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Here’s the highlight reel of last week’s posts and events. Grab a cup of coffee and get ready to catch up on anything you missed—links to everything below.
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The Week Ahead: The start of last week marked the one-year anniversary of the military occupation of Washington, D.C. We looked at why and how it happened, as well as concerns that Trump will oppose the seating of D.C.’s new mayoral nominee. Ending the occupation of D.C. and committing to honor its residents’ ability to elect local officials of their choice should be completely noncontroversial, and the issue needs to be resolved well in advance of the 2028 election.
Coffee with the Contrarians: On Monday morning, I joined April Ryan for Coffee with the Contrarians. We discussed the deluge of news from the weekend, including an appellate court that pumped the brakes on Trump’s ballroom project.
Zorro Ranch, Jeffrey Epstein, and Donald Trump’s Justice Department: While Jeffrey Epstein’s island became the focal point for public awareness and outrage, Zorro Ranch, his property in New Mexico, escaped scrutiny for a much longer time. Now that’s changing. New Mexico’s Attorney General Raúl Torrez has sued DOJ for access to unredacted Epstein-related investigative files that he says the Justice Department has been withholding. We look into the complaint and its significance here.
Judge Declines to Let Trump Go Postal: On Tuesday, in a case brought by the League of Women Voters, Judge Indira Talwani in Boston entered a nationwide order blocking the Postal Service from carrying out Trump’s efforts to assert federal control over mail-in voting policies ahead of the election. We parsed the Judge’s decision to understand this important ruling in a case that, while still subject to appeal, is a major step toward protecting the midterm elections.
A Special Grand Jury: Trump’s U.S. Attorney in Washington, D.C., Jeanine Pirro, has reportedly convened a special grand jury. Special grand juries are used for complicated criminal investigations that are expected to take longer and require extensive work in front of the grand jury, such as taking witness testimony. Special grand juries can also issue reports even if they don’t indict. Amidst the rampant speculation around this, we take a look at the actual rules around the use of special grand juries to determine what the law permits and assess what judges in the District of Columbia are likely to allow. It’s not an easy path to a revenge-fest for Pirro, even if that’s what she’s hoping for.
Judge Sullivan Has Had Enough: After listening in to a status conference held by Judge Emmett Sullivan in the District of Columbia in Phang v. Blanche, I shared my sense of what was actually happening in the hearing. Despite the surface civility, as someone who represented the United States in court for decades, I heard it as a pronounced criticism of the government lawyers. If you missed this piece during the week, you’ll want to read it now. This case isn’t going away, the Epstein Files aren’t going away, and there is more coming.
Five Questions with NAACP General Counsel Kristen Clarke: Kristen Clarke’s life's work is protecting civil rights and especially our elections. The former Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Civil Rights Division during the Biden administration joined us Friday night to share the latest news, including some good news about the work being done to protect the vote.
Deeply Disgusted: Trump is using the Justice Department like his personal law firm. Everything from prosecutions designed to take revenge on his “enemies” to getting the AG to break his oath to uphold the law and violate the Hatch Act, campaigning with the President for the Republican nominee to be governor in New York State. It was already clear who Todd Blanche was before Senate Republicans confirmed him as AG. They did it anyhow. And it’s not just Blanche. Other Trump senior political appointees at DOJ are obedient to the President, not the Constitution. An important read.
These are complicated legal times, and it’s easy for the truth to get lost in the chaos. Civil Discourse doesn’t just track today’s headlines—it connects them to the legal and political history that explains why they matter. We don’t forget what’s at stake. We don’t let Trump and his allies rewrite the past.
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We’re in this together,
Joyce