Pat and I were just talking about this indirectly at work (in reference to an appropriations bill rider that would allow clergy to endorse candidates), but Eugene Volokh (UCLA law prof) suggests that corporations need to have constitutional rights. My general opinion is that they shouldn’t have rights because they’re not people. After reading this, however, I see that I don’t really think that they shouldn’t have rights… I really am mostly focused on political speech. I’m also pretty sure that I don’t want corporations to bear arms and form militias ;)… beyond that, they ought to be able to enjoy most of the other rights enshrined in the Bill of Rights.

I wonder, however, if some improvements could be made on the penalties corporations face when they violate the law. With natural people, it’s pretty clear what liberties are important to withhold or remove to punish people. Corporations, on the other hand…? Fine them and that’s pretty much it for for-profit corps… Am I missing anything?