The U.S. Needs New Nukes? Really?
Trump adds "tactical" weapons to America's arsenal.
Executive Branch
The Libertarian Party State of the Union: 'Americans deserve better' than 'Republicans and Democrats careen[ing] toward socialism and fascism'
Riverside County Supervisor Jeff Hewitt delivers the L.P.'s prebuttal to tonight's SOTU, while the L.A. Times asks whether Hewitt can "make a fringe party mainstream."
Some Democrats Are Mad at Bernie Sanders for Daring to Give SOTU Rebuttal—After Stacey Abrams Gives Hers
"Why is he talking over the black woman our party chose to speak for us?"
Trump's State of the Union Will Probably Be About a Border Wall That 60% of Americans Say They Don't Want
The president has devoted himself to a pointless, self-defeating project.
The Ongoing Gratuitous Cruelty of Trump's Travel Ban
The way the travel ban policy has been implemented both before and after the Supreme Court's decision further underscores the magnitude of the Justices' mistake.
Who's Afraid of Howard Schultz? Just About Everyone, and They're Right To Be
The former Starbucks CEO is getting dragged by liberals and progressives because he is talking about debt and spending in ways they don't like.
My USA Today Op Ed on Using Emergency Powers to Build Trump's Wall
The op ed explains why this option is not legal - and why it would set a dangerous precedent if the president succeeded in doing it.
What Bill Clinton Can Teach Donald Trump About Surviving Endless Scandal
The former president radically flipped the conventional wisdom about dealing with political enemies, legal issues, and impeachment.
Pelosi Moves to Cancel Trump's State of the Union Speech. Good Riddance.
The shutdown may force the government to cancel the State of the Union.
70 Years After They Were Wrongly Imprisoned, the Groveland Four Have Been Pardoned
The criminal justice system failed four black men after a white woman accused them of rape.
Some Conservatives Recognize the Risks of Using Emergency Powers to Build Trump's Wall
They correctly warn it would set a dangerous precedent that could be abused by future presidents, including liberal Democrats.
Trump's National Emergency Is an American Obscenity
Republicans embrace presidential authoritarianism, continuing a foul bipartisan tradition of legislating immigration through the executive branch.
My Op ed on Trump, Emergency Powers, and the Wall
The op ed was published yesterday in the New York Daily News, but may be even more relevant today.
Surprise! Looks Like Elizabeth Warren Is Running for President!
She's the highest-profile candidate to jump in.
Gorsuch Challenges Blank Check for the U.S. Attorney General
A case to watch for both criminal justice reformers and for critics of executive overreach.
Trump's Bump Stock Ban Shows Once Again He Is Happy to Ignore Inconvenient Laws
The administration usurps Congress by redefining machine guns.
Did I Really Once Think That George H.W. Bush Was the Worst President of My Lifetime?
A presidential derangement syndrome for all seasons
Trump's Illegal Anti-Asylum Presidential Proclamation
He has manufactured a fake border crisis to justify an illicit power grab.
Rep. Justin Amash Slams Trump's Birthright Citizenship Threat: POTUS Can't 'Amend Constitution' With Executive Order
At least one Republican congressman agrees.
Trump's 60 Minutes Interview Further Demystifies the Presidency
From the moment he started his improbable run for higher office, Donald Trump has stripped bare all pretensions that politics is about more than "winning."
Why the Executive Branch Shouldn't Legislate
Progressives appreciate the separation of powers-up to a point.
Gorsuch and Sotomayor Fault Congress for Giving 'a Blank Check to the Attorney General'
SCOTUS weighs congressional power, criminal law, and the non-delegation doctrine in Gundy v. U.S.
Kavanaugh's Testimony on Executive Power [Updated with Material from the Afternoon Session]
No great surprises so far. But some notable points nonetheless.
Washington Post Symposium on Brett Kavanaugh's Jurisprudence
The Post has a symposium in which a a variety of legal commentators (myself included) discuss what they consider to be Judge Kavanaugh's most important opinions.
