Main Justice

There’s a lot to unpack this week, not least of which being the President’s open suggestion of committing war crimes against Iran. Mary and Andrew begin by underscoring the Geneva Conventions stipulation limiting the use of force in wartime to military targets – not civilian ones. Then, a major shakeup at the Department of Justice: Attorney General Pam Bondi is out. Andrew compares her ouster to Trump’s firing of Jeff Sessions in his first term, and how the “sycophantic” nature of her allegiance to Trump did not save her job. Next, they turn to last week's oral arguments before the Supreme Court over birthright citizenship. Mary, who is steeped in the case, came away thinking that “the solicitor general has a much greater hill to climb” to convince a majority of Justices to uphold Trump’s executive order at issue. Last up, the co-hosts look at another of Trump’s EO’s being challenged that would restrict mail-in voting, despite defending his own use of voting by mail in Florida's Special Election in late March.

This podcast is also available on YouTube at ms.now/mainjustice.

Further reading:

This is the Just Security piece Andrew referred to: When War Crimes Rhetoric Becomes Battlefield Reality: The Slippery Slope to Total War on Iran

Here is Mary’s MS NOW piece: The embarrassing lesson of Pam Bondi’s confirmation hearing.

Here is Trump’s EO on mail in voting that was immediately challenged: ENSURING CITIZENSHIP VERIFICATION AND INTEGRITY IN FEDERAL ELECTIONS

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While much of the news is rightfully focused on the ongoing war with Iran, Mary and Andrew pull the threads on some consequential legal news that’s not getting as much attention. They start with the Justice Department’s settlement with Michael Flynn, paying out $1.25 million over his claim that he was wrongly prosecuted for making false statements to federal agents. And as Mary points out in her recent MS NOW op-ed, this settlement could set a dangerous precedent, by encouraging others “to seek similar windfalls” that support Trump’s efforts to rewrite history. Next, they unpack a case brought by Minnesota against the DOJ and DHS for blocking state investigators from accessing evidence in the Renee Good, Alex Pretti, and Julio Sosa-Celis shootings. And last up, the co-hosts break down a disastrous error the Justice Department admitted to this week, using an incorrect written policy to defend actions resulting in a number of arrests at immigration courthouses, as people voluntarily appeared for their immigration proceedings.

You can also find us on YouTube at ms.now/mainjustice.

Further reading:

Here is Mary’s MS NOW write up on Michael Flynn: Trump’s settlement to Michael Flynn could set a dangerous precedent. 

Here is the Anthropic decision:  Anthropic PBC v. U.S. Department of War

HERE is the ICE memorandum the government relied on to allow immigration arrests near courthouses.

And HERE is the letter from the SDNY to Judge Kevin Castel noting their error.

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Amid an unrelenting news cycle, one story really hit hard for both Mary and Andrew this week: the passing of former FBI Director Robert Mueller. Both hosts worked with him: Mary in the DC US Attorney’s Office; Andrew as FBI Special Counsel, General Counsel, and ultimately, as a top prosecutor in Mueller’s 2016 Special Counsel investigation into Russian election interference. They reflect on Mueller’s life and legacy being one dedicated topublic service, which, in Andrew’s accounting, “wasn't just a calling, it was a privilege.” Next, they move to a win for journalism and freedom of the press: Judge Paul Friedman’s decision in the case brought by the New York Times against the Pentagon regarding press access. And lastly, Mary and Andrew reviewMonday’s Supreme Court oral arguments in a case centered on whether mail-in ballots that arrive after Election Day should be counted. The co-hosts read the tea leaves on the merits the justices seem to be eyeing and what it could mean for midterm voting this fall.

And, a big thank you to listeners as Main Justice celebrates it’s 3-year anniversary. Starting today, you can also find us on YouTube at ms.now/mainjustice.

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Last week, Judge James Boasberg checked in the Justice Department by quashing two subpoenas against Federal Reserve Board Chair Jerome Powell, intended to pressure him into "voting for lower interest rates or resigning.” Finding “essentially zero evidence” of criminal behavior, Mary and Andrew explain how these subpoenas were issued as retribution and retaliation against Powell, as Boasberg cited over 100 statements that the president and his deputies made attacking him. Next, the co-hosts dig into the disciplinary proceedings against President Trump’s pardon attorney Ed Martin, who, while serving as DC’s interim U.S. Attorney, pressured Georgetown Law School to change its curriculum. Last on the agenda, Mary and Andrew highlight the case that AI firm Anthropic filed against the Defense Department over being essentially blacklisted. The case is centered around the Pentagon labeling the AI firm a “supply chain risk” after they asked the Pentagon not to use their “Claude” AI technology to do two things: “deploy lethal autonomous warfare without human oversight” and use it for “mass surveillance of Americans.”

Further reading: 

Here is the complaint Anthropic filed against the government: Complaint For Declaratory And Injunctive Relief

Here once again is the Federal Register if you’d like to enter public comment: Review of State Bar Complaints and Allegations Against Department of Justice Attorneys

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Today's episode begins with a breakdown of the Justice Department’s about-face on four cases brought after Trump targeted several law firms through executive action. As Mary and Andrew discussed last week – they initially dropped their appeal of the decisions against sanctioning these firms, only to reverse course the next day, topped off with a new court filing Friday appealing the rulings. Next, the co-hosts review a pair of decisions: one out of Minnesota's district court concerning the state’s immigration surge, which determined the stopping and subsequent arrests of the case’s plaintiffs was a result of racial profiling. The second decision comes from U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth, who ruled Kari Lake’s oversight of Voice of America unlawful and illegitimate. Last up, Mary and Andrew detail Attorney General Pam’s Bondi’s proposed rule that would put any state complaint against a justice department lawyer on hold while the DOJ reviews it, essentially giving the department the power to hold these indefinitely if they so choose.

Further reading:

Here is Mary’s recent piece on MS Now detailing the DOJ’s shift on appealing several law firm decisions: What’s exposed by the Justice Department’s reversal on Trump’s campaign against law firms. Every lawyer knows that the federal court rulings were correct and that the president's executive orders are legally indefensible.

Here is the Federal Resister: Review of State Bar Complaints and Allegations Against Department of Justice Attorneys

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