Main Justice

In this episode:

• On the eve of Election Day, Mary and Andrew discuss the defeats the Trump administration has suffered in its attempts to disrupt state elections and potentially intimidate voters and election workers. “Our biggest adversary is the federal government,” says Mary.
• First, a federal judge rejected the DOJ’s preemptive challenge to the certification of Alaska’s Senate race results if the Republican candidate loses. Channeling Mary, Andrew asks, “What on God's Green Earth is the Department of Justice thinking?”
• Then, we go to California, where the federal government is stymied yet again in their attempt to put aside 20,000 ballots from alleged noncitizen voters -- a move from the government that Andrew calls the “Raffensberger call on steroids.”
• Relatedly, a federal judge restricts DHS’s field operations to find noncitizen voters, concluding its efforts likely violate the Voting Rights Act, while several prominent unions sue the DOJ over threats to election officials.
• And finally, James Comey can’t stay out of the news, the golf course case gets even more contentious, and Trump’s triumphal arch faces more scrutiny.

Further Reading: Just Security 2026 Midterms: Election Integrity Litigation Tracker

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode:

• Mary and Andrew examine the “extraordinary efforts of the federal government to preemptively interfere with the midterm elections,” starting with the Ninth Circuit’s ruling against DOJ’s attempt to block more than 20,000 alleged noncitizen votes. Mary and Andrew call the suit “outrageous.”
• Then, election pre-interference goes beyond the “lower 48.” The DOJ filed what Mary calls a “frivolous” lawsuit to block the certification of the Senate race in Alaska if the Republican candidate on the ballot, Dan Sullivan, loses, noting potential confusion with the Independent candidate of the same name. Put simply, Andrew says, “That’s not the way it works.”
• Then, “a tale of two Comeys”: James Comey is charged for the third time while a judge rules that his daughter, Maurene Comey, was unlawfully fired by the Trump administration.
• And the golf course saga continues with a ruling in prose.

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode:

• President Trump is trying to renovate the East Potomac Golf Links in Washington D.C. without proper judicial approval, the latest of many examples of this administration evading due process. Mary poses a question: “If this kind of thing can happen about a golf course, what’s the next time?”
• The DOJ sues California to block more than 20,000 mail ballots, alleging the voters are likely noncitizens. “If you do not see this as a precursor to what the Department of Justice could easily do — or try to do” ahead of the midterms, says Andrew, “you are living with your head buried in the sand.”
• Andrew and Mary discuss updates in the investigation into Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, and how this situation is yet another example of the government undermining due process — in this case, that of a sitting congresswoman actively up for reelection.
• Plus, a judge issues an injunction securing CNN, MS NOW and Politico’s White House access until the case is settled in court, a win against Trump’s political retaliation.

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode:

• Thing one: retribution. “We are IN the midterms,” Mary stresses when discussing federal agents executing a search on Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar’s home in relation to an unspecified “ongoing federal criminal investigation.” “The Department of Justice is taking a very, very overt public action targeted at a sitting congressperson.”
• Even more retribution: Mary and Andrew say President Trump’s committee of inquiry to assess whether Federal Reserve Board member Lisa Cook committed mortgage fraud is the administration’s latest attempt to fire her.
• Thing two: attacks on the press. The White House media ban nears a decisive conclusion as Trump launches an anti-trust investigation into five networks. Andrew says “the investigation IS the punishment.” Editors' Note: After recording (and as predicted by Andrew and Mary), U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly ruled Tuesday night to restore White House press access to MS NOW, CNN, and Politico indefinitely. For more on this story visit http://ms.now.
• Thing three: propaganda. Trump’s political ads are struck down, but Andrew and Mary say the damage has already been done.

Further Reading:

• Here is the Charlie Savage piece for The New York Times, which Andrew says gives insight into the administration’s “effort to create and manufacture propaganda and misinformation.”

