Pamela Samuelson

IRS, White House clashed over immigrants’ data before tax chief was ousted The Trump administration’s move to push out IRS Commissioner Billy Long came after the agency said it couldn’t release some information on taxpayers suspected of being here illegally.

🚨 WaPo EXCLUSIVE

Hours before Trump removed Billy Long as IRS commissioner, his agency clashed with the White House over sharing immigrants’ tax data.

A particularly gut wrenching excerpt from this article:

Rush Limbaugh created Timothy McVeigh.

MAGA wants to top that...

“A legitimate PhD-level expert in anything,” they said.

“Show me a diagram of the US presidents since FDR, with their names and years in office under their photos,” I said.

I legit think the moral damage Trump winning twice did to society by normalizing misogyny will take generations to repair.

Trump Administration Threatens to Take Over Harvard’s Patents The move is the latest escalation in the White House’s battle with the Ivy League school.

The Commerce Department threatening to take over Harvard's patents shows the extent to which the federal government is trying to pressure the university into a settlement. They are trying everything possible. (gift link)

Federal agents use fake job offer, rental truck to trap day laborers in LA raid A Penske rental truck became the centerpiece of a controversial Westlake Home Depot immigration sting that concealed immigration enforcement agents inside the vehicle.

Federal agents use fake job offer, rental truck to trap day laborers in LA raid – a Penske rental truck became the centerpiece of a controversial Westlake Home Depot immigration sting that concealed immigration enforcement agents inside the vehicle.
lapublicpress.org/2025/08/fede...

The CFP for ACM CSLaw '26 is up! Deadline for main-track papers (archival and non-archival) is September 30!

computersciencelaw.org/2026

Rising 3L Ben Shipman helped launch UC Berkeley Law’s chapter of Law Students for Climate Accountability (@lsca.bsky.social) and is now coordinating their first international convening of lawyers, students, and academics to push the legal industry toward a just transition away from fossil fuels.

UC says Trump demand for $1-billion fine would 'completely devastate' university system The Trump administration has proposed the University of California pay more than $1 billion to settle antisemitism charges and restore frozen grant funding at UCLA.

University of California leaders said Friday they were stunned by a $1-billion demand from the Trump administration to settle federal accusations of antisemitism in exchange for restoring more than half a billion dollars in frozen grant funding to UCLA …

This isn’t just a change in funding priorities. It is theft. Of our democracy, our lives, and our future.

See the plan? Crash the economy. Sky rocket unemployment. Offer people more money than they’ve ever made in the lives to carry out your dirty work. Oh…and it requires NO college degree.

This is so illegal and not only violates the 1st Amendment but also large amounts of precedent.

Contracts can't be terminated. That defeats the point of a contract.

Trump can't do any of this, but he's trying to see what he and his thugs can get away with before the people stop them.

Source: OpenAI awards bonuses to ~1,000 research and engineering employees, or ~30% of its staff, ranging from several hundred thousand to millions of dollars (Stephanie Palazzolo/The Information)

Main Link | Techmeme Permalink

/11 Congress, which could pass legislation to reinforce the Constitutional order, won’t, because it’s made up of people who are hostile to that order, indifferent to it, or completely ineffectual at enforcing it.

/10….through the Shadow Docket or otherwise, perhaps by saying it’s a political question we can’t review, or saying the lower court’s remedy is improper and relief can’t be given to anyone but the plaintiff, or dozens of other doges.

