Short Circuit 426 | Vaccinated Home Distilling
Podcast (short-circuit): Play in new window | Download
John Wrench of IJ details the Fifth Circuit’s ruling that the federal ban on home distilling is unconstitutional. At least as the case was argued, which included the taxing power and the Necessary and Proper Clause, but not the Commerce Clause. Then, IJ’s Joe Gay discusses a Fourth Circuit case where the parents of a West Virginia student who attended a virtual school challenged the program’s vaccine mandate. The case raises interesting religious liberty and rational basis issues. And stay until the end for some “where are they now” updates.
But before you listen: MEGA UPDATE! Between the recording of this episode (April 20, 2026) and its release (May 1) the Sixth Circuit dropped its opinion on the same issue as the Fifth Circuit. In contrast to the Fifth, the Sixth concluded Congress’s taxing power does allow it to ban home distilling. (On this episode we speculate about what the Sixth Circuit was going to do. Feel free to laugh at our predictions.) The circuits are split! Or, one might even say, shorted.
Ream v. US DOJ (6th Cir. ruling)
Recent Episodes
Short Circuit 453 | 100 Years of Zoning
With a live audience in Cambridge, Massachusetts, we mark (not celebrate) the 100th anniversary of Village of Euclid v. Ambler Realty, where the Supreme Court […]
Listen NowShort Circuit 452 | Election Law Special!
Vote early. But maybe don’t vote often? That’s the bottom line from Short Circuit’s biannual election special. With the 2026 General Election only days away, […]
Listen NowShort Circuit 451 | Tales from the Tenth
Short Circuit visited the Tenth Circuit Bench and Bar Conference in Colorado Springs. Between gin and tonics at the Broadmoor hotel we heard from a […]
Listen NowShort Circuit 450 | Cocaine in the Curtilage
If you’ve ever seen the 1971 flick “The French Connection” you may know a bit about hiding illegal drugs inside the bodies of cars. Someone […]
Listen Now