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode:

• The Supreme Court is back in session and plans to hear two cases that could dramatically alter the lives of thousands of people caught up in Trump’s mass deportation agenda, namely those at risk of being deported to third countries and those detained even after years of living in the US without any criminal record.
• The Trump administration is blocked from firing court-appointed prosecutors after a Washington U.S. attorney takes them to court when he was fired immediately after being appointed to the role.
• Mary and Andrew talk through Jack Smith’s memorable congressional testimony, comparing Smith’s poise to FBI Director Kash Patel’s combativeness, and the viral exchange with Senator Schmitt that felt like watching an SNL skit happen in real time.
• Plus: the co-hosts offer some "reflection" on the Reflecting Pool, the “Broadview Six” prosecutors face legal scrutiny over their conduct in the investigation, and Mary and Andrew discuss the District Attorney "passing the buck" on the gang rape case out of Cornell University.

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode:

• “That’s Propaganda,” says former DOJ senior ethics attorney, Joseph W. Tirrell, on the Trump administration’s re-airing of their 2024 campaign ad, on the taxpayer’s dime
• Why Mary and Andrew think SCOTUS’ decision to uphold Trump’s SAVE voter database will have a greater effect on the next election
• How irked the high court is about having to reject the Trump-back Missouri congressional map for a third time
• The legal status of the attempted media ban by the White House
• Anthropic’s heated fight with the government over being labeled a “supply chain risk”
• The “hot mess” surrounding FBI agents reportedly being subpoenaed to testify in the grand conspiracy investigation in the Southern District of Florida, all while Jack Smith testifies in front of Congress yet again

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Mary and Andrew begin by addressing President Trump banning CNN, MS NOW and POLITICO from White House grounds. Andrew calls the move “blatantly unconstitutional,” making an allusion to Nazi Germany and noting that the control of the free press is “the tool of autocrats”: “‘You will believe what I tell you and you will see only what I want you to see,’” he summarizes. Then, the co-hosts move to Trump’s “vanity projects,” beginning with what they call the “Arc de Trumph” — a proposed 250-foot arch in Washington DC that Trump says will serve as a military complex. Then, more on the Kennedy Center drama: a federal judge has blocked Trump’s name from being added to the building, after which Trump stated that the building will stay closed and without necessary renovations until that decision is reversed. Plus, several organizations file two lawsuits aimed at preemptively keeping federal agents from polling locations.

Further Reading:

Read the civil rights coalition lawsuit here: https://cdn.sanity.io/files/iroghafc/production/4aa15ae3e51d5acca66ae163c2fafd25ced778e7.pdf

Read the LULAC-led lawsuit here: https://democracyforward.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/LULAC-v-DHS.pdf

A Note to Listeners: As the 2026 midterm elections heat up, MS NOW is headed to the Lone Star State. Join more than a dozen of your favorite hosts - including Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell, Jen Psaki, Michael Steele, Ali Velshi and more - in Arlington, Texas on September 26 for a day of community and conversation about the issues that matter most to you. Get your tickets athttp://ms.now/together.

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The mail-in ballot saga has come to an end — for now. Mary and Andrew detail yesterday’s Supreme Court decision rejecting President Trump’s restrictions on mail-in voting, which they call “good news” in the fight against election interference. “Knock it off,” Andrew says to paraphrase the Supreme Court: “we are not engaging in this.” Then, the co-hosts delve into two more examples of what they consider attempts by government bodies to meddle in the midterms, the first being Missouri’s failed redistricting effort as the Supreme Court rejects the state’s new Trump-backed congressional district map. The second: the Solicitor General’s emergency motion to stay an injunction on the Trump administration’s SAVE database, urging the court to restore the immigration verification system that was blocked by a lower court. Plus, the prosecutor who led the “grand conspiracy” investigation into Trump’s political enemies earlier this year has left the probe. And former CIA Director John Brennan preemptively goes to court ahead of the government’s likely prosecution against him.

A Note to Listeners: As the 2026 midterm elections heat up, MS NOW is headed to the Lone Star State. Join more than a dozen of your favorite hosts - including Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell, Jen Psaki, Michael Steele, Ali Velshi and more - in Arlington, Texas on September 26 for a day of community and conversation about the issues that matter most to you. Get your tickets athttp://ms.now/together.