Kavanaugh on the Nixon Tapes Case
In 1999, Judge Kavanaugh suggested that the Supreme Court case that forced Nixon to turn over the Watergate tapes may have been wrongly decided. But it's not entirely clear what he now thinks about the issue.
Kavanaugh and Executive Power - the Good, the Bad, and the Overblown
The debate over Judge Kavanaugh's views on executive power actually encompasses four separate issues. On some of them his views bode well for the future, on others not so much.
Trump Pardons Oregon Ranchers Convicted in Brush Fire Case
Steve and Dwight Hammond became a cause célèbre for angry ranchers and another example of inflexible mandatory minimum sentences.
SCOTUS Nominee Brett Kavanaugh Sees Perils of Aggressive Administrative State
Like Neil Gorsuch, the D.C. Circuit judge has criticized Chevron deference for encouraging executive arrogance.
When the Supreme Court Blessed the Imperial Presidency
The story of how classical liberal Justice George Sutherland enabled executive overreach abroad.
My USA Today Op Ed on the Travel Ban Decision
The op ed outlines some of the grave flaws in today's Supreme Court ruling.
Initial Thoughts on the Supreme Court's Terrible Travel Ban Decision
Some preliminary comments on a badly flawed ruling.
A Little-Noticed Legal Ruling That Is Bad News for Trump
Can the president of the United States be sued for damages in a civil proceeding?
You Might Have a 'Uniquely Compelling' Reason to Find Out Whether Your Government Has Placed You on a Kill List
Bilal Abdul Kareem has been nearly droned in Syria five times already. A federal judge agrees his lawsuit over the matter can proceed.
Trump to Kneeling NFL Players: Tell Me Who I Should Pardon
The president has discovered the power of the pardon. Could that make this a moment for criminal justice reform?
How the Masterpiece Cakeshop Decision Strengthens the Case Against Trump's Travel Ban
The Supreme Court's ruling was based on state officials' apparent hostility to the bakers' religious beliefs. There is far stronger evidence of such hostility in the travel ban case.
Reason Totally Called the Masterpiece Cakeshop Case: Podcast
After oral arguments last year, Stephanie Slade correctly observed that "justices might have found a sort of get-out-of-jail-free card." Also on the Reason Podcast: Bill Clinton, Roseanne, Samantha Bee, Kim Kardashian, and maybe the worst celebrity of the week, Larry Kudlow.
Evidence Indicates there is no "Extensive" Analysis Backing Trump's Travel Ban
Despite the administration's claims to the contrary, it appears that no such thing exists. Its absence strengthens the constitutional case against the travel ban.
The Case for Abolishing the Requirement that the President Must be a "Natural Born" Citizen
I am reposting my 2016 post on this subject, on the occasion of Kevin Walsh's guest-blogging stint addressing the same issue.
End of Iran Deal Underscores a Weakness of Obama's 'Pen and Phone' Presidency
If your "signature achievements" are done by executive power alone, they might as well be written in pencil.
Trump, Reagan, and Why Republicans Flip-Flopped on Free Trade
The Donald is more like The Gipper on trade policy than you think. And not in a good way.
Rethinking the Unitary Executive
The originalist case for a unitary executive falls apart in an era when many of the powers wielded by the executive branch were not originally supposed to be federal powers in the first place.
Thoughts on the Travel Ban Oral Argument
The justices' comments in the oral argument suggest this will be a close case that could easily go either way. The outcome could well turn on the views of that perennial swing voter, Justice Anthony Kennedy.
A Roundup of My Volokh Conspiracy Posts on the Travel Ban
On the eve of the of Supreme Court oral argument in the travel ban case, here are links to some of my more notable VC posts on the subject.
Trump Wages War Wherever and Whenever He Wants
The unauthorized attack on Syria shows Congress won't enforce limits on the president's military powers.
Originalism, Living Constitutionalism, and the Power to Initiate War
You don't have to be an originalist to conclude that the Constitution requires congressional authorization for war.
Scooter Libby Aside, Presidential Pardons Are Good and Trump Should Issue Even More of Them
"I don't know Mr. Libby, but for years I have heard that he has been treated unfairly."
