Any appellate strategy on this case has to be on how to not lose horribly (i.e., getting some teeth on history and tradition, perhaps getting some guidance on other statutory limits that would be imposed, etc.,).

What has—always— bugs me about unitary executive theory: how is it that the House of Representatives is elected every 2 years and the Senate terms are staggered every 6 years, so 1/3rd of the Senate is always running in a cycle, do not reflect the electoral will more than the President?

As I said: BlueSky and Romance Threads are solidarity counterpublics.

Raskin: "He wants to condition the public to the idea that it's completely legitimate for the president not only to be ordering prosecutions of particular people over the objections of prosecutors, but he wants to condition the public to accepting the idea he can do that in public, openly."

In the craziness of last night for us Pultists, I had not clocked that President Trump wanted Lindsey Halligan—the lady also running the “purge” at the Smithsonian—to replace the AUSA in EDVA. Oh man.

I have no idea what the last nine months would have been like if BlueSky (or romance Threads) did not exist. Media consolidation is in hyperdrive. The Ellisons are trying to buy CNN, Pres. Trump is going to stack the Board of Tik-Tok with allies, Jeff Bezos almost cancelled the Expanse.

It is getting wild on the Bill Pulte beat. Scott Bessent was out on these streets calling out Bill Pulte, like Omar on the Wire, because this idiot convinced Pres. Trump that nonsense “mortgage fraud” cases was the way to go.

The Shakedown State. It would seem to be a major question left to Congress to change a fee to be so substantial, but this is not even the agency.

Being on the Bill Pulte beat means you know : (a) the scandal starts with his criminal referrals to DOJ, which were not worth the paper that they were written on for many reasons; (b) he runs the agency tasked with regulation of housing finance during the middle of a housing finance crisis.

A big problem with the Electoral College is that its anti-majority bias masks the popular vote, which was 49.5 to 48.5 in 2024. Yes, I understand it is the system in the Constitution, but so was the 3/5 Clause (also an anti -majoritarian clause).

Every time I read one of these articles saying mainstream media was biased against conservative thought, I think about go-go. What is go-go? It is a live band in which someone raps and it is awesome. The best way to think about it is if rap was actually jazz. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/20/o....

Some notes! First, the story of amendment is better if we include state constitutions. Second, KBJ has started to cite these alternative constitutional traditions as building constitutional meaning. This is very important as a persuasive matter. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/14/b....

A key misreading of the current Supreme Court’s understanding of executive authority is that it treats our understanding of the executive as fixed, whereas for the Founders they were experimenting with the appropriate role of executive in a democracy.

Very early on when I was trying to figure out the relationship of intellectual property to theories of the state, I read some Rousseau. Rousseau thought the Executive was invested an electoral mandate, he embodied the General Will. Wild stuff.

It is entirely appropriate for Congress to exercise its necessary and proper authority to place removal protections and MORE over an out of control executive. President Trump is not a Dune God worm; he is a guy who won 49.8% of the vote and has an disapproval rate of 57%.

This from Eugene Volokh on Jimmy Kimmel and government coercion is right on point: reason.com/volokh/2025/...

Again, the Office interviewed 15 witnesses—-all whom appeared to say James did not commit mortgage fraud. Why? Bill Pulte inappropriately referred Leticia James in the first place. And this is a guy (like Dr.Monarez), that President Trump nominated!

The immortal Lani Guiner and Gerald Torres called black women, The Miner’s Canaries. They wrote: Those who are racially marginalized are like the miner’s canary: their distress is the first sign of a danger that threatens us all.

Brendan or Brandon needs to go ahead and start revoking licenses or engaging in notice and comment rulemaking before I take him seriously. Jazz musings on a podcast are not law.

Siri: It does not, Blake. Under the Communications Act of 1934, broadcasters must operate in the public interest, convenience and necessity. Broadcasters given licenses have a duty to act in the interests of free speech b/c they are the only entities given broadcast rights over a limited spectrum.

First, Brendan Carr does not watch the View because Barbara Walter’s genius was she always had a “conservative” slot, so whatever Brendan. Oh, it’s Brandon. I don’t know him, whatever. Second, you know what is the biggest broadcast revenue generator now: sports broadcasts.

I can tell this site needs more sports knowers because everyone's been yelling about canceling Disney+ and Hulu all day and I literally haven't seen anyone yelling about canceling the new ESPN app, which was just rolled out and the success of which is existential for ESPN.

The relationship of mass media to antitrust law is getting a workout today. BTW, Brandon Carr’s vision of public regulation as some kind of weird censorship regime is not how “public interest” regulation is conducted in communications law. administrativelawreview.org/wp-content/u...

