Ilya Somin

I understand. This isn’t just purpose. It’s understanding the text in historical context. A context even the administration concedes is relevant.

It has been mentioned before. But my post explains how it defeats every pro-administration argument.

Ron Wyden Is Begging His Colleagues To Stop Trying To Hand Trump A Censorship Weapon

We've been writing about Section 230 for a very long time. We've written about why it matters, why the people attacking it are wrong, and why most of the proposed "reforms" would make the internet dramatically…

Slavery and Birthright Citizenship All the Trump Administration's arguments for denying birthright ctizenshing to children of undocumented immigrants are at odds with the main purpose of the Citizenship Clause of the Fourteenth Amendme...

Every argument for Trump claim that children of illegal migrants can be denied birthright citizenship would also have denied it to numerous freed slaves and their children, thus going against main purpose of 14th Amendment Citizenship Clause. See my post for reasons why: reason.com/volokh/2026/...

Slavery and Birthright Citizenship All the Trump Administration's arguments for denying birthright ctizenship to children of undocumented immigrants are at odds with the main purpose of the Citizenship Clause of the Fourteenth Amendmen...

"[A]ccepting the government's position [in the birthright citizenship case] would undermine the central purpose of the Citizenship Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment."
- @ilyasomin.bsky.social
Read more in @reason.com: reason.com/volokh/2026/...

Read our #SCOTUS brief on behalf of an ideologically diverse group of scholars, including @ilyasomin.bsky.social and @amandafrost.bsky.social: www.theusconstitution.org/litigation/t...

'UNIMAGINABLE CRUELTY': Judge Gary Brown, a Trump appointeee from NY, thrashes DHS' treatment of a man who came to the US at 9 as an abuse/neglect victim, has no criminal record and became a college grad.

"The laws of decency condemn such villainy." storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

Slavery and Birthright Citizenship All the Trump Administration's arguments for denying birthright ctizenshing to children of undocumented immigrants are at odds with the main purpose of the Citizenship Clause of the Fourteenth Amendme...

Every argument for Trump claim that children of illegal migrants can be denied birthright citizenship would also have denied it to numerous freed slaves and their children, thus going against main purpose of 14th Amendment Citizenship Clause. See my post for reasons why: reason.com/volokh/2026/...

Trump launched a war on Iran without a single vote in Congress. No authorization. No debate. No declaration. Just one man's decision. The Framers called this sort of thing the greatest danger to the republic.

@ilyasomin.bsky.social

YouTube video by Society for the Rule of Law Tariffs Debrief with Ilya Somin: Understanding the Supreme Court's decision

I did a @chkbal.bsky.social podcast about the tariff case. @greggnunziata.bsky.social interviewed me. Video linked below:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=amda...

An Unconstitutional War Trump's attack on Iran is obviously unconstitutional. The moral and policy issues are a closer call.

This war is blatantly unconstitutional - undeniably a large enough military action to require congressional authorization. Its wisdom and morality are closer calls. But I'm skeptical regime change (which would be good) can be achieved by air attack alone: reason.com/volokh/2026/...

An Unconstitutional War Trump's attack on Iran is obviously unconstitutional. The moral and policy issues are a closer call.

This war is blatantly unconstitutional - undeniably a large enough military action to require congressional authorization. Its wisdom and morality are closer calls. But I'm skeptical regime change (which would be good) can be achieved by air attack alone: reason.com/volokh/2026/...

JUST IN: A federal judge says the Trump administration has been “terrorizing” refugees — violating the promise America made to them when they fled persecution at home — by locking them up illegally. He blocked the policy for those in MN storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

Trump v. Barbara | Constitutional Accountability Center

Read our #SCOTUS brief on behalf of an ideologically diverse group of scholars, including @amandafrost.bsky.social and @ilyasomin.bsky.social: www.theusconstitution.org/litigation/t...

Supreme Court Rules Trump’s Tariffs Unlawful Under IEEPA by We the People Unpacking the Supreme Court's Decision in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump

I did this @constitutionctr.bsky.social podcast on the Supreme Court tariff decision. Other participants were Zach Shemtob of @scotusblog.com and Julie Silverbrook (NCC). megaphone.link/NCC2191263670

Supreme Court Rules Trump’s Tariffs Unlawful Under IEEPA by We the People Unpacking the Supreme Court's Decision in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump

I did this @constitutionctr.bsky.social podcast on the Supreme Court tariff decision. Other participants were Zach Shemtob of @scotusblog.com and Julie Silverbrook (NCC). megaphone.link/NCC2191263670

YouTube video by Society for the Rule of Law Tariffs Debrief with Ilya Somin: Understanding the Supreme Court's decision

I did a @chkbal.bsky.social podcast about the tariff case. @greggnunziata.bsky.social interviewed me. Video linked below:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=amda...

