Before we begin: My appellate practice was dedicated to representing indigents on appeal. I was appointed by the California appellate courts and paid through California’s general budget. I was in the trenches defending people who were among the most vilified by our society. My heart was broken every day but I did what I could, […]

A federal judge in Florida sanctioned Trump and his lawyers $938,000 for that silly RICO lawsuit he brought against Hillary and others. Yes, he has to pay Hillary Clinton. Want some fun? We can read the sanctions order together 🤓 then I’ll answer questions. (The sanctions order is here. Trump’s original lawsuit is here.) Basically, last March,

There is an important seditious conspiracy trial happening. So that we can all follow along (I could use the review myself) I went back to the indictment, which is here, to get back up to speed. In the last seditious conspiracy trial, two defendants Oath Keeper leaders Stewart Rhodes and Kelly Meggs were convicted of

To create fairness, our legal system and the federal government have grown increasingly complex. My question is whether the complexity has grown beyond too many people’s capacity to tolerate it. Q: Can democracy survive in America? A: (Spoiler) I don’t know. Can people tolerate this much complexity? I begin with history and facts about our current system because

The Members of the GOP who Sympathized with the Insurrection and Helped Spread Trump’s Election Lies are now in Control of the House of Representatives In a nutshell, what happened this week in the House was that Kevin McCarthy had difficulty securing enough votes to become Speaker of the House because a small group of

(Note: Beginning next week, on January 7, I will return to posting each Saturday.) You can read the full January 6 Report here. Introduction I assume you all know the basics about the report contents, but if you’d like a brief overview here you go: The January 6 report, like the televised hearings, are organized around

(Because of holiday plans, this week and next week I will post on Thursday instead of Saturday.) About the title: During Trump’s first impeachment, I was offering summaries and commentaries of the legal documents. I asked my readers what I should call them. My favorite suggestion was “Over the Cliff Notes.” On Monday, the House Select

First, some housekeeping: For the next two weeks, I will post on Thursday evenings instead of Saturday because of the holidays and my travel plans. “Free Speech Absolutism” Elon Musk abolished Twitter’s moderation policies and allowed “America’s most prominent Nazi,” Andrew Anglin back onto Twitter along with Donald Trump. He declared himself a “free speech absolutist” and said all voices

This was a good week for the Department of Justice. It was a bad week for Trump and the seditionists. 1.  Trump’s Special Master Lawsuit Bites the Dust First, a procedural overview: August 8: The FBI, pursuant to a search warrant, searched Mar-a-Lago and seized boxes of government documents including documents marked classified. August 22:

Spoiler: Maybe Musk did us a favor by disrupting Twitter and forcing us to consider better social media alternatives. Warning: This may get gossipy with some of my personal social media anecdotes. I: Social Media Encourages Demagoguery Democracy Needs a Functioning Public Sphere Definition: The public sphere is composed of voluntary associations that promote social cohesion

This page has been updated, and all the material moved to a new page here.