If you ever hear anyone say that FedSoc is simply a nonpartisan debating club that takes no position on hotly contested issues of legal or public policy, show them this:

Today in originalism:

Good morning. nymag.com/intelligence...

The tariffs may go down in flames at the Supreme Court, but we’re not out of the woods just yet. To this day, John Roberts has shown no indication of wishing to dial back the worst aspects of his disastrous immunity decision, which the Trump administration is weaponizing in three other key cases.

Make Legislative History Great Again By Ketanji Brown Jackson

The nation could have had four more years of Elizabeth Prelogar as solicitor general. Instead, we have John Sauer.

How Tuesday’s Blue Tsunami Should Humble Our Anti-Majoritarian Supreme Court. (It Won’t.) In this essay, I will …

From an actual filing by the U.S. DOJ: The court erred in requiring us to produce discovery. Therefore, instead of asking the court to reconsider its order, or appealing it, we're simply going to disregard it. "Respectfully submitted, Lindsey Halligan." storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

What we know, final edition of the night: [Now in 3 parts] —Prop 50 wins —VA Dems flip Gov, LG, AG —Dems gain leg seats in VA, NJ, & MS —Dems defend NJ-Gov —Dems win NJ+VA trifectas —Mamdani wins —PA Dems win state supreme court —ME anti-mail voting measure loses —GA Dems flip 2 statewide offices

BREAKING: Colorado voters approved a ballot measure that would raise state income taxes on higher-earning households to fund free meals for all public school students. Follow AP for live updates.

Zohran Mamdani was the first mayoral candidate and Democratic official to stand up to the Trump administration over the arrest and disappearance of Mahmoud Khalil, which he saw as a violation of the First Amendment.

Justice Alito won’t be in a good mood tomorrow.

Trump on the tariff case being argued tomorrow at SCOTUS : “Tomorrow’s SCOTUS case is, literally, LIFE OR DEATH for our Country…. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

Would I rather be at the beach than some countryside? You bet. #NewProfilePic

Border Patrol agent Lairmore testifies that he was not injured by the sandwich, but he felt the impact through his ballistic vest. The sandwich came apart and "kind of exploded" on his chest upon impact, he says. "I could smell the onions and mustard."

Left: The statutes Aileen Cannon analyzed when declaring unconstitutional Jack Smith's appointment as special counsel: www.politico.com/f/?id=000001... Right: The statutes Pam Bondi cited when retroactively reappointing Lindsey Halligan as special attorney: storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

Left: The statutes Aileen Cannon analyzed when declaring unconstitutional Jack Smith's appointment as special counsel: www.politico.com/f/?id=000001... Right: The statutes Pam Bondi cited when retroactively reappointing Lindsey Halligan as special attorney: storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

"USA TODAY is seeking a thoughtful, principled, and dynamic Conservative Opinion Editor to lead and curate commentary that reflects conservative perspectives on the most pressing issues of our time." No comment. jobs.dayforcehcm.com/en-US/gannet...

That the NYPost ran this is 💀.

I was looking up a case almost no one paid attention to this summer, and I encountered this heck of a footnote from Ketanji Brown Jackson aimed at the six conservative justices. (Justice Sotomayor, who joined part of her dissent, didn't join the footnote.) www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24p...

This article doesn't list any actual instances of ICE agents showing up at polling locations, which would indeed be beyond the pale. That said, this being an off-year election, states and localities would be well-advised to keep them off their premises by seeking some kind of injunctive relief.

For the one and only @legaleagle.tv, I had the pleasure of writing and hosting an explainer on why we’re not seeing a deluge of lawsuits against ICE agents over clearly unconstitutional behavior. And how that can be fixed. youtu.be/fktQUIkf6o0?...

The loading-the-dishwasher struggle is real. Even—or especially—for the $20,000 1X Neo humanoid home robot. 🔗: on.wsj.com/47whlZ1

Finally got me one of those boxy shirts that improperly expose your midsection when lifting your arms overhead.

This is a campaign that will be dissected and studied for years to come.

My last Halloween as a Controller. Time for a (Nintendo) Switch.

For the legal nerds: This is a straight-up Youngstown claim under the Constitution. TL;dr .. No law nor constitutional provision remotely allows this.

NEW: More than 100 federal judges have now rejected the Trump administration’s new policy to lock up nearly everyone facing deportation — including 12 judges appointed by Trump, according to a POLITICO analysis. Only 2 judges have sided with ICE. www.politico.com/news/2025/10...

Man Wouldn't Have Worn Costume To Work If He'd Known He Was Getting Laid Off

I visited Grand Street Senior Housing on the Lower East Side today and tried a little Bomba y Plena…

Judge Talwani says Trump admin MUST partially fund SNAP for November, and MAY fully fund it, and gives DOJ till Monday to tell her which option the admin will choose storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

We’re goin’ up, up, up, it’s our moment.

The new Jodi Kantor deep dive on the “divisions” among the liberal justices of the Supreme Court is a good read but it obscures one crucial fact: All three are extremely disciplined and united in all the cases that matter. That Ketanji Brown Jackson goes it alone sometimes hasn’t changed that.

I don’t understand the ACLU’s unwavering commitment to … not posting a link to the opinion on social media. Here it is: assets.aclu.org/live/uploads...

If you’re looking to understand why Brett Kavanaugh is Trumpier than ever, look no further than how he’s feeding Donald Trump judicial nominees. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...

I’m crying www.semafor.com/article/10/2...

Under Trump, the draconian future of homelessness policy is coming into focus: mass internment. Utah is building a 16-acre site to detain up to 1,300 homeless people inside locked "accountability centers." This is profoundly alarming. Vital reporting from @ellenbarry.bsky.social and Jason DeParle:

Trump is illegally moving money around to pay the troops, but he won't feed hungry people under SNAP even though the contingency fund is sitting right there. www.axios.com/2025/10/29/w...

Good work, everyone.

Never healthy to get your hopes up with this Supreme Court, but this raises the possibility that the Trump administration will … lose. It’s a big procedural win for Illinois and Chicago.

Here's the complaint: storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

New incredible detail here: ICE says a match in its facial recognition app Mobile Fortify is a "definitive" determination of a person's status, and that this overrides birth certificates. This is an app ICE is using in the field to scan people www.404media.co/ice-and-cbp-...

I have a Zohran Mamdani in my life: My cousin's son—my second cousin—has decided that he'll call me uncle for the rest of his young life. I'm Tío Cristian to him.

One year ago

I totally endorse this thread.

this is a good idea and they should do it, just so the court can expose itself again bsky.app/profile/cris...

Remember when the Supreme Court gave a pass to a state that created a private right of action crafted with the purpose of evading federal law and judicial review? States should experiment with a similar law to allow damages actions against federal agents in state court. That'll go over well.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor was right about Alabama’s death-by-prolonged-suffocation execution method. (She has been right about this stuff before.) www.nytimes.com/2025/10/24/u...