Thoughts on the Supreme Court Oral Argument in the Pung v. Isabella County Takings Case Most of the discussion was focused on the wrong issue. What matters under the Takings Clause is not the "fairness" of the process by which the owner's house was taken, but whether he got adequate "jus...

My assessment of today's frustrating Supreme Court oral argument in the Pung v Isabella County home equity theft takings case (in which I wrote amicus brief for @cato.org & property scholars). The justices seemed to be focusing on the wrong issue: reason.com/volokh/2026/...

See our amicus brief for how this case can be easily resolved by just requiring state/local governments to pay at least fair market value compensation when they foreclose on property for tax delinquencies (minus amount needed to pay the taxes): www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/25...

Thoughts on the Supreme Court Oral Argument in the Pung v. Isabella County Takings Case Most of the discussion was focused on the wrong issue. What matters under the Takings Clause is not the "fairness" of the process by which the owner's house was taken, but whether he got adequate "jus...

My assessment of today's frustrating Supreme Court oral argument in the Pung v Isabella County home equity theft takings case (in which I wrote amicus brief for @cato.org & property scholars). The justices seemed to be focusing on the wrong issue: reason.com/volokh/2026/...

Here, as in other interviews with foreign media, I both talked about the case and emphasized that the tariffs are unpopular, and most Americans do NOT want a trade war with our allies. My very, very small contribution to maintaining the Western alliance.

Ilya Somin, le juriste derrière la chute des droits de douane : "Donald Trump ne peut pas agir comme un monarque" À l’origine de l'une des affaires ayant conduit la Cour suprême américaine à juger illégale une partie des droits de douane imposés par Donald Trump, le juriste Ilya Somin revient pour L’Express sur c...

I got interviewed about the tariff case by @lexpress.fr (one of France’s leading media outlets):

www.lexpress.fr/idees-et-deb...

Thoughts on the Potential Broader Significance of the Supreme Court's Tariff Decision Eddie Marshall | Midjourney How significant is the Supreme Court's decision striking down Trump's massive IEEPA tariffs in Learning Resources…

In this post, I offer some thoughts on the potential broader significance of the tariff decision. Only time will tell for sure. But I and various more prominent commentators think it is likely to be significant in several different ways: reason.com/volokh/2026/...

Thoughts on the Potential Broader Significance of the Supreme Court's Tariff Decision Eddie Marshall | Midjourney How significant is the Supreme Court's decision striking down Trump's massive IEEPA tariffs in Learning Resources…

In this post, I offer some thoughts on the potential broader significance of the tariff decision. Only time will tell for sure. But I and various more prominent commentators think it is likely to be significant in several different ways: reason.com/volokh/2026/...

Major crime scene here!

Trump’s new tariffs are another dangerous presidential power grab - The Boston Globe Trump has tried to reconstitute his tariff power by reinstating most of his sweeping tariffs using a 1974 law. If allowed to stand, this would undermine the constitutional system almost as much as the...

My new @bostonglobe.com op ed on why Trump's new Section 122 tariffs are another dangerous power grab, which courts should strike down: www.bostonglobe.com/2026/02/24/o...

Trump’s new tariffs are another dangerous presidential power grab - The Boston Globe Trump has tried to reconstitute his tariff power by reinstating most of his sweeping tariffs using a 1974 law. If allowed to stand, this would undermine the constitutional system almost as much as the...

My new @bostonglobe.com op ed on why Trump's new Section 122 tariffs are another dangerous power grab, which courts should strike down: www.bostonglobe.com/2026/02/24/o...

Trump’s Probably Headed Back To Court Again Trump’s Department of Justice previously argued in court that he couldn’t issue tariffs under the authority that he is now using to justify a 15% blanket tariff.

Now that IEEPA tariffs are out, what to make of Trump's pivot to Section 122 balance of payments tariffs?

@paulblumenthal.bsky.social @huffpost.com reports, with insights from @ilyasomin.bsky.social Gopinath Setser, Busch, Trefler, Milton Friedman, and me.
www.huffpost.com/entry/donald...

The Supreme Court Spurns a Presidential Power Grab But the court sidestepped the president’s claims to sweeping emergency powers.

My new @thedispatchmedia.bsky.social article on broader significance of the tariff decision - and one key issue about emergency powers the court did not address, but which is likely to recur soon, including on tariffs (gift link): thedispatch.com/article/supr...