Immunity challenge: The Supreme Court’s decision to give presidents immunity for"official acts" was supposed to avoid politically motivated prosecutions of former presidents. Instead, it may have made them easier, writes former Yale Law associate dean Asha Rangappa. The court's opinion made clear that a president's motives could not be questioned, but now Trump is sending the Justice Department after former President Barack Obama with little fear of repercussions. And while Obama may eventually be protected by immunity of his own, the investigation alone can cause considerable grief. Read more.
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Higher medical costs: Republicans have long opposed the Affordable Care Act, but their latest effort to undermine the statute has drawn less attention. The decision to allow enhanced subsidies for Americans who buy health insurance through the ACA exchanges to lapse will lead to younger, healthier people dropping out, making it more expensive to insure the older and sicker people who are left, writes University of Pittsburgh professor Miranda Yaver. This in turn will lead to higher premiums in at least 12 states, where researchers warn premiums could more than double. Read more.
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Laken Riley inaction: Other than the megabill, one of Trump's biggest legislative achievements of his second term is the Laken Riley Act, which directs the Department of Homeland Security to target for deportation undocumented immigrants arrested for burglary, theft or crimes that lead to serious injury. But even as it tries to hit sky-high deportation targets, the Trump administration has sidelined this bipartisan priority, writes Cato Institute Director of Immigration Studies David J. Bier. That neglect has allowed known offenders to commit more violent crime, the exact thing Trump pledged to stop. Read more.
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McMahon's gaffe: On paper, the Trump administration's aggressive moves against Columbia University’s federal grants and accreditation were supposed to be about protecting students from antisemitism, writes Steve Benen. In order to restore that funding, the school cut a deal with the administration last week worth over $200 million. But Education Secretary Linda McMahon gave away the game when she went on Fox News for a victory lap, calling the settlement a "monumental victory for conservatives" pushing back against "left-leaning professors." Read more.
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Goodnight, dark prince: Heavy metal great Ozzy Osbourne will be remembered as a legend because the darkness in his music was real, writes music journalist Jon Wiederhorn. Born into poverty in Birmingham, England, he worked in a slaughterhouse as a teenager and talked about being sexually abused as a child. After hitting stardom in Black Sabbath, he was kicked out of the band due to his overwhelming addictions, then came back as a solo artist with the help of his future wife, Sharon. This real-life story — and his uniquely powerful vocals — made him an inspiration for generations of outcasts and misfits. Read more.
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On March 13, 2020, Brett Hankison was one of several police officers who raided Breonna Taylor’s apartment, using a "no knock" search warrant tied to an ex-boyfriend who did not live there. Although he did not fire the bullet that killed Taylor, Hankison did fire several shots during the raid and was found guilty by a federal jury of violating her civil rights. Despite all this, the Trump Justice Department requested he receive one day imprisonment, three years of supervision and a $100 fine. This sentencing recommendation was a particularly brazen show of contempt for the Black community, writes author Michael Arceneaux. A judge rejected the request but still only sentenced Hankison to 33 months in prison. "No matter what the president or the assistant attorney general says, Breonna Taylor’s life mattered," Arceneaux writes. Read the column here.
— Ryan Teague Beckwith, newsletter editor |
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