief to the Supreme Court in NLRB v. SW General (2017) which was cited five times by the majority opinion. He is presently of counsel to the law firm Barnett Sivon & Natter, Washington, D.C. and a Constitution Project Fellow.
The Federalist Paper, Summer 2018
One of our marquee annual events, the National Student Symposium, was held in March at...
Why Constitutional Lawyers Need to Know Latin
Robert G. Natelson
Note from the Editor: This article discusses the role of the Latin language and other...
Necessary & Proper Episode 21: Remarks by Senator Chuck Grassley
Charles Grassley
On June 11, 2018, the Article I Initiative and the Federalist Society's DC Young Lawyers Chapter...
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Travel Ban Correctly Upheld - The President's Role in National Security
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Putting “Fair” Back in “Fair Use”
To encourage creative activity, the U.S. Constitution authorizes Congress to provide authors and artists the...
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Net Neutrality - CRA Weekly Roundup 3
Last week, the Federal Communications Commission’s (“FCC’s”) Restoring Internet Freedom Declaratory Ruling, Report and Order,...
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Prominent Books by Prominent People: Professor Jennifer L. Mascott
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Balancing Executive and Legislative Branch Interests in Congressional Oversight
William Moschella, Eileen J. O'Connor, Morton Rosenberg
One might expect that by now the Legislative and Executive Branches would have worked out...
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Article I: Interview with Prof. Schoenbrod on Congressional Degradation
As Professor Schoenbrod explains in this interview, Congress has an unhealthy fixation with three little words--"the Administrator...
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Courts of Appeals Slap Down NLRB Member Mark Gaston Pearce Again (and Again) in Cases Involving Workers’ Free Choice
The four cases outlined below have (at least) two things in common. Can you guess...