Let me qualify what Josh is saying. It is quite clear that the Constitution requires a census of all persons. It’s quite clear that past Supreme Court cases support this proposition. (For instance, the recent census question case makes no sense if persons doesn’t include immigrants.)
/1

Always MAGA, never a drag queen

JD Vance’s team had water level of Ohio river raised for family’s boating trip Exclusive: Incident raises questions of exploitation of public services, but Secret Service says it was requested for ‘safe navigation’

JD Vance’s team had water level of Ohio river raised for family’s boating trip

Exclusive: Incident raises questions of exploitation of public services, but Secret Service says it was requested for ‘safe navigation’

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

JD Vance’s team had water level of Ohio river raised for family’s boating trip Exclusive: Incident raises questions of exploitation of public services, but Secret Service says it was requested for ‘safe navigation’ Stephanie Kirchgaessner and David Smith Wed 6 Aug 2025 17.46 EDT Share JD Vance’s team had the army corps of engineers take the unusual step of changing the outflow of a lake in Ohio to accommodate a recent boating excursion on a family holiday, the Guardian has learned. The request from the US Secret Service was made to “support safe navigation” of the US vice-president’s security detail for an August outing on the Little Miami River, according to a statement by the US army corps of engineers (USACE). Vance was spotted in the south-western Ohio area on 2 August, his 41st birthday, according to social media posts that noted he was seen canoeing on the river, a tributary that Caesar Creek Lake feeds into. One source with knowledge of the matter who communicated with the Guardian anonymously alleged that the outflow request for the Caesar Creek Lake was not just to support the vice-president’s Secret Service detail, but also to create “ideal kayaking conditions”. The Guardian could not independently confirm this specific claim.

What good is being VP if you can't abuse your power to have the Army Corps of Engineers making your kayaking trip more ideal by changing the waterflow of a lake?

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

A federal judge struck down a California law blocking large platforms from hosting deceptive AI-generated content related to elections, citing Section 230 (Chase DiFeliciantonio/Politico)

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Every reputable expert I know considers mRNA vaccine technology to be one of the most revolutionary advances in medicine in our lifetimes. Its inventors won the Nobel Prize in 2023. Shutting it down now is pointless self-harm to humanity.

Horrific. mRNA vaccines have saved millions of lives and could save millions more.

“I don’t think I’ve seen a more dangerous decision in public health in my 50 years in the business,” said Mike Osterholm, a UMN expert on infectious diseases & pandemic preparations.
www.huffpost.com/entry/rfk-va...

Wonderful basket of tomatoes.

This would more or less halt the ability of scientists and academics from visiting the US to give talks, attend meetings and workshops, collaborate with peers on research and I think that is the primary point. 🧪

Until we pass a nationwide ban on gerrymandering (which we need), Democrats should gerrymander every state to the fullest extent. 52-0 in CA, 17-0 in IL, and so on. No more unilateral disarmament. Time to get serious about fighting back.

Yes, lemon cucumbers

Timeline cleanse. Today’s harvest from my garden

August 1, 2025 AMERICAN ECONOMIC ASSOCIATION Committee on Economic Statistics and Committee on Government Relations Statement from the American Economic Association on the Dismissal of the BLS Commissioner Leaders of the American Economic Association express their grave concern over the dismissal of the Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) earlier today. The independence of the federal statistical agencies is essential to the proper functioning of a modern economy. Accurate, timely, and impartial statistics are the foundation upon which households, businesses, and policymakers make critical decisions. Undermining the independence or credibility of these agencies threatens the integrity of the information that markets, institutions, and the public rely on every day. Measuring the vast and dynamic U.S. economy in real time is inherently challenging. It is standard practice for statistical estimates to be revised as more complete and higher-quality data become available. These revisions reflect the commitment of statistical agencies to accuracy, transparency, and methodological rigor-not failure or bias. The BLS has long had a well-deserved reputation for professional excellence and nonpartisan integrity. Safeguarding this tradition is vital for the continued health of the U.S. economy and public trust in our institutions. We call upon elected officials to respect and preserve the independence of the nation's statistical infrastructure. Lawrence Katz President, American Economic Association Katharine Abraham President-Elect, American Economic Association Karen Dynan Chair, American Economic Association Committee on Economic Statistics Kenneth Troske Chair, American Economic Association Committee on Government Relations

Statement from the largest economics association about the BLS firing

As context: AEA approximately never makes such public statements

This is a big deal