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The updates just keep coming. On Sunday, the Trump administration returned to the Supreme Court to ask for more control over mail-in ballots, coming two days after U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani’s order blocking the government from implementing parts of the new Postal Service rule. Mary and Andrew analyze the case’s implications as states begin sending out their ballots ahead of the midterms before turning to another update: a preliminary injunction issued in the CASA Inc. v. Trump case on birthright citizenship. Then, the co-hosts turn to the ICE agent involved in the shooting of a Venezuelan man during Trump’s “Operation Metro Surge” in Minneapolis, who is now being federally charged with making false statements to the FBI about the event. They call this “good news” — an instance of the federal government choosing to intervene in an “outrageous” case instead of leaving it up to the states’ discretion. Plus, the Supreme Court allows the construction of Trump’s White House ballroom to continue.

A Note to Listeners: As the 2026 midterm elections heat up, MS NOW is headed to the Lone Star State. Join more than a dozen of your favorite hosts - including Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell, Jen Psaki, Michael Steele, Ali Velshi and more - in Arlington, Texas on September 26 for a day of community and conversation about the issues that matter most to you. Get your tickets athttp://ms.now/together.

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

A lot can happen in a week. Mary and Andrew begin with the most recent movement in the court battle against President Trump’s three-tiered mail-in voting executive order. Last week, Judge Talwani issued a fresh injunction blocking one provision of the EO centered around the Postal Service, two days after the Supreme Court lifted a block from the same judge, saying the provisions in the EO could not be applied to November’s midterms. The co-hosts affirm that this fight is far from over before moving to two more updates from cases they talked about last week: a motion brought by Mary’s ICAP team alongside others challenging the 2026 birthright citizenship EO and a decision on Minnesota’s effort to extradite an ICE agent from Texas, after he was charged with shooting Julio Sosa-Celis through the door of a Minnesota home. Next, a win for Anthropic after a federal judge ruled against the Pentagon, saying it acted illegally in labeling the AI company a “supply chain risk.” Plus: a moving video from an active-duty Marine Colonel pleading for an Afghan national to return to the US after he was deported- despite his asylum status after his family helped the US military in Afghanistan.

A video edition of this episode is available on YouTube now.

Further Watching:

• Here is the full video that Andrew mentioned about Khalil from Active-duty Marine Colonel Zach Schmidt, via Ryan Goodman’s Bluesky post: https://bsky.app/profile/rgoodlaw.bsky.social/post/3muagjmc35k23

A Note to Listeners: As the 2026 midterm elections heat up, MS NOW is headed to the Lone Star State. Join more than a dozen of your favorite hosts - including Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell, Jen Psaki, Michael Steele, Ali Velshi and more - in Arlington, Texas on September 26 for a day of community and conversation about the issues that matter most to you. Get your tickets athttp://ms.now/together.

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

According to Mary and Andrew, recent moves by President Trump’s administration have been following a pattern: “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.” The co-hosts begin by breaking down the flurry of news surrounding mail voting, starting with Monday afternoon’s decision by the Supreme Court to allow President Trump’s executive order curtailing mail voting to proceed, though not issuing a decision on the merits of the order. They discuss that decision in conjunction with the Postal Service’s announcement on Friday for a final rule that would comply with the executive order, a move that Andrew calls a proxy for the government to “have the Postal Service act in a way that has a clearly disproportionate impact on certain voters.” Then, a conversation about birthright citizenship after a motion was filed yesterday rejecting Trump’s executive orders that attempt to limit the legal principle. Plus, an analysis of the Second and Ninth Circuit Court’s rulings disqualifying U.S. Attorneys that were improperly appointed by Trump and a quick nod to Minnesota suing the governor of Texas for not extraditing an ICE agent accused of shooting a man in Minneapolis.

Tune in next week as we switch to Wednesday morning releases — and catch video editions of Main Justice on YouTube the same day.

A Note to Listeners: As the 2026 midterm elections heat up, MS NOW is headed to the Lone Star State. Join more than a dozen of your favorite hosts - including Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell, Jen Psaki, Michael Steele, Ali Velshi and more - in Arlington, Texas on September 26 for a day of community and conversation about the issues that matter most to you. Get your tickets athttp://ms.now/together.

