Either the SG didn’t tell the WH before refusing to approve appeal in the law firm cases (almost unthinkable), or he did and then capitulated after Trump changed his mind last night. Either way, it’s difficult to imagine him retaining credibility and respect in his building or with the Court. Yikes.

Is it possible that Sauer decided not to authorize appeal without telling the WH? Seems very, very unlikely. But what other explanation is there?

YCMTSU. Of course, it’s exactly what to expect from this crew. Which is why the lion’s share of the moral outrage should be directed at Senate Republicans, who facilitated this knowing full well what the results could be. newrepublic.com/post/207263/...

YCMTSU. Of course, it’s exactly what to expect from this crew. Which is why the lion’s share of the moral outrage should be directed at Senate Republicans, who facilitated this knowing full well with the results could be. www.cnn.com/2026/03/03/p...

Turns out I didn't have to agonize about whether to teach the Law of Religion or the Law of the Use of Military Force this semester--I could've simply consolidated them. Separation of powers and separation of church and state--equally obsolete!

In addition to the fact that the campaign is unconstitutional and breaches the Charter (which is US domestic law), and that any aid to targeting civilians such as Ahmadinejad would violate the LOAC and the Assassination Ban, assisting the targeting of Khamenei also violated the Ban, ... [1]

Schmederalism.

Well, as with the higher ed extortion, the damage is done even though they've known all along that they didn't have a legal leg to stand on. Many firms, like schools, have been chilled and aren't about to go back to business as usual even with the assurance of legal right.

Seems like a million years ago, but if you're still interested in knowing more about the SCOTUS decision on IEEPA and tariffs ...

The judges' outrage here is completely understandable, but Judge Goodwin is mistaken to assume that district courts' "constitutional rulings" as to particular plaintiffs "govern the conduct of federal officers operating within the jurisdiction of this court" with respect to *other persons.* [1]

In case anyone was wondering what "'war' in the constitutional sense" looks like ... www.justice.gov/d9/olc/opini...

I know this isn't the most important aspect of this alarming action, but, simply from a legal perspective, what would be worse: if the administration offers a formal argument that the attacks don't violate the Constitution and/or the UN Charter, or if it doesn't? @justsecurity.org

This is an extremely important piece by @jacklgoldsmith.bsky.social about the evisceration of legal norms and processes (and workforce) within DOD. Similar things happening at DOJ, the IC, etc., but the effects at DOD are as calamitous as anywhere. www.execfunctions.org/p/the-decayi...

No. Not even close. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/22/o...

Department of presidential euphemism: "In light of recent events, ..." www.whitehouse.gov/presidential...

Who says the SCOTUS is reluctant to weigh in on war powers questions? From the IEEPA decision today: "The United States ... is not at war with every nation in the world." So there.

The ACLU's brief for the plaintiffs in the birthright citizenship case. www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/25...

Kris Collins, Gerry Neuman and @rosenbloom.bsky.social just filed this excellent brief in the birthright citizenship case, on the very strong statutory basis for declaring the Trump E.O. to be unlawful. www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/25...

Re: the Colbert/Talarico brouhaha: Anyone else recall the good ol' days of the Reagan Administration when it was all the rage in the conservative legal firmament (e.g., Bork, Scalia, Silberman, SG Fried. et al.) to get Red Lion overruled ... [1]

Everything Rosa said! This is simply wonderful news for our law school. (And major thanks, too, to Josh Teitelbaum for being such a fantastic interim dean.)

Truly hard to figure which is more shocking and unprecedented--what the degraded DOJ did here, or the grand jury's heroic rebuke. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/u...

It's sad that Lou didn't live to hear Al Green's gorgeous covers of this and "Perfect Day." He woulda loved 'em. Fortunately, Bill Berry's around to hear "Everybody Hurts." youtu.be/EKSf3rrOoFs?...

Defining Deviancy Down: Don't overlook Karoline Leavitt's *alternative* take on the video in response to the (obviously correct) descriptions of it as racist: [1] www.nytimes.com/2026/02/06/u...

I've never read a more painful transcript of a judicial proceeding. DOJ throws a neophyte into court to defend ICE's failure to comply with judicial orders even though she has no courtroom experience and has been given no guidance whatsoever about how to proceed, ... [1] @justsecurity.org

Who could possibly have imagined this might happen?

