New episode, new analysis, no nonsense. Join Under Color of Law: https://shanlonwu.substack.com/subscribe

The McDade Amendment exists to ensure DOJ attorneys follow the same ethics rules as everyone else. If DOJ leadership starts controlling ethics complaints against its own lawyers, independent oversight stops being independent. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGEJfNFyK-g

Trump's $1.8 billion DOJ settlement is dominating headlines. But the biggest story is not the money. It is the constitutional loophole it exposed. How can a sitting president sue the federal government while simultaneously controlling the federal government?

DOJ attorneys are supposed to serve the American people, not the personal interests of a president. That is why this conflict of interest issue matters. If the DOJ cannot act independently from political power, public trust in the system collapses. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGEJfNFyK-g

The real value of Trump’s IRS settlement may not be the 1.8 billion dollar fund. It may be the reported release from IRS violations involving Trump and his family. That starts looking less like a settlement and more like protection. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGEJfNFyK-g

The newsletter for anyone who wants to understand the law, not just hear about it. Subscribe: https://shanlonwu.substack.com/subscribe

A DOJ controlled fund with virtually no transparency. Protection from future tax related claims. And a settlement structure that raises serious constitutional questions about executive power, accountability, and oversight. That should concern everyone. https://youtu.be/OM96ilhL0OU

Don’t let the legal spin fool you. We tell it like it is. Read more: https://shanlonwu.substack.com/

The DOJ cannot become part of a foreign policy strategy without destroying public trust in the justice system. Once prosecutions start looking political, the credibility of the entire DOJ takes a hit. That is a dangerous road. #DOJ #Politics #ForeignPolicy #ShanWu #NewsNation #JusticeDepartment

Say goodbye to Stephen Colbert and then say goodbye to CBS. A network that loses Colbert loses its cultural relevance. Period. Please repost if you agree! #StephenColbert #Colbert #CBS

DOJ suddenly indicts Raúl Castro nearly 30 years after the 1996 Brothers to the Rescue shootdown. If the evidence existed all along, why now? That is where people start questioning whether prosecutions are being driven by evidence or politics.

DOJ lawyers should not get a separate set of ethics rules just because they work for the government. When state bar agencies are pressured for trying to enforce accountability and a massive DOJ-controlled fund operates with no transparency, the rule of law starts to look dangerously selective.

The Supreme Court’s abortion ruling was never just about Mifepristone. Trump’s DOJ settlement was never just about a compensation fund. And DOJ resistance to ethics oversight is raising bigger questions about accountability, institutional power, and how far these legal protections may go.

Justice Clarence Thomas labeled the mifepristone manufacturer a "criminal enterprise" even though no criminal charges have been filed. When a judge starts sounding like a prosecutor, judicial restraint is nowhere to be found. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0P_lDpuI5sU

A sitting president suing the government he controls should never feel normal. Trump’s IRS settlement raises major constitutional and ethical questions that are getting buried beneath political spin. The Constitution was never designed for this kind of conflict of interest.

Justice Clarence Thomas reached back to an 1873 law to suggest mailing mifepristone is criminal. No charges. No trial. No conviction. That is not judicial restraint. That is ideology in plain sight. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0P_lDpuI5sU #ShanWu #LegalAF #SCOTUS #ClarenceThomas #Mifepristone

The Supreme Court’s not just deciding cases—it’s shaping the future. I explain how on Under Color of Law: https://shanlonwu.substack.com/

The Supreme Court temporarily allowed mifepristone to remain available while the legal challenge continues. That should have been a routine decision. Instead, Justices Alito and Thomas reacted with dissents that made one thing clear: the issue is not just the law. It is the result.

Every Friday, a full legal recap straight to your inbox. Plus, additional video analyses weekly for paid subscribers. Check it out: https://shanlonwu.substack.com/

Shelby County was sold as proof that voter discrimination was over. Texas and Mississippi responded by passing laws that had previously been blocked. The Court removed the guardrails, and states hit the gas. https://youtu.be/mmr2NKoJ5lc

The Voting Rights Act was created to remedy racial discrimination. Now the Supreme Court is treating those protections as the real problem. When fixing racism is labeled racist, one of America’s most important civil rights laws is turned upside down. https://youtu.be/mmr2NKoJ5lc

The law can remain exactly where it has always been and still lose its power. That is how rights erode. Not because the law disappeared, but because the protection did. https://shanlonwu.substack.com/publish/post/197488408?r=5dicwe&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

The Supreme Court said the Voting Rights Act was no longer needed. The numbers tell a very different story. Since Shelby County, racial turnout gaps have widened again, hitting 19 points in 2022 and 14 points in 2024. The proof is in the pudding. https://youtu.be/mmr2NKoJ5lc