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Mary and Andrew begin this week by addressing Todd Blanche’s “Meet the Press” interview with Kristen Welker, where, among other things, the newly appointed Attorney General proclaimed that “no attorney general should ever pledge” to act independently of the White House, despite decades of post-Watergate reforms. Keeping in the Blanche vicinity, the co-hosts detail a complaint filed by former Michigan AUSA Sunita Doddamani, who alleged she was fired without cause simply for doing her job prosecuting FACE Act violations. Then, a dive into revelations of undercover agents targeting Minnesota nonprofit organizations as part of an investigation that led to indictments of protestors that, in Mary’s view, included “a whole lot of First Amendment protected activity.” Plus, Trump changes a Treasury Department rule making it harder to find fraud and illegal activity and asks the Supreme Court to let him keep building the ballroom while they appeal a lower court block. Last up, an unsatisfying end to litigation against the administration over their use of the Alien Enemies Act after the 5th Circuit en banc panel dismissed the case.

Further Reading:

• Here is the filing in the case Sunita Doddamani brought to challenge her firing. Doddamani v Blanche
• Here is the Main Justice episode that Sunita Doddamani appeared on earlier this year. Friends and Foes: The Fate of Prosecutors and Proud Boys
• Here is the chart Mary and Andrew referenced around the Minnesota grand jury “Association” conspiracy: HOMELAND SECURITY INVESTIGATIONS The Conspiracy

A Note to Listeners: As the 2026 midterm elections heat up, MS NOW is headed to the Lone Star State. Join more than a dozen of your favorite hosts - including Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell, Jen Psaki, Michael Steele, Ali Velshi and more - in Arlington, Texas on September 26 for a day of community and conversation about the issues that matter most to you. Get your tickets at http://ms.now/together.

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Will Rosenzwieg was an Assistant US Attorney in Florida working on a significant Medicare fraud case when he was summarily fired by then AG Pam Bondi, citing Article II. He’s now suing AG Todd Blanche and the Justice Department. His attorney, Margaret Donovan, joins this episode to share how a years-old blog Rosenzwieg had written criticizing Trump—before he was ever a federal employee—led to his dismissal, hours after it surfaced on social media via a right-wing influencer. “It's remarkable that the government wouldn't recognize what is so flagrantly a First Amendment violation,” Donovan says. After detailing the complaint, Mary and Andrew move to Todd Blanche’s confirmation, before examining a ruling by an Alabama judge rejecting a motion to dismiss the case against the Southern Poverty Law Center on vindictive grounds. Next, they look at the latest in Trump’s White House ballroom case after an appeals court upheld the block on its construction last Friday. Plus: a nod to his two new executive orders targeting birthright citizenship.

Further Reading:

• Here is the Will Rosenzweig complaint: https://www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Rosenzweig-v.-Blanche-Complaint-Aug.-7-2026.pdf
• Here is the White House Ballroom Appeals Court decision: https://media.cadc.uscourts.gov/opinions/docs/2026/08/26-5123-2187096.pdf
• After wrapping this episode, the group representing Barbara in the “Barbara v. Trump” birthright citizenship case filed a Motion to Clarify the Preliminary Injunction. That motion is here: https://www.aclu.org/cases/barbara-v-donald-j-trump?document=Motion-to-Clarify-PI#legal-documents

A Note to Listeners: As the 2026 midterm elections heat up, MS NOW is headed to the Lone Star State. Join more than a dozen of your favorite hosts - including Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell, Jen Psaki, Michael Steele, Ali Velshi and more - in Arlington, Texas on September 26 for a day of community and conversation about the issues that matter most to you. Get your tickets at http://ms.now/together.

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The first ticket on Mary and Andrew’s agenda: the latest on Todd Blanche’s confirmation. After prodding from two Republican Senators, Blanche released a Sunday night statement allegedly rescinding the $1.776 “Anti-Weaponization Fund” to pacify their concerns. And by all measures, it worked. But in Andrew’s estimation, the statement was “the world’s smallest fig leaf,” with both hosts noting that the “settlement agreement” can only be changed in writing if signed by both parties. Mary calls it “basically a press statement” rather than a legal order. Then, they turn to former FBI Director James Comey’s filing of multiple motions to dismiss his “Seashell” indictment, including one on the grounds of vindictive and selective prosecution. They detail court filings that show an array of issues with the case, including surveillance of him and his wife by the Secret Service. Next, Andrew and Mary detail why Jeanine Pirro’s Reflecting Pool case against Olympian David Hearn fell apart, after a disastrous rush to charge before the facts were in. And last up: Trump asks the Supreme Court to hear an appeal over E. Jean Caroll’s $83.3 million defamation verdict.

