The U.S. Constitution

GOP States Rally Behind the SAVE Act

There is a quiet constitutional irony at the center of America’s loudest election fights: the federal government sets baseline rules for federal elections, but the states build the machinery that decides how those rules are enforced.  That tension is exactly what Republican governors and...

Moreno’s Shutdown Rebuke and a Civics Failure

A government shutdown always comes with a familiar script: press conferences, finger-pointing, and the same recycled lines about “responsibility” and “priorities.” But there is one detail that cuts through the performance because it is not theoretical. It is rent. It is groceries. It is...

Judge Declines Recusal in Minnesota DHS, ICE Dispute

A basic promise sits underneath every court ruling, especially the ones that land in a political spotlight: the judge has to be more than fair. The judge has to look fair. That is why a new fight in federal court in Minnesota is not just about immigration enforcement tactics. It is also about...

Federal Judge Blocks Ten Commandments Displays in Arkansas Classrooms

A federal judge has permanently barred several Arkansas school districts from posting the Ten Commandments in classrooms, ruling that the state’s 2025 mandate violated the Constitution. The decision is the latest flashpoint in a long-running fight over the First Amendment’s religion clauses,...

A Biden-Appointed Judge, a Supreme Court Stay, and the New Anxiety Over Trial Courts

When people talk about “the Supreme Court,” they usually mean finality. Black robes. Marble steps. The last word. But most of the real governing in American law happens earlier, lower, and faster. It happens when a single district judge issues an order that takes effect immediately, long before...

DC Pipe Bomb Suspect Says Trump’s Jan. 6 Pardon Covers Him

A federal case tied to one of the most alarming episodes surrounding January 6 is taking a new turn. Brian J. Cole Jr., who is accused of placing pipe bombs near the Democratic and Republican national party headquarters in Washington, D.C., is asking a judge to throw out the charges by claiming he...

The Supreme Court Case That Won’t Let States Fix Education

States pour enormous sums into public schools, but a Supreme Court ruling from 1982 sharply limits how states can respond when those dollars are used to educate children of people in the country unlawfully. That tension is now back in the spotlight, with Tennessee pushing toward a fresh test of...

A Bill to Take Citizenship Back From Terrorists

Rep. Riley Moore of West Virginia is pushing a new approach in Congress: if a person becomes an American through naturalization and later commits terrorism, should the United States be able to take that citizenship back and deport them? Moore says yes. He announced plans Thursday to introduce...

Judge’s Shorter Sentence for ISIS Supporter Draws New Scrutiny

A criminal sentence can feel like the end of a story. But sometimes it is the beginning of a much harder civic question: what did the justice system decide, and what risks did that decision leave behind? That question is at the center of renewed attention on the federal case of Mohamed Jalloh, a...

Hegseth Orders Pentagon Investigation Into Strike Near Iranian School

The Pentagon says it has opened a formal command investigation into a Feb. 28 strike in Minab, Iran, after Iranian regime officials alleged that a school beside a military compound was hit. Iranian officials have claimed “dozens of children” were killed and have also asserted a far higher...

Nine convicted in North Texas ICE attack

A federal jury in Fort Worth convicted nine defendants for their roles in the July 4, 2025, attack on the Prairieland ICE Detention Center in Alvarado, Texas, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Jurors delivered a mixed verdict, meaning the defendants were not all convicted of the same...

Illegal Alien Charged After Violent Tussle with Federal Officer

A routine enforcement stop outside a business in Utica, Michigan turned into something far more serious: a Justice Department criminal complaint now accuses a Venezuelan national of assaulting a federal officer, resisting arrest, and grabbing and possessing the officer’s firearm during a physical...

Boasberg Quashes Subpoenas Targeting Fed Chair Powell

There are a lot of ways a President can try to bend Washington to his will. Public pressure. Backchannel persuasion. Personnel changes. And, sometimes, something far more fraught: using the optics of a criminal process as a lever in a political dispute. That is the concern sitting at the center of...

Appeals Court Pauses Block on Trump Third-Country Deportations

A federal appeals court just gave the Trump administration a short-term victory in a fight that is quickly turning into a constitutional stress test: how much process the government must provide before it sends a noncitizen to a country they are not from. On Wednesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for...

Michigan Police Respond to Reported Shooting at West Bloomfield Synagogue

Michigan State Police say they are responding to an “active shooting” incident at Temple Israel, a Reform Jewish synagogue in West Bloomfield, Michigan. The response began around 12:30 p.m. local time Thursday , according to state police. Reuters also reported that federal officials are...

Trump Administration Asks Supreme Court to End Haiti TPS

The Trump administration is asking the Supreme Court to step in and clear the way for ending Temporary Protected Status for about 350,000 Haitian migrants, escalating a fight that sits at the intersection of immigration policy, judicial power, and how courts review executive branch decisions. At...

Newsom Blames Trump as California Gas Prices Surge

When gas prices jump, elected officials do what they have done since the first American road trip. They point outward. War, markets, speculators, greedy companies, the other party. This week, California Gov. Gavin Newsom aimed his finger at President Donald Trump and the conflict involving Iran....

Judge Keeps Fani Willis Out of Fee Fight in Dismissed Trump RICO Case

When a prosecutor gets tossed off a case, you might assume the story ends there. In Georgia, it does not. The latest twist in the dismissed Trump RICO prosecution is a narrower, procedural question with a very real consequence: who gets to argue about the money when defendants seek to claw back...

Dem Witness Says We Need More Illegal Immigrants, Kennedy Replies: “You Trigger My Gag Reflex”

A Senate Budget Committee hearing on sanctuary cities turned tense Tuesday after a Democratic witness said immigrants, including those in the country illegally, are a fiscal benefit to the United States. Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., shot back: “What planet did you parachute in from? You trigger my...

Trump Continues Tariff Check Emails Despite SCOTUS Ruling

In the annals of U.S. governance, few topics elicit as much debate as the balance of power between the executive branch and Congress. The recent actions of former President Donald Trump, particularly following a significant Supreme Court ruling, serve as a contemporary illustration of this enduring...