Academic-freedom advocates are justly up in arms over the fact that UC-Irvine rescinded– on political grounds–an agreement it had made with Duke Professor Erwin Chemerinsky to become the first dean of its new law school. Chemerinsky, whom the LA Times called one of the country’s leading constitutional- law experts, had seemed a major "get" for the school, till it thought over his politics. Liberal. Outspoken.
I smell a rat. Lots of professors are liberal and outspoken. And actually Chemerinsky is a sober sort; he served on police investigation panels in L.A. I wonder whether UC-Irvine got cold feet after someone pointed out to them that Chemerinsky represented the Corrie family in its suit against Caterpillar, the company that made the armored bulldozer that crushed young Rachel Corrie in Gaza in ’03…
Even the NY TIMES has denounced this politically motivated attack on academic freedom.
Chemerinsky and Chancellor Drake agree that an op ed Chemerinsky wrote for the L.A. Times that was critical of Gonzales played a critical role in Drake's decision. Immediately before flying to Durham to deliver the bad news to Chemerinsky, Drake was in D.C.
Put two and two together. What happened in D.C.? Who did Drake talk to?
Is Chmerinsky a Jew?