On October 5, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear Greenwell v Parsley, no. 08-1328. The case had arisen in Bullitt County, Kentucky, in 2005, when the Sheriff read in the newspapers that one of his Deputies intended to run against him in 2006. The Sheriff was a Democrat and his deputy was a Republican. The sheriff fired the Deputy, and the Deputy sued, but lost in both U.S. District Court and in the 6th Circuit.

The 6th circuit had issued a similar opinion in 1997, Carver v Dennis. In that decision, the 6th Circuit had said, “The First Amendment does not require that an official in an employer’s situation nourish a viper in the nest.” The more recent Greenwell 6th circuit decision is only five pages long because it depends on the 1997 precedent. However, six other Circuits had ruled that government employees cannot be fired just because they declare their candidacy for public office, so it was reasonable to assume that the U.S. Supreme Court might take Greenwell v Parsley to settle the split in the Circuits. But, the Court did not take the case. Thanks to Thomas Jones for this news.