“No one is above the law” is a core constitutional principle. The Supreme Court heard oral arguments today in Donald Trump’s challenge to that principle in Trump v. United States. What is this case about? This case stems from efforts by federal prosecutors to hold Trump  criminally liable for his extensive and unprecedented efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election. A grand jury in Washington DC indicted Trump in August 2023, based on the evidence presented by Special Counsel Jack Smith. The case went before District Court Judge Tanka Chutkan, who set a trial date for early March ..read more

Oral arguments were held today in Moyle v. United States. This is one of the two abortion-related cases before the Supreme Court this term. What is this case about? This is about far-right efforts to deny abortion care even in emergency situations when it’s needed to protect a patient’s health. Sometimes, someone who is pregnant has complications so severe that the safest way to protect that person’s health is to provide an abortion. Unfortunately, in the post-Dobbs world that the far-right justices created, anti-abortion forces are trying to prevent that care from being given. Don’t hospitals ..read more

First published in The Hill. We’re living in very divisive political times. But even now, Americans say we still share values that include aspiring to become a country where all can succeed regardless of race, gender or religion. Fulfilling this promise has always been a challenge, even as most of us keep trying to progress toward this vision of the American Dream. So, it’s deeply disturbing to see what’s happening to federal judicial nominee Adeel Mangi, whose personal story has always exemplified the American Dream, and who is now being forced to endure ugly religious bigotry. Mang ..read more

Welcome to our weekly “Trumptastrophe” series that serves to remind us of the destructive policies, decisions, and actions we encountered during the Trump presidency and the threats that he and others in the MAGA movement still pose – and to keep those moments clear in our memory as we fight to defeat Republican extremists during the upcoming elections. This week’s Trumptastrophe brings into focus Trump’s desperate attempts to have it both ways when it comes to his opposition to abortion. During his first term he fought ruthlessly to restrict reproductive freedom and until very recently, advoc ..read more

Judges Dana Douglas and Irma Ramirez, nominated by President Biden to the Fifth Circuit court of appeals, cast deciding votes in a 9-8 full court decision that preserved and refused to rehear a three-judge panel decision, which upheld a preliminary injunction against a Texas censorship law. The April 2024 ruling was in Book People Inc. v Wong.   What is the background of this case? In 2023, Texas passed HB 900, which required all booksellers selling books to public schools to rate all such books as “sexually explicit,”  “sexually relevant,” or “no rating.” Federal district judge Alan ..read more

Judge Thomas Heytens, nominated by President Biden to the Fourth Circuit court of appeals, wrote a 2-1 decision that reversed a lower court and authorized a 13-year-old transgender girl “who takes puberty-blocking medications and has publicly identified as a girl since the third grade” to participate in her public school girls’ “cross country and track teams,” despite a contrary West Virginia law. The April 2024 ruling was in BPJ v West Virginia State Board of Educ.   What is the background of this case? Becky Pepper Jackson  is a 13 year-old transgender girl who lives in West Virgin ..read more

Welcome to our weekly “Trumptastrophe” series that serves to remind us of the destructive policies, decisions, and actions we encountered during the Trump presidency and the threats that he and others in the MAGA movement still pose – and to keep those moments clear in our memory as we fight to defeat Republican extremists during the upcoming elections. This week’s Trumptastrophe brings into focus former Senior Adviser to President Trump, Stephen Miller – a far-right, white nationalist, anti-immigrant hardliner who is working alongside fellow right-wing extremists in developing Project 2025, t ..read more

Judge Arianna Friedman. nominated by President Biden to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, wrote a unanimous decision partly reversing a lower court and allowing a civil Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) case to proceed against a local prosecutor. The April 2024 decision was in Russo v Lamancusa. What is the background of this case? Joshua Lamancusa, the district attorney for Lawrence County Pennsylvania, created and directs a Special Investigative Unit (SIU) from several area police departments. Local businesspeople, including Anna Russo and Torry Argiro, contend that ..read more

Judge Salvador Mendoza, Jr., nominated by President Biden to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, wrote a unanimous decision partly reversing a lower court and allowing a securities fraud case to proceed against a children’s entertainment company. The April 2024 decision was in Alavi v Genius Brands International, Inc.   What is the background of this case Genius Brands International, Inc. (“GBI”) is a children’s entertainment company that produces shows like Rainbow Rangers. In response to falling stock prices, GBI undertook a number of steps in 2019-20 to boost its share price. Sharehold ..read more

Judge Florence Pan, nominated by President Biden to the DC Circuit Court of Appeals, wrote a 2-1 decision reversing a lower court and allowing the Justice Department to reopen an antitrust probe concerning high real estate commissions and housing prices. Both the dissenting judge and the lower court judge were nominated by Donald Trump. The April 2024 decision was in National Association of Realtors v US.   What is the background of this case? In 2018, the Justice Department opened an antitrust investigation concerning “potentially anticompetitive practices in the real estate industry” im ..read more