I can't recommend this highly enough. The work @brianwolfman.bsky.social and his Clinic do is second-to-none, and it's a great opportunity to collaborate with very fine, extremely wise (and very hard-working) attorneys.

Pop quiz: What does the briefing in the Birthright Citizenship case (Trump v. Barbara) have in common with "The Fate of Ophelia"?

“This ought to be the final nail in the coffin of congressional Republicans’ breathless efforts to gin up impeachment charges against a judge whose only actual sin, as it turns out, was to decline to roll over when the government defied one of his orders, and then lied about it.” Me @ “One First”:

Is there a more vivid illustration of the collective impacts of the Trump Administration--and of the Senate's refusal to lift a finger to address the foreseeable cruelty and devastation (e.g., by voting to reject the RFK nomination)?

This is silly. Any concerns with using AI in writing articles (I don't, but mostly because of my technological ignorance) don't involve improving the writing and identifying grammatical errors. Would you disclose that you used Westlaw, or spell-check, or your spouse or friend, for such purposes?

Not your everyday judicial order to the federal government. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

It's difficult to overstate what a brutal and unequivocal rebuke this is, by a very sober and respected judge, of deeply unprofessional and meritless conduct by the AG. It begins by pointing out that DOJ offered no evidence at all to support its claim--even after being requested to do so-- ... [1]

In case you haven't seen it, here's the grand jury indictment of Don Lemon, Georgia Fort and others. d3i6fh83elv35t.cloudfront.net/static/2026/...

A reminder that she was in her early 20s when she completely upturned the world of sketch comedy, creating literally dozens of characters and inhabiting dozens more celebrities with her look and voice.

Anyone seen a copy of the Lemon/Fort indictment? If so, please link, thanks.

Oral argument in the birthright citizenship case will be held on Wednesday, April 1. (for real--no April Fool's reference intended)

Imagine being the DOJ lawyer assigned to draft the Motion to Dismiss. Should it begin?: "My boss, in his personal capacity, lacks standing to sue because, in his official capacity, he has the power to direct the IRS to pay him 10 billion dollars." hmm ... storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

What to say? Even knowing of this suit, the SCOTUS is going to issue an opinion in Slaughter saying that "Under our Constitution, the 'executive Power—all of it--is 'vested in a President.'" sigh storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

Not surprisingly in light of the author, this is a very important paper.

quiet part aloud ... ("in theater")

Absurd (and wonderful). www.nytimes.com/athletic/700...

I probably shouldn't, but ... the Ed Whelan/Harmeet Dhillon dust up over on X is revealing about just how far the Republican Party (its DOJ, in particular) has somehow descended since the Bush 43 administration.

Today's the deadline for filing of topside amicus briefs in the birthright citizenship case. It's noteworthy how many of them--and, more importantly, the SG's brief--argue that the Court should adopt the views of the *dissenting* two Justices in Wong Kim Ark, ... [1]

Recalling what a decent and humane President sounds like.

In which John Yoo effectively acknowledges that the U.S. breached the UN Charter when it used force to capture Maduro, and uses that event to urge a U.S.-led campaign to repeal the Charter's prohibition on use of force ... [1] www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...

It's important to understand that the extortion plan (both in terms of funding withdrawals and revocation of student visas) has been extraordinarily effective *even though* virtually every court to consider such cases has held that they're unlawful. [1] www.nytimes.com/2026/01/21/u...

Trump's Justice Department has "weaponized the criminal justice system ... in ways that have not been seen in a generation"? In a generation?! I was around a generation ago. I can guarantee you ... www.nytimes.com/2026/01/22/u...

SG Opening Brief in Birthright Citizenship case. www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/25...

A remarkable speech, the likes of which most of us never imagined we'd possibly hear in our lifetimes. The Great Rupture appears to be upon us. It's shocking, and deeply distressing, that the political party controlling our Congress appears not to care at all. www.youtube.com/live/JtF630g...

It’s so brazen and overwhelming that no one even bothers to bring the meritorious Emoluments Clause claims that dominated 2017. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...