The Dictatorship

The Trump Justice Department keeps hitting a roadblock: The rule of law

Published

1 year ago

April 5, 2025

The Trump Justice Department keeps hitting a roadblock: The rule of law

Welcome back, Deadline: Legal Newsletter readers. One of the biggest scandals of the second Trump administration closed a dark chapter this week, with the dismissal of New York Mayor Eric Adams’ corruption charges. I’ll explain why (perhaps counterintuitively) the dismissal was also a bright spot for the rule of lawwhich continues to be tested in a slew of cases — including when it comes to immigration, where Trump officials are risking contempt sanctions over deportations.

But first, the Adams affair. Recall that the DOJ, led in the effort by former Trump defense attorney Emil Bove, tried to get the Democratic mayor’s case dismissed without prejudice. That would have created political leverage over Adams to revive the case later if the feds were to become displeased with the mayor’s cooperation on immigration enforcement or anything else. The charade was too much for even Republican prosecutors working on the case, and they resigned rather than do Bove’s dirty work.

The judge refused, too. Joe Biden appointee Dale Ho vindicated those New York prosecutors and blasted DOJ brass when he agreed Wednesday to toss the case — crucially, he did so with prejudice. “Everything here smacks of a bargain,” Judge Ho wroteadding that he “cannot and will not authorize such a result.”

So Adams lucked out, Bove struck outand an independent judiciary narrowly escaped the episode.