Mitchell Berman on Conditional Federal Grants and the Constitution
While there is no constitutional right to receive grants, the Constitution does bar grant conditions that undermine constitutional rights.
Donald Trump
Thoughts on the Oral Argument in the Oregon Case Against Trump's IEEPA Tariffs
Like that in the similar case filed by Liberty Justice Center and myself, this one indicated judicial skepticism of Trump's claims to virtually unlimited power to impose tariffs.
Harvard's Best Protection Is To Get Off the Federal Teat
It's the best shield when the executive branch tries to strong-arm private universities.
Trump's Mass Cancellation of Student Visas Illustrates the Lawlessness of His Immigration Crackdown
A federal judge blocks the administration's "Student Criminal Alien Initiative," which targeted foreign students who had no criminal records.
The Executive Power Case That Unites Donald Trump and Franklin Roosevelt
Trump’s firing of a federal agency head may soon spell doom for a New Deal era precedent that limited presidential power.
C. Bradley Thompson and Jeremiah Johnson: Rise of the 'MAGA Manosphere'
Did mainstream conservatives and libertarians lose a generation of young men to the reactionary right?
Trump Declares That iPhones Should Be More Expensive
Whether due to tariffs or because they are made in America, the result would be much higher prices.
Is Donald Trump To Blame for a COVID Lab Leak?
Criticisms of the president's alleged flip-flopping on gain-of-function research funding miss some key context.
Congress Is Giving Energy Lobbyists a 3-Year Window to Keep Up to $2 Trillion in Subsidies
The "one big, beautiful bill" keeps the corporate welfare that Republicans claim to hate.
Academic Freedom Podcast on Rescinding Harvard's Tax Exempt Status
Can Trump do that, and what would it mean?
America's Credit Is Falling—and the Government Is Still Digging Deeper Into Debt
The lesson from the Moody's credit downgrade is that the U.S. cannot borrow its way to prosperity.
Forbes Interview on Developments in Our Case and Other Litigation Against Trump's "Liberation Day" Tariffs
I was interviewed by Brittany Lewis of Forbes.
Upcoming Cato Institute Virtual Event on "Tariffs, Emergencies, and Presidential Power"
I will be speaking, along with Cato Institute scholar Walter Olson.
An End to Tax on Tips
Plus: Lab-grown meat fears, DOJ inquiry into Cuomo, Kristi Noem's polygraphs, and more...
By Trump's Logic, Biden Deserves Credit for a Dramatic Drop in Overdose Deaths
That logic implausibly assumes presidents have the power to curtail substance abuse by attacking the drug supply.
Most Migrants Deported to Imprisonment in El Salvador Under the Alien Enemies Act Had no Criminal Record and Many had Entered the US Legally
A new Cato Institute study by David Bier presents the most extensive available evidence on these points.
Serious Immigration Law Enforcement Means Serious Destruction to American Liberty
Stephen Miller's trial balloon about abrogating habeas corpus in immigration cases shows how any libertarian with pragmatic intelligence should reject so-called "libertarian" arguments for strict immigration laws.
Trump Says Birthright Citizenship Is Only 'About the Babies of Slaves.' Historical Evidence Says Otherwise.
The 1866 debate over birthright citizenship included a debate over immigration.
Berating the Businesses
Plus: Tim Dillon takes on the establishment, Chicago's racist hiring strategies, train fetishes, and more...
Fourth Circuit Rules Against Trump Administration in Alien Enemies Act Case
In a 2-1 ruling, the Court ruled Trump's invocation of the Alien Enemies Act cannot supersede a settlement barring deportation of a group of migrants. One judge also held the AEA was invoked illegally.
The GOP Budget Is Big, Bloated, B.S.
Plus: A listener asks if the economic inequality data is bad.
Lee Kovarsky, D. Theodore Rave, and Steve Vladeck on Class Actions and the Alien Enemies Act Litigation
Kovarsky and Rave defend the use of class actions in AEA habeas cases. Vladeck highlights the significance of the Supreme Court's grant of an injunction to a "putative class" of AEA detainees.
Trump Threatens Walmart Not To React to His Tariffs
On the bright side, at least Trump finally admitted his tariffs are, indeed, paid by Americans.
