This week, George Leef participated in a forum at UNC-Chapel Hill on judicial nominations, sponsored by the UNC Chapter of the American Constitution Society. Panelists included Leef, Melody Barnes, Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress, and Erwin Chemerinsky of Duke University Law School. More than 50 UNC law students crowded in for the standing-room-only event. Leef told the group the Constitution should be read with liberty in mind, as proffered in the book Restoring the Lost Constitution by Boston University Law Professor Randy Barnett. What’s more, he said, the Supreme Court errs when its rulings place some rights – such as those related to education and voting – ahead of others such as property rights. Barnes and Chemerinsky touted the liberal view that it is appropriate for judges to be activist in their rulings. Both also expressed concerns about a possible second term of George W. Bush since many believe the next president will have the chance to fill a seat(s) on the high court. The event was covered by the The Daily Tarheel.