Deborah Pearlstein

NEW: The classified opinion by Trump's Office of Legal Counsel says the US personnel taking part in lethal strikes on boats would not be exposed to future prosecution, per sources. “It sounds like an admission that there is no legal basis for these strikes” www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...

“Riots Raging”: The Misleading Story Fox News Told About Portland Before Trump Sent Troops After reviewing coverage from the network and hours of social media videos that preceded Trump’s decision, ProPublica found that Fox’s portrayal of “Portland rioters” routinely instigating violence was misleading.

NEW: ProPublica examined months of Fox News’ coverage and reviewed over 700 videos posted on social media.

The network used five-year-old footage, mislabeled other dates and implied footage from elsewhere was in Portland.

Three German universities offering post-docs for researchers "who cannot conduct or continue their work in the USA appropriately because of actual political pressure. "
www.uni-konstanz.de/zukunftskoll...

Well this one sounds good...

Exclusive | Fannie Mae Watchdogs Probed How Pulte Obtained Mortgage Records of Key Democrats FHFA’s acting inspector general handed the probe report to the U.S. attorney office that had indicted New York Attorney General Letitia James.

Fannie Mae’s ethics & investigations group had received internal complaints alleging senior officials had improperly directed staff to access the mortgage documents of James & others... In the wake of the probes...about a dozen members of the [ethics group + the GC & IG] were fired...."

Breaking: Mike Johnson just announced that he'll swear in Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva on Wednesday at 4pm ET.

In a single day, two different federal officers point guns at two different @chicagotribune.com photojournalists in and around Chicago. This is dangerous stuff.

Exclusive: UK suspends some intelligence sharing with US over boat strike concerns in major break | CNN Politics The United Kingdom is no longer sharing intelligence with the US about suspected drug trafficking vessels in the Caribbean because it does not want to be complicit in US military strikes and believes ...

One of many costs to US murder (sorry, no better word for it) in Caribbean:

"United Kingdom is no longer sharing intelligence with the US about suspected drug trafficking vessels in the Caribbean because it does not want to be complicit in US military strikes and believes the attacks are illegal."

CfA - FL + VA Bar Complaint - Lindsey Halligan

NEW: Campaign for Accountability files bar complaint against Lindsey Halligan, alleging that she violated multiple rules of professional conduct related to the prosecution of James Comey and Letitia James.

Read the complaint: www.documentcloud.org/documents/26...

Looking forward to welcoming @davidcole-gtown.bsky.social to Princeton!

This hidden provision is so crooked and selfish, it doesn't even apply to US Representatives. Just US Senators.

It also won’t get Giuliani and others their licenses to practice law back. Still. Every pardon of past illegality is an encouragement to present officials to do more of the same.

Justice Department struggles as thousands exit — and few are replaced The Justice Department has lost thousands of experienced attorneys and backfilled a fraction of the open jobs, in part because of a lack of qualified candidates.

No wonder DOJ spent last week at FedSoc trying to drum up applicants. WaPo estimates DOJ is down ~5500 attys & other staff since Trump 2.0. Applicants for what law reqs to be nonpartisan jobs must describe a Trump policy "significant to them & how they would advance that initiative."

MORE: The pardon language is extremely broad and could apply to many others too, since it covers anyone who advocates for the false elector slates or who investigated 2020 election fraud.

One person the pardon explicitly excludes: Trump himself.

www.politico.com/news/2025/11...

It also won’t get Giuliani and others their licenses to practice law back. Still. Every pardon of past illegality is an encouragement to present officials to do more of the same.

Others who have held positions of authority, including former federal judges and ambassadors, have been opposing this government's efforts to undermine the principled, impartial administration of justice and distort the free and fair functioning of American democracy. They have urged me to work with them. As much as I have treasured being a judge, I can now think of nothing more important than joining them, and doing everything in my power to combat today's existential threat to democracy and the rule of law.

When I became a senior judge in 2013, my successor was appointed, so my resignation will not create a vacancy to be filled by the president. My colleagues on the United States District Court in Massachusetts and judges on the lower federal courts throughout the country are admirably deciding a variety of cases generated by Trump's many executive orders and other unprecedented actions. However, the Supreme Court has repeatedly removed the temporary restraints imposed on those actions by lower courts in deciding emergency motions on its "shadow docket" with little, if any, explanation. I doubt that if I remained a judge I would fare any better than my colleagues.

I resigned in order to speak out, support litigation, and work with other individuals and organizations dedicated to protecting the rule of law and American democracy. I also intend to advocate for the judges who cannot speak publicly for themselves. I cannot be confident that I will make a difference. I am reminded, however, of what Senator Robert F. Kennedy said in 1966 about ending apartheid in South Africa: "Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope." Enough of these ripples can become a tidal wave.

In what amounts to Mark Wolf’s resignation letter from the federal bench in Massachusetts forget more than 40 years—he was already a senior judge, so it creates no vacancy—he says he “intend[s] to advocate for the judges who cannot speak publicly for themselves.” www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...

BREAKING: Mark Wolf, appointed to the federal bench by Ronald Reagan, writes that he is resigning as a judge to have the freedom to speak out against the president's assault on the rule of law.
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...

Between Mizelle's impeachment demands & Blanche's call for young conservative lawyers to join the "war" against judges who have the temerity to rule against the executive, FedSoc (otherwise losing influence w/Trump) annual meeting sounds like it's turning into a rally against judicial independence.

Between Mizelle's impeachment demands & Blanche's call for young conservative lawyers to join the "war" against judges who have the temerity to rule against the executive, FedSoc (otherwise losing influence w/Trump) annual meeting sounds like it's turning into a rally against judicial independence.

Blanche is genuinely indignant about having these Art. III judges "literally telling the president, the executive, what he can and cannot do." These judges are of course otherwise known as the independent judiciary. But for DOJ as it now stands, they are the other side in "a war."

DAG Blanche made a pitch at FedSoc today for young lawyers to join DOJ (sounded a bit short-handed). The ask: join the "war" against "activist judges" & bars challenging admin lawyers' lies in court. “We’re going to do everything we can to take these activist bars...out of the picture.” Video below.

Cornell Reaches Deal with Trump Administration to Restore Research Funds

Shame.

Hmm. Daily Beast has a story on the same meeting that makes it sound somewhat different. Either way, why would SecDef and SecState go to Congress just to say they don't (yet) have any legal basis to attack? Smacks a bit of not everyone being on board w/starting a new war. One can hope...

Trump admin tells Congress it currently lacks legal justification to strike Venezuela | CNN Politics The “execute order” that launched the US military campaign against suspected drug boats in September also does not extend to land targets, the briefers said, according to the sources.

I'd missed this. Evidently Rubio, Hegseth & someone from OLC told Congress in classified session that the administration doesn't currently have a legal justification for attacking Venezuela.

YouTube video by The Civic Forum How America Is Losing the Law | Deborah Pearlstein

My Princeton colleague @rorytruex.bsky.social launched a podcast last summer talking to scholars from various academic disciplines about about what to make of this moment in the American experiment. I've learned a lot from every episode and was honored when he asked me to hop on this one.

Law firm Simpson Thacher working with US Commerce Department Prominent Wall Street law firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett is working with the U.S. Commerce Department on unspecified legal matters, an official at the agency confirmed.

Prominent Wall Street law firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett is working with the U.S. Commerce Department on unspecified legal matters, an official at the agency confirmed.

Not sure this quite works across the board. Federal district court judges have been indispensable. Congress very close to useless.

Pretty much Shakespeare.

What a pleasure to talk @rorytruex.bsky.social on his wonderful series. Thanks for the great conversatio.

Wow.