Trump's Troops Return to a City That Moved On: Dispatch From Portland
Five years after the city’s fiery 2020 protests, Portland is mostly calm. That hasn’t stopped Trump from reviving old battles, fueled by false memories and made-for-TV outrage.
Donald Trump
First Circuit Rules Trump's Birthright Citizenship Executive Order is Unconstitutional
This is the second appellate court ruling against the order. So far, every court that has addressed this issue has ruled the same way.
Lawsuit Challenges Trump's $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
The case was filed yesterday by a broad coalition of different groups, including a health care provider, education groups, religious organizations, and labor unions.
Defending the Summary Execution of Suspected Drug Smugglers, Trump Declares an 'Armed Conflict'
The president thinks he can transform murder into self-defense by executive fiat.
Fifth Circuit Will Rehear Alien Enemies Act Case En Banc
It will review a panel decision holding that Trump could not invoke this sweeping wartime authority by claiming illegal migration and drug smuggling qualify as an "invasion."
TrumpRx Is Obamacare in Trump's Handwriting
Pfizer wins big in Trump’s new drug discount gimmick.
Autism Research Doesn't Need Washington's Help
When the state dictates both the questions science asks and the answers it offers, it converts knowledge into propaganda and health into a matter of politics.
After 20 Years as Chief Justice, John Roberts Is Now Friend and Foe to Executive Power
Which version of the chief justice will emerge in the Supreme Court’s newest term?
Reagan-Appointed Judge Slams Trump's Crackdown on Pro-Palestinian Students
Judge William Young wrote a book-length order attacking “the problem this President has with the First Amendment.”
Here's Why Trump's Plan To Tax International Films Won't Work
The president’s movie tariff proposal faces several legal and logistical challenges to implementation.
Government Shutdowns Are an Example of Congress Doing Its Job
Refusing to fund the government is the primary way minority party lawmakers can check the excesses of the executive branch and the majority party.
Caleb Nelson's Originalist Critique of Unitary Executive Theory
The prominent originalist legal scholar argues the Constitution does not require that the president have the power to fire executive branch officials.
Trump: Government Shutdown Could Do 'A Lot of Good'
Plus: Addressing "the enemy within," the FTC's pointless meddling, Joy Reid finally understands half the country, and more...
Demanding Charges Against His Enemies, Trump Conflates Justice With Revenge
The legal rationales for prosecuting James Comey, Adam Schiff, and Letitia James suggest the president is determined to punish them one way or another.
Federal Court Rules Speech-Based Deportations of Non-Citizen Students and Academics Violate the First Amendment
The decision is the most thorough in a line of recent court decisions reaching similar results.
The Government Shutdown Won't Stop Trump's Immigration Enforcement Campaign
The Department of Homeland Security will retain 95 percent of its employees if the government shuts down and remain funded in large part by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Can Americans Trust RFK Jr.'s Health Advice? A Breakdown on Vaccines, Autism, Food Dyes, and More
As ever, be cautious about what you hear from the Department of Health and Human Services.
After Repeatedly Losing in Lower Court, Trump Asks SCOTUS To Review His Birthright Citizenship Order
Plus: Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote a book.
Trump's 100 Percent Chip Tariff Could Make It More Expensive To Build More Semiconductors in the U.S.
Trump exempted imported chips from his reciprocal tariffs in April. Now he's threatening them with 100 percent rates.
Trump's Executive Order Against 'Political Violence' Is an Un-American Attack on Free Speech
The order lists "anti-Americanism, anti-capitalism, and anti-Christianity" as common threads among "domestic terrorists," though all are protected by the First Amendment.
In Trump's Tussle With James Comey, You Should Hope Everybody Loses
The administration is pursuing a vendetta, but Comey and the FBI deserve scrutiny and reduced stature.
Trump's Public Comments Could Further Complicate the Shaky Case Against James Comey
By demanding that the Justice Department punish the former FBI director for wronging him, the president provided evidence to support a claim of selective or vindictive prosecution.
Kash Patel Tellingly Ties James Comey's Indictment to the Legally Unrelated 'Russiagate Hoax'
The FBI director's portrayal of the case exemplifies the emptiness of his promise that there would be "no retributive actions" against the president's enemies.