A Note to Listeners: As the 2026 midterm elections heat up, MS NOW is headed to the Lone Star State. Join more than a dozen of your favorite hosts - including Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell, Jen Psaki, Michael Steele, Ali Velshi and more - in Arlington, Texas on September 26 for a day of community and conversation about the issues that matter most to you. Get your tickets at http://ms.now/together.

Further Reading:

Here is the affidavit of James Comey's attorney, Pat Fitzgerald: AFFIDAVIT OF PATRICK J. FITZGERALD IN SUPPORT OF MOTION TO DISMISS FOR VINDICTIVE AND SELECTIVE PROSECUTION, MOTION TO SUPPRESS AND FOR FRANKS HEARING, AND MOTION FOR DISCLOSURE OF GRAND JURY PROCEEDINGS

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Mary and Andrew begin this week by addressing the Department of Justice dropping the subpoenas they ordered against New York Times journalists who reported on security concerns regarding President Trump’s new Qatari-government-gifted Air Force One jet, noting that the attempt to subpoena the writers speaks to a failed effort of “chilling and intimidating” other reporters. But still, there were even more subpoenas: last week, the DOJ filed subpoenas for 14 major law firms as part of an ongoing lawsuit between the American Bar Association (ABA) and the Executive Office of the President, which Mary and Andrew believe is an effort by the government to try and “get the law firms to pressure the ABA to drop this lawsuit.” They also touch on an update to journalist Katie Phang’s lawsuit against the federal government over Epstein files redactions and address Jack Smith’s criminal referral by House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan. Plus, two immigration-related cases: a judge’s decision to throw out a DOJ lawsuit challenging Minnesota immigration laws and an appeal court’s decision to reverse a lower court decision releasing Pro-Palestinian activist Mohsen Mahdawi.

A Note to Listeners: As the 2026 midterm elections heat up, MS NOW is headed to the Lone Star State. Join more than a dozen of your favorite hosts - including Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell, Jen Psaki, Michael Steele, Ali Velshi and more - in Arlington, Texas on September 26 for a day of community and conversation about the issues that matter most to you. Get your tickets at http://ms.now/together.

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Last week, all eyes were on Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s confirmation hearing to lead the Justice Department. Mary and Andrew begin with their takeaways: from Blanche’s “evasive, hyper-technical non-responses” to why his close relationship with Donald Trump is problematic, noting a moment where Blanche referred to himself as “his lawyer” and then quickly corrected himself — which Mary called a Freudian slip. They then turn to Trump’s Thursday night address, where he claimed that U.S. elections have been compromised for years. Separating fact from fiction, the co-hosts look at how Trump’s undermining of public confidence may affect the upcoming midterms. Mary and Andrew also highlight reporting from the New York Times indicating a slew of cases brought by ICE against protesters and immigrants are failing the sniff test in court. Plus, an update on former Columbia graduate student Mahmoud Khalil, who recently filed a lawsuit alleging the government and others were part of an effort to suppress criticism of Israel from pro-Palestinian demonstrators.

Note to Listeners: As the 2026 midterm elections heat up, MS NOW is headed to the Lone Star State. Join more than a dozen of your favorite hosts - including Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell, Jen Psaki, Michael Steele, Ali Velshi and more - in Arlington, Texas on September 26 for a day of community and conversation about the issues that matter most to you. Get your tickets at http://ms.now/together.

Further Reading:

• This is the New York Times’ reporting on ICE cases falling apart: They Were Charged With Assaulting ICE Agents. The Cases Are Crumbling.
• And here is their reporting on ICE related shootings: At Least 23 People Have Been Shot at by Federal Immigration Agents Since Last Year
• Andrew and Mary also wanted to note this new Compendium from Just Security: “Zero Evidence”: How Judges and Grand Juries Have Rejected the Trump Administration Efforts to Investigate and Prosecute