Stand-up comedians used to be arrested. George Carlin was arrested in Milwaukee for obscenity. Lenny Bruce was arrested for obscenity five times. Richard Pryor was arrested in Virginia for swearing on stage. The origins of stand-up were outside the mainstream. www.latimes.com/entertainmen....

Other important writers on the democracy as practiceare Dylan Pennigroth’s Before the Movement: The Hidden History Black Civil Rights, www.amazon.com/Before-Movem....

You have to careful not to treat legal statements made by the Trump Administration as based in an assessment of preexisting precedent or statutory law. District court judges have stripped the presumption of regularity in governmental action b/c this Administration lies about facts and law.

And everyone, the foundational text for me is Thulani Davis’s The Emancipation Circuit. Read it: www.dukeupress.edu/the-emancipa....

Democracy, more than anything is a practice. I always think that the Civil Rights Movement succeeded because from the Civil War black Americans built institutions: universities, fraternities and sororities, churches, that engaged them in democratic practice.

As one would predict, never, ever take a criminal referral from Bill Pulte seriously. The “mortgage fraud” case against Leticia James has collapsed after actual prosecutors interviewed 15 witnesses. Ed Martin—a man who made Jeanne Pirro look qualified—is pushing the case to get prosecuted.

Dr. Susan Monarez: “I could have stayed silent, agreed to the demands, and no one would have known. What the public would have seen were scientists dismissed without cause and vaccine protections quietly eroded…I would have lost the one thing that cannot be replaced: My integrity.”

The funny thing is everyone is dunking on the Dems, but the Republicans will turn down the reasonable offer, you know that, right?

Best Robert Redford Thing for Me: A River Runs Through It. Said it yesterday, will say it again today.

President Trump understands—if the Democrats don’t—that if the Democrats gain the House and the Senate, he will be impeached. And if I was a Democratic Senate candidate in Maine, Iowa, and Georgia, I would just say that in a reasonable voice and keep it moving…

Well, according to Justice Kavanaugh, it is entirely appropriate to start an escalating international crisis over a “reasonable suspicion” since this was a place where “low wage” “Latinos” congregated. In fact, this was a “brief” “stop” that only lasted a week.

I mean literally, figuratively, holistically, 92%, we told you so. The immortal Lani Guiner and Gerald Torres called black women, The Miner’s Canaries. They wrote: Those who are racially marginalized are like the miner’s canary: their distress is the first sign of a danger that threatens us all.

I do feel like part of the hatred extended toward Bluesky is a function of preferring to think that the alarm about the state of the country that’s common here is misguided or exaggerated. Dismissing the site as liberal doomers allows you to dismiss those concerns, too.

Back in 2013 (!), I published this article arguing that private-sector workers should be protected against adverse employment actions for out-of-work speech. That proposal seems more important by the day. repository.law.umich.edu/cgi/viewcont...

Robert Redford’s adaption of a River Runs Through It is perfect: one of my favorite movies and one of favorite books.

As I noted yesterday in my read through of the case, why, yes Judge Katsas: misstatements-in a six figure loan would be concerning BUT THAT IS NOT TRUE.

Look. Just look.

A: Lisa Cook survives appellate review; onto the Supreme Court. B: The Majority relies on Loudermilk?! I did not see that one coming.. C: Judge Katsas: C’mon. Misstatements in a six figure loan would be concerning BUT THAT IS NOT TRUE., storage.courtlistener.com/https://stor....

Democratic life is fragile. Key to stopping political violence is a robust set of democratic practices that presuppose we share a commonality of purpose: civil society is key to vibrant democracy and American democracy in particular.

I read this whole thread before realizing this this was a sitting U.S. Senator.

I manifest the following thing: Beyonce is smart enough to hire Haim for one song on her Rock N Roll album. Thank you very much for your attention to this matter and we look forward to the Bronze Age.

Meanwhile, the first American pope showcasing a polygot American culture on the steps of the Vatican. He is just subtweeting away on the Trump Administration. I fully expect Pope Leo to hire the Jazz Coordinator just fired from the Kennedy Center next.

Yeah man they ain’t coming back. This is going to be one of the biggest foreign policy blunders of my lifetime, and it’s entirely possible that some guy at ICE ordered it not having any clue what he was doing. This is why we used to leave foreign affairs to sensitive nerds.

What happens next is up to all of us - leaders and ordinary citizens alike. In responding to this horrific violence, the most important categories aren't left and right, they are about helping versus hurting. We should heed and amplify the voices who are helping.

Looked at my data collections for state-backed activity. If the report were a picture:

The best thing about Milwaukee is you get to see Haim in a small club and not Madison Square Garden.

He hasn’t pushed the boundaries of his authority, he has abused and exceeded it. And the abuses and excesses get worse and worse.