Tired of shallow punditry? Get fact-based legal analysis with Under Color of Law: https://shanlonwu.substack.com/subscribe

The Supreme Court keeps pretending the Voting Rights Act is the problem instead of the racism it was designed to stop. Before the law there were roughly 1500 Black elected officials in America. Today there are around 10000. That is what change looks like. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wz51HYaHF6s

New recap drops every week and exclusive bonus content and analysis for paid subscribers. Don't miss a beat: https://shanlonwu.substack.com/subscribe

Happy Mother's Day to all! Remembering my mom gone three years now but alive as always in our lives & hearts. Here she is at age 100 (give or take a year as she lied about her age starting at about 95...)

The Supreme Court keeps claiming America has moved beyond systemic voting discrimination. Voting Rights Act protections have been stripped away and racial voting gaps are widening again. Modern voter suppression hides behind "neutral" language while the impact stays the same.

The Supreme Court claimed America no longer needed strong Voting Rights Act protections after the Obama era elections. Then federal oversight weakened, restrictive voting laws spread, and racial turnout gaps widened again. The data increasingly undermines the Court’s reasoning.

The Supreme Court increasingly believes the Voting Rights Act is no longer necessary. The election data increasingly says otherwise. https://open.substack.com/pub/shanlonwu/p/the-war-against-racism-is-over-the?r=5dicwe&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

One newsletter. Real news without the fluff. Subscribe to Under Color of Law: https://shanlonwu.substack.com/

What Al Franken was accused of was serious and widely condemned. But the timeline still raises questions. Three weeks from allegations to resignation. Pressure built fast, including from leaders like Chuck Schumer. When does accountability become urgency? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YakvGBwnCws

Missed the week’s top stories? Our weekly wrap-up has you covered: https://shanlonwu.substack.com/subscribe #WeekInReview

It's been 60 days since the President started his illegal war with Iran. According to the law, he must withdraw troops NOW.

A case is not even decided and SCOTUS is already calling the outcome. That is not legal process. That is power. Leaked memos are showing how the shadow docket is changing everything. Full breakdown: https://youtu.be/sZq9Gtz_xl0 #SCOTUS #SupremeCourt #ShadowDocket #RuleOfLaw

The law has not changed. The way it is being applied has. Comey indictment. Congressional resignations. Immigration judges removed mid backlog. Same rules. Different outcomes. https://shanlonwu.substack.com/publish/post/195968562?r=5dicwe&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Comey case. This gets tested fast. A motion to dismiss is coming. Courts have already protected stronger, more direct speech than this. That is the legal standard. No clear targeting. No real threat. No intent. That is why this likely gets thrown out. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HgawDQEMUTM

Leaked SCOTUS memos just exposed how major decisions are getting pushed through with no transparency. No full hearings. No real explanations. Just outcomes. That is the shadow docket. Full breakdown: https://youtu.be/sZq9Gtz_xl0 #SCOTUS #SupremeCourt #ShadowDocket #RuleOfLaw

The asylum system did not just tighten. It changed. Same law on paper. Different outcomes in practice. When the standard shifts, approvals drop and denials rise. That is how the system gets controlled. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfDOPhLRdgM

The war against racism is over - the Supreme Court won... apnews.com/article/supr...

Am I the only one who finds it absurd that the US government seeks to punish a comedian for a joke, yet ignores a presidential threat to demolish an entire civilisation?

Happy to be invited!

Under Color of Law is where the latest legal and political headlines meet real analysis. Read our latest: https://shanlonwu.substack.com/

The shadow docket isn’t just being used, it’s being pushed hard. 41 attempts in Trump’s first term. About 8 in the previous 16 years combined. Now it’s ramping up again. This is fast tracked Supreme Court power with no full process and no waiting. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V21iaqrjuxQ

Together once more to harmonize - grateful for their lives & music www.theguardian.com/music/2026/a...

Looking for legal analysis that actually makes sense? Start with Under Color of Law: https://shanlonwu.substack.com/

🤷‍♂️ “The system worked,” Todd Blanche, the acting attorney general, said in an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday, recounting how the suspect made it only feet past the security perimeter.

"Asher was fatally injured in a sudden and unprovoked attack by an unwounded buffalo he was tracking together with one of our professional hunters and one of our trackers,” Hans Vermaak, whose family runs the safari company, said in a statement. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/07/w...

Hard to understand how this security breach occurred... www.cnn.com/2026/04/25/p...

The law has not changed, but the system has. The Supreme Court is bypassing full process, immigration courts are under pressure, and outcomes are shifting without new laws. https://shanlonwu.substack.com/publish/post/195219169?r=5dicwe&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true