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

With Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s confirmation hearing set to begin midweek, Andrew and Mary use this episode to look at the totality of his tenure at the Justice Department, detailing example after example of how — despite his role as the chief lawyer for the United States — he is still functioning as the de facto personal lawyer for the president. They start things off by dissecting a deeply consequential and searing opinion from District Judge Kathleen Williams over Trump’s IRS lawsuit, effectively finding, in Mary’s telling, that it “was collusion. It was the president being on both sides of that case, and it's no adversity between the parties.” Then, the co-hosts take a broader gaze into what Blanche has done: his handling of the Epstein files and Ghislaine Maxwell, the ongoing investigations and attempted prosecutions of Trump’s political enemies and how he has used the DOJ as the president’s personal law firm. Mary and Andrew also review the Justice Department’s recent actions with Blanche at the helm, including an example from the past week of the ongoing “assault on journalists”: subpoenaing New York Times journalists who wrote about the jet gifted to the US by the Qatari government.

Further Reading:

• Here is a transcript of Mary’s testimony during former Attorney General Pam Bondi’s confirmation hearing: https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/2025-01-16_-_testimony_-_mccord.pdf
• Judge Williams’ Decision: Here is the Order in Trump v. IRS

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Mary and Andrew start with a deeper dive into the Supreme Court’s decision to allow the removal of Temporary Protected Status designations from over 330,000 immigrants from Haiti and Syria — a consequential ruling that affects TPS holders well beyond those who brought the case, leaving over a million people vulnerable to removal. As Andrew notes, this case was based on two claims: one being a statutory challenge that DHS didn’t follow the procedures set out by Congress, and the other a constitutional equal protection claim that this TPS status removal was “motivated in part by race” — both of which were struck down 6-3. Then, a look at Trump’s latest retribution efforts including the heavy sentences doled out over a protest that ended in a shooting outside the ICE Prairieland Detention Center inTexas one year ago; a felony indictment of former Olympian David Hearn for allegedly tearing part of the liner of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool; and former CIA Director John Brennan going on offense to challenge the DOJ’s investigation into him. Plus, Mary and Andrew analyze the DOJ’s response to a “show cause” order to unredact some of the Epstein files in a lawsuit filed by journalist Katie Phang.

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

As Andrew puts it, Chief Justice John Roberts is “cherry-picking.” He’s flying solo in this short edition of Main Justice (more to come with Mary in the next episode). Andrew gives a quick briefing on several of the Supreme Court’s most consequential end-of-term rulings, starting with the decision not to hear an appeal in the E. Jean Carroll case. Andrew also touches on the Court’s decision to uphold a Mississippi law to allow mail-in ballots that are sent by Election Day to be counted but saves his deepest analysis for two similar cases with opposing decisions: the firings of Lisa Cook and Rebecca Slaughter. While the Court ruled that the Trump administration must have cause to dismiss Cook from the Federal Reserve, it allowed the government to fire Slaughter from the Federal Trade Commission, a decision which Andrew calls deeply flawed showing the conservative majority’s support for a “unitary executive.” And finally, Andrew breaks down the Court’s narrow decision to uphold birthright citizenship, and why the tight 5-4 split is the story.

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

There’s a lot on the docket today. To pull apart the Iran “deal” framework, Mary and Andrew are joined by Tess Bridgeman, an international law expert who served as a legal advisor in the Obama administration through the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran. Tess lays out how President Trump’s 14-point memorandum of understanding differs from what was brokered in 2015, and what to watch for as negotiations continue. Before she joins, the co-hosts begin by analyzing several examples of what Mary calls the Trump Justice Department’s "consistent effort” to avoid judicial review: their refusal to put into a sworn declaration that they won’t move forward with the “Anti-Weaponization” fund and a motion to dismiss a Clean Air Act violation lawsuit against Elon Musk’s xAI data center in Mississippi. They also tackle a few instances where, contrastingly, the government has positioned itself “on the offense” this week, including an indictment of 15 protesters on a conspiracy charge against ICE and the DHS’ intent to build a border wall through a holy landmark atop Mount Cristo Rey in New Mexico.

Further reading:

• Here is the New York Times piece, Mary referred to about the Las Cruces case: A Diocese Tries to Protect Its 29-Foot Jesus From Trump’s Border Wall
• Here is the Just Security tracker that Mary and Andrew mentioned: Immigration Habeas Tracker: Government Obstruction, Judicial Trust, and Accountability

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.