Trump's Election Interference in California and Alaska Prompts a Series of Judicial Rebukes
Four federal courts say the Trump administration is trying to usurp the states' constitutional authority over elections.
Separation of Powers
Trump's 50% Tariffs on Canadian Goods Illegally Rely on a Superseded Statute, a Lawsuit Argues
The import taxes fit a pattern of dubious legal rationales for the president's protectionist policies.
Trump Re-Ups His Threat To Raze the Kennedy Center Unless He Can Slap His Name on It
After a federal judge rejected his attempts at self-glorification, Trump said the building will "end up being ripped down" if he does not get the "recognition" he wants.
Thomas and Alito Are More Reliable Votes for Trump Than His Own Supreme Court Appointees
The conservative legal movement may be winning big at the Supreme Court. But Trump is not.
Former Trade Officials Explain Why Trump's Section 301 Tariffs Are Illegal
Their brief says the president is asserting "essentially boundless" authority to impose "economy-wide tariffs untethered from the statute Congress enacted."
Trump Again Condemns His Supreme Court Nominees As Too Cowardly To Agree With Him
The president's latest tirade against recalcitrant justices reflects his open contempt for judicial review.
Why a Trump-Appointed Judge Just Blocked the President's Mail-In Ballot Restrictions
A notable legal defeat for the Trump administration
First Circuit Refuses to Stay District Court Injunction Against Trump's Executive Order on Mail-In Voting
The Court rightly ruled the executive branch has no authority to restrict mail-in voting.
Our New Federal Circuit Amicus Brief in the Section 122 Tariff Case
The brief explains why the Section 122 tariffs are illegal and run afoul of the major questions and nondelegation doctrines.
Trump's Executive Order on Mail-in Ballots is an Assault on Federalism and Separation of Powers
It seeks to usurp state and congressional power over election administration.
John Roberts Overruled Trump's Tariffs. But He Can't Seem To Stop Trump's Ballroom.
The chief justice finds himself in dissent in his latest showdown with the president.
Trump's White House Ballroom Is a Monument to His Lawlessness
By unilaterally razing and replacing the East Wing, the president again shows his disregard for the rule of law and the separation of powers.
Supreme Court Allows White House Ballroom Construction to Go Forward, at Least for Now
The majority didn't decide whether the construction violated federal law, only that plaintiffs' purely aesthetic interests didn't allow them to assert a federal claim.
Jeff Merkley Wants To Save Big Government From Donald Trump
The Oregon senator's "For Our Republic Act" would check many of the president's abuses while preserving the powerful federal state he commands.
D.C. Circuit Upholds Injunction Against Trump's Ballroom
The Constitution assigns control of federal property to Congress, which never approved the president's demolition and replacement of the East Wing.
Trump Keeps Pushing Legally Dubious Tariffs
The president's latest round of broad import taxes, like the previous two, treats his statutory authority as an afterthought.
Here Are Some Ways SCOTUS Can Constrain Federal Agencies That Are Now Subject to Trump's Untrammeled Control
The Supreme Court has "no shortage of tools" to enforce the separation of powers, Justice Neil Gorsuch notes. "The only real question is whether we will use them."
Gorsuch Warns About Executive Overreach While Expanding Trump's Power
The Supreme Court extended presidential control over federal agencies. What could go wrong?
Supreme Court Ends Agency "Independence," Save for the Federal Reserve
As expected, the Supreme Court overturns Humphrey's Executor, but reaffirms the independence of the Federal Reserve.
The Senate's Failure To Rein in Trump on Iran Is Part of a Long History of Congress Abdicating Its War Powers
War making in "the power of a single man" is not what the Founders intended.
The Trump Administration Seriously Considered Unilaterally Suspending the Writ of Habeas Corpus
The proposal was nixed only after White House Staff Secretary Will Scharf explained why it was legally dubious.
Trump, Scalia, and the Unitary Executive
How a four-decade-old dissent may now help the president fire independent federal agency heads at will
Upcoming National Constitution Center Annual Supreme Court Review
Three different VC bloggers are among the speakers: Jonathan Adler, Keith Whittington, and myself.