Trump Bashed Other Countries for Their Immigrant Crime Rates. Here's Why He Didn't Mention the U.S.
Trump railed against migrant crime abroad but skipped U.S. stats—because immigrants here are locked up far less often than native-born Americans.
James Comey Indicted in a Case Prosecutors Don't Seem Excited About
There is ample evidence to suspect prosecutors are just doing President Trump's dirty work rather than following the facts of the case.
Canada Should Offer to Drop Its Terrible Agricultural Restrictions in Return for U.S. Tariff Reductions
There’s an opportunity to abandon bad policies that raise consumer costs and move toward free trade.
Democrats to Trump: Stop Jawboning, That's Our Job!
Democrats are vowing to break up media companies that kowtowed to Trump if they take back power.
FCC Threats Against Jimmy Kimmel Echo a Century of Speech Control
From the Fairness Doctrine to Nixon’s “raised eyebrow,” government licensing power has long chilled broadcast speech—proving the First Amendment should apply fully to the airwaves.
Donald Trump and Peter Thiel Are Using AI To Supercharge the Surveillance State
Peter Thiel warns of a pending one-world totalitarian government—while himself pushing to supercharge the surveillance state.
SCOTUS Is Now Poised To Overrule Humphrey's Executor, a 1935 Precedent Limiting Presidential Power
The Supreme Court will soon review the president’s authority to fire “independent” agency heads.
Federal Court Rules Trump Can't Deny Federal Disaster Relief Funds to Sanctuary States
Another in a long line of court decisions striking down Trump efforts to attach conditions to federal grants that were not approved by Congress.
Kamala Harris Slams Trump for Pardoning 'the Fentanyl Dealer Ross Ulbricht'
In her new book, 107 Days, the former vice president reminds us that she is ever the prosecutor.
The Forced Sale of TikTok Is Crony Capitalist at the Core
Forcing the sale of a social media company for political reasons was always going to be a power grab for the White House—whether its occupant was Democratic or Republican.
Trump's Ukraine Reversal
Plus: Spyware intercepted, gender desistance findings, trad discourse on those pesky working women, and more...
Politicians Go Out of Their Way To Make Political Tensions Worse
Nobody should be governed by people who despise them.
Trump's Vision of Broadcast Regulation Is a Threat to Conservatives
History suggests that Republicans will regret letting the FCC police TV programming.
How a Fight Over Voter Data Could Reshape American Elections
Lawsuits against Oregon and Maine test how far the federal government can go in demanding access to voter information.
Why the Charlie Kirk Memorial Might Spell the End of Trump and MAGA
Speeches by the president, Stephen Miller, and Tucker Carlson will accelerate dislike of the president’s agenda.
Trump's Latest Tariff Defense Asserts Uncheckable Executive Power
The president’s attempt to evade the major questions doctrine deserves to be rejected.
Courts are Checking Trump More Effectively than Many Think
Legal scholar Steve Vladeck explains how and why.
Why Does Trump Want U.S. Troops Back in Afghanistan?
Mike Waltz is no longer national security adviser, but his plans for Bagram Air Base seem to have stuck in the president's head.
America's Free Speech Culture Is Under Attack From Within
The First Amendment still stands, but the culture that supports it is eroding.
Trump's Harmful and Illegal Plan to Gut H-1B Visas by Imposing $100,000 Fees
The plan violates the relevant visa law. If allowed to stand, it would significantly harm productivity and innovation.
The FCC's Involvement in Canceling Jimmy Kimmel Was 'Unbelievably Dangerous,' Ted Cruz Says
Rand Paul concurs that the threats preceding the comedian's suspension were "absolutely inappropriate" because the agency has "no business weighing in on this."
Alcohol Escapes a Government Crackdown—for Now
A quiet push to declare “no safe level” of drinking has officially fizzled.
The FCC Chair's Unprecedented, and Constitutionally Problematic, Response to Jimmy Kimmel
And Trump's much more extreme one. [EV writes: I bumped this post from yesterday, because it struck me as especially timely and substantively valuable.]
Donald Trump Is Not a Peace President
Trump struggles to articulate any foreign policy view with much coherence, and has a fragile ego that makes world conflicts all about him.
