New NFL policy advanced today: The NFL Players Association responds: I suspect the NFL brass thought their policy was a good compromise in that it allows players to remain off the field. But this of course only means that players cannot protest. My view? The players should stand and raise a “black power” salute. It will confuse everyone.
Judge Rules That Trump Cannot Block his Twitter Feed
This case requires us to consider whether a public official may, consistent with the First Amendment, “block” a person from his Twitter account in response to the political views that person has expressed, and whether the analysis differs because that public official is the President of the United States. The answer to both questions is no. It is sort of … Read More
Now You’re Talking My Language
Trump takes a foray into legal argument: “The questions are an intrusion into the President’s Article 2 powers under the Constitution to fire any Executive Branch Employee…what the President was thinking is an outrageous…..as to the President’s unfettered power to fire anyone…” Joe Digenova, former US Attorney — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 2, 2018 Yeah, he’s actually quoting his … Read More
Document Dump: At The Time, “Bearing Arms” Meant Being In The Militia
Then, as now, you don’t “bear arms” to hunt or defend yourself. Sourced and well-written
Revealed: Stormy Daniels Wasn’t The Only One Who Signed A Non-Disclosure Agreement With Trump
This weekend we learned that in the early months of the administration, at the behest of now-President Trump, who was furious over leaks from within the White House, senior White House staff members were asked to, and did, sign nondisclosure agreements vowing not to reveal confidential information and exposing them to damages for any violation. Some balked at first but, … Read More
Three-Judge Panel Strikes Down NC Districts As Political Gerrymandering
This is a huge decision not only locally, but nationally. A federal court yesterday ruled that Republicans in North Carolina unconstitutionally gerrymandered congressional districts in 2016 to ensure Republican “domination of the state’s congressional delegation.” The three-judge panel struck down the map and ordered the state’s General Assembly to come up with a substitute by Jan. 24. The decision was … Read More
Trump Announces Plans To Undo Natural Monuments
As I type this, Trump is in Salt Lake City announcing his plans to be the anti-Teddy Roosevelt. Trump’s actions are a dramatic departure from conventional interpretations of the 1906 Antiquities Act, on which the monument designations are based. The act, advocated by President Theodore Roosevelt, was designed to provide safeguards to exceptional historic, cultural, and natural landscapes across the … Read More
Corrections And Updates And Backtracks To Last Week’s Bombshells
As I posted here last week, Michael Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about conversations he had with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak during the presidential transition last December. Flynn is the fourth Trump associate to be charged in Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. As I also posted, Flynn promised “full cooperation” with Mueller’s investigation and … Read More
Can A Sitting President Be Indicted?
The conventional wisdom has always said that a sitting president cannot be indicted. Under current law, a President is immune from civil lawsuits in federal court, when it comes to his official acts as president. This is because of Nixon v. Fitzgerald, a 1982 Supreme Court ruling. There, the Supreme Court wrote: “The ‘singular importance of the President’s duties’ warrants a stay … Read More
Supreme Court Notes
Some US Supreme Court news this morning: (1) North Carolina has – um, HAD — a law that said registered sex offenders could not go to certain sites on the Intertubes. The Supreme Court struck down that law, saying it violated First Amendment. The decision was 8-0, although there was sharp disagreement about how much states can regulate Internet … Read More
The Sessions Sessions
Ok, I’ll liveblog SOME of Sessions hearing before the Senate Intel Committee, but again, I expect he’ll talk about what he wants to talk about and then filibuster (or rely on executive privilege) when trapped in a corner. 2:56 pm Sessions has no recollection of meeting, talking to Russian ambassador or other Russian official at the Mayflower hotel. Here’s a notable … Read More
Maryland And DC Attorneys General File Lawsuit Against Trump Under Emoluments Clause
Although CREW currently has a lawsuit going, the attorneys general of Maryland and DC have filed a lawsuit today against President Trump, citing a constitutional violation of the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution. The damage? Well, they claim, the US is effectively not living up to the Constitution, a document that Maryland signed onto in part because of the Emoluments Clause. Also, … Read More
Ninth Circuit Strikes Down Trump Travel Ban
They write “Immigration, even for the president, is not a one-person show” and bring up last week’s tweets as evidence AGAINST his own lawyer’s argument (on page 40)
The Comey Memos — Part Two
So some idiot at Redstate is making the argument that the Comey Memos were leaked in contravention of the law: The documents leaked by Comey were official government records. Period. They were created by a government employee (Comey) while acting in his official capacity (FBI director) on a government-issued laptop while sitting in a government car driven by another government … Read More