Trump's Position in the White House Ballroom Case Reflects His General Resistance to Judicial Review
The president has repeatedly argued that courts have no business deciding whether his actions are legal.
Trump's $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee Is an Unconstitutional Tax, a Federal Judge Rules
U.S. District Judge Leo Sorokin struck down the fee, saying it exceeds the president's statutory authority and violates the separation of powers.
DOJ Claim That Trump Could 'Bulldoze' Statue of Liberty Fits a Pattern
It's the latest example of Justice Department attorneys claiming broad and unreviewable powers for the president.
Even If Trump's Ballroom Project Is Illegal, a DOJ Lawyer Says, the Courts Cannot Stop It
The D.C. Circuit is reviewing an injunction issued by a judge who said "no statute comes close to giving the President the authority he claims to have."
Trump's Self-Promotion Is Always Shameless and Sometimes Illegal
The president tramples the rule of law in his rush to glorify himself.
Trump Broke the Law When He Slapped His Name on the Kennedy Center, a Federal Judge Says
The decision is a modest but welcome victory for the rule of law.
War Powers Vote Is the Latest Embarrassment for House Speaker Mike Johnson
Johnson is seemingly incapable of standing up to the Trump administration, even when one of Congress' core responsibilities is at stake.
The Major Questions Doctrine Constrains Presidential Power Over Elections
It limits executive power grabs in this field, as well as others.
Defending the White House Ballroom, the DOJ Files a Trump Tantrum Masquerading As a Motion
The brief, which asks a federal judge to reconsider an injunction blocking the project, reads like it was transcribed from the president's Truth Social account.
Federal Judge Delivers Due Process Win Against DOJ Registry Overreach
The Justice Department is permanently blocked from prosecuting Californians who fail to register when the state no longer requires it.
Rupe Debate: Judging the Supreme Court's Emergency Docket
Adler v. Shugerman on the Supreme Court's handling of separation of powers concerns on the "shadow docket."
In New Tariff Cases, Trump Asserts 'Unreviewable' Power To Invent a Balance-of-Payments Deficit
The Court of International Trade is weighing the legality of the import taxes that the president wants to impose under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974.
With His Grandiose White House Ballroom Plan, Trump Again Asserts the Power To Do As He Pleases
"No statute comes close to giving the President the authority he claims to have," U.S. District Judge Richard Leon concluded when he enjoined the project.
A Year After 'Liberation Day,' Trump's Tariffs Will Never Be Legitimate Without a Vote in Congress
The Trump administration keeps trying to find legal loopholes, but the will of the people is the final judge of any major policy.
Trump's Mercurial, Constantly Changing Import Taxes Took American Businesses on a Wild Ride
There was little rhyme or reason to the president's "emergency" tariffs, which fluctuated wildly depending on his mood.
Unless People Support Me, Trump Habitually Warns, 'We Won't Have a Country Anymore'
The president's predictions of the nation's imminent demise reflect his narcissistic authoritarianism.
Donald Trump and Markwayne Mullin Insist That Politics Should Prevail Over Principle
The president and his new DHS secretary are enraged by jurists and legislators who refuse to toe the party line.
Judges and Justices Should Be Independent, Trump Says, As Long As They Side With Him
The president says federal courts should not make decisions based on partisan considerations unless it benefits him.
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.
Trump Thinks Any Judge Who Rules Against Him Is in League With the 'Radical Left'
The president's wildly inaccurate ideological labels are no more meaningful than his other ad hominem attacks on people who disagree with him.
The Supreme Court's Tariff Decision Vindicates the Rule of Law and the Separation of Powers
Although Trump has other options for taxing imports, the justices reminded him that he needs clear congressional authorization.
Trump's Rationale for His New Tariffs Contradicts the Position He Took Before His Supreme Court Defeat
The president is relying on a provision that the government's lawyers said had no "obvious application" to his goal of reducing the trade deficit.
Trump's Tantrum Over the Tariff Decision Highlights His Narcissistic Authoritarianism
The president neither understands nor appreciates the vital role of judicial independence in upholding the rule of law.
