Law & Government
California Democrats May Have To Choose Between 2 Republicans in November's Gubernatorial Race
California initiatives will fuel an already fiery November election, and the state's top-two primary might end up excluding Democrats in the governor's race.
Andrew Kent on the Alien Enemies Act
His work further demonstrates that the AEA cannot be used in response to illegal migration or drug smuggling, but only when there is a military attack.
Section 230's Legal Protections for Internet Speech Face New Challenge
This week, senators heard testimony over the foundation for modern online conversations.
Man Successfully Designs mRNA Vaccine To Treat His Dog's Cancer
"If we can do this for a dog, why aren't we rolling this out to all humans with cancer?"
Mamdani Might Raid a Severely Underfunded Retiree Fund To Balance New York City's Bursting Budget
While he admits New York is facing a “serious fiscal crisis,” Mamdani’s solutions won’t actually fix it.
Rand Paul's Anger at Markwayne Mullin Is Justified
"He can't bring himself to say we shouldn't settle political questions with violence," said Paul.
Roscoe Conkling, the Political Boss Who Twice Declined a Supreme Court Appointment
The Republican stalwart thought he could wield more power from the Senate than he ever could from the Supreme Court.
DHS Pledges Not To Deport Any U.S. Citizens if Congress Ends Shutdown
In a letter to senators, the administration offered five concessions—two of which were simply that going forward, officers would follow the law.
Department of Homeland Security
Markwayne Mullin's History of Condoning Murder and Resisting Transparency Makes Him Ill-Suited To Run DHS
The Oklahoma senator, nominated to replace Kristi Noem, is blasé about the use of deadly force.
No Contempt Sanctions for Laura Loomer's Comments About CAIR, Magistrate Judge Recommends
Loomer had entered into a non-disparagement agreement to settle an earlier case, and the agreement had been adopted as a court order, but it also had an exception for statements responding to CAIR's statements about her.
This Virginia Bill Expands Affirmative Action in State Contracting
The bill creates a new program to increase agency spending on small businesses, particularly those owned by women, minorities, and disabled veterans.
Trump Cuts Red Tape
Plus: An effective build-to-rent ban advances in Congress and Florida expands one of the country's most successful zoning reforms.
Kavanaugh Should Be Embarrassed by Trump's Praise for His Tariffs Dissent
Plus: Brian Doherty, RIP.
Yes, the First Amendment Protects Free Speech for Noncitizens
"Freedom of speech and of press is accorded aliens residing in this country," according to a 1945 Supreme Court ruling.
Josh Hawley Moves To Ban Abortion Pills
His push relies on dubious data about the pills' safety.
My New Lawfare Article on "Slavery and Birthright Citizenship"
The article explains how all the standard arguments for denying birthright ctizenship to children of undocumented immigrants are at odds with the main purpose of the Citizenship Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
The Enduring Fight Over 'Fighting Words'
More than eight decades ago, the Supreme Court invented a vague First Amendment exception that would-be censors continue to invoke.
Facing a Budget Squeeze, New Jersey Decides To Go After Big Tech
Gov. Mikie Sherrill called Big Tech worse than Big Tobacco before proposing measures to regulate social media platforms.
Litigant Who Cited "Fictional Authority" Ordered to Include All Cited Authorities in Future Filings in Any Court
The Texas Court of Appeals just upheld the order.
How Chile's Free Market Miracle Survived a Resurgent Left
Outgoing President Gabriel Boric predicted that Chile would go from being neoliberalism’s “cradle” to its “grave.” His movement got buried instead.
Bye-Bye Build-To-Rent
Plus: bad arguments in favor of a build-to-rent ban, a tanker plane crash kills four in Iraq, signs the Iran war isn't going so well, and more...
In Space, Regulators Seek To Boldly Go Where No Bureaucrat Has Gone Before
We don’t really need intrusive laws and regulations to govern lunar mining and space exploration.
Trump Goes to War
Plus: Donald Trump vs. Thomas Massie, Republicans preparing to kill the filibuster for a very dumb reason, explosions in the Strait of Hormuz, and more...
The Supreme Court's Approval Ratings Have Dropped. Does It Matter?
What happens if both political parties come to distrust the Court’s judgment?
Here Are 12 Bills Democrats Just Passed To Trample Gun Rights in Virginia
Some gun-rights activists are blaming immigrants, but the real culprits are Virginia Democrats.
He Was Arrested Over Bogus Drug Tests. Now He's Suing.
Bryan Getchius was arrested, jailed, and spent seven months on house arrest before eventually being cleared by official lab results.
A First Amendment Right Not To Use AI for Evil?
Anthropic sues the federal government—and kicks off a debate about free speech for artificial intelligence systems.
Louisiana Requires 500 Hours of Training To Braid Hair Professionally. This Bill Would Increase It.
Many states have deregulated hair braiding, but Louisiana lawmakers want to tighten regulations by demanding more coursework, including on the ancient origins of braiding.
Can the Government Ban You from Telling the Truth?
Mark Chenoweth discusses the SEC’s gag rule, the power of the administrative state, and the legal battle over whether regulators can silence their critics.
War Rations
Plus: Pete Hegseth spends millions on lobster tail and rib-eye steak, oil prices go for another roller-coaster ride, no inflation increase, and more...
The Federal Government's Crusade Against Anthropic Raises First Amendment Concerns
Trump administration officials openly seek to punish the AI company for its corporate philosophy.
Trump's New Tariff Plan Still Asserts a Crisis That Does Not Exist
The president’s invocation of Section 122 conflates a trade deficit with a balance-of-payments deficit.
Will SCOTUS Review the Iran War's Constitutionality? Don't Count on It.
The judiciary is largely absent from the long-running constitutional debate over undeclared foreign wars.
Minnesota's Fraud Scandal Isn't an Immigration Problem. It's a Spending Problem.
Health care fraud is an all-too-common feature of the U.S. health care system, not only in Minnesota.
Liberty Justice Center Files Lawsuit Challenging Trump's Section 122 Tariffs
LJC is the group with which I worked on the IEEPA tariff case decided by the Supreme Court.
The 'Fairness' Law That Could Raise Grocery Prices for New Yorkers
Legislators are trying to pass their own state version of an outdated antitrust law—one that is dead at the federal level for a reason.
California Appeals Court Upholds Trial Court Order That Cited Hallucinated Cases
The nonexistent cases were first introduced by opposing counsel, but the appellant's lawyer didn't spot the error at the trial court, and submitted a proposed order to the trial court that cited those cases. That, the appeals court held, meant that appellant forfeited the right to challenge the decision.
Previewing Suncor Energy v. Boulder County
A Federalist Society forum on the first big case of OT 2026.
California Billionaire Wealth Tax Would Cost the State $25 Billion, New Research Finds
"If Californians approve this measure in November, they may discover too late that the wealth they hoped to tax has already left the state—with jobs and economic opportunities not far behind."
The Federal Government Was Told To Make a List of Everything It Funds. 15 Years Later, There Still Isn't One.
A sad commentary on the sprawling size and eye-watering cost of the government.
America's Performance Review
Andrew Heaton takes stock of the United States on its 250th birthday.
Lawsuit: Trump's Newest Tariffs Are an 'Exercise of Completely Unrestrained Executive Power'
The lawsuit, filed by attorneys general and governors from 24 states, claims that Trump is once again trying "to usurp the taxing power that the Constitution vests in Congress."