Bigotry, Hypocrisy, and Trump's Admission of Afrikaners as Refugees
The Administration isn't wrong to admit white South African migrants. But it is wrong to exclude all other refugees, including many fleeing far worse discrimination and oppression.
Our Supreme Court Amicus Brief Opposing Termination of CHNV Immigration Parole, Which Would Subject Some 500,000 Legal Immigrants to the Risk of Deportation to Oppressive Regimes
The brief is on behalf of the Cato Institute and myself.
Supreme Court Issues Ruling Temporarily Blocking Alien Enemies Act Deportations
The ruling held that migrants detained under AEA had not been given adequate notice of their potential deportation. It also reflects the Court's growing distrust of the Trump Administration.
James Comey's Deleted '86 47' Instagram Post Is Obviously Protected by the First Amendment
A lot of conservatives are falling prey to the same snowflakery they criticize.
A Simple Defense of Nationwide Injunctions
Nationwide illegality by the federal government requires a nationwide remedy.
Trump and Congress Target 'Efficiency' Rules That Hobble Home Appliances
Make dishwashers great again.
The Supreme Court May Rule for Trump on Nationwide Injunctions but Probably Not on Birthright Citizenship
The president's executive order on birthright citizenship had its first test before the Supreme Court.
David Hogg, Victim of Wokeness
No wonder the Democrats are having a young male voter problem!
My New Lawfare Article "Trump's 'Emergencies' Are Pretexts for Undermining the Constitution"
The article explains why these claims to emergency powers are illegal and dangerous, and how to stop them.
Trump's Tax Plan Is a Leftist Economic Agenda Wrapped in Populist Talking Points
The administration shows no coherent commitment to free market principles and is in fact actively undermining them.
Trump (Partially) Wins an Alien Enemies Act Case
In a badly flawed decision, a federal district court ruled that Trump can invoke the AEA because the Tren de Aragua drug gang's activities amount to a "predatory incursion."
Trump's Case Against Birthright Citizenship Is a Constitutional Loser
The text and history of the Fourteenth Amendment run counter to Trump’s executive order.
New Republic Podcast Interview on Our Case Against Trump's "Liberation Day" Tariffs [Updated With Embedded Audio]
Greg Sargent of the New Republic interviewed me.
Trump Declares the 'Neocon' Era Over
The president’s speech in Saudi Arabia promised a new course for U.S. policy in the Middle East. Can he deliver?
Free Pete Rose
There is no question that Rose defiantly broke the rules, but we love our baseball characters, warts and all.
3 Myths About Tariffs
"If this is the end of my American dream," says one small business owner, "I'm going to go down swinging."
The Federal Government's 175,000 Pages of Regulations Turn the Rule of Law Into a Cruel Joke
Trump rightly decries the "absurd and unjust" consequences of proliferating regulatory crimes.
Thoughts on Today's Oral Argument in Our Case Against Trump's IEEPA Tariffs
Outcomes are hard to predict. But the judges seemed skeptical of the government's claim that Trump has virtually unlimited authority to impose tariffs.
Since Immigration Is an 'Invasion,' a Top Trump Adviser Says, the President Might Suspend Habeas Corpus
Stephen Miller's understanding of the Constitution is dubious for several reasons.
Trump Called Price Controls 'Communist.' Now He's Ordering Them for Prescription Drugs.
The president hopes to introduce even more government intervention into health care.
Draft Lotteries Suck for Die-Hard Fans
Plus: Yetis, The Seat, and a political letter that will make your eyes roll.
Defenders of Trump's Birthright Citizenship Order Offer an Implausible Take on a 127-Year-Old Precedent
Briefs urging the Supreme Court to stay injunctions against the order challenge "the conventional wisdom" about the meaning of an 1898 decision interpreting the 14th Amendment.
What Did We Learn From DOGE?
Plus: A listener asks which domestic policy changes could realistically boost U.S. manufacturing without raising costs for consumers.
Why DOGE Failed
Elon Musk promised $2 trillion in cuts but delivered only a tiny portion of that total. We asked seven policy experts to explain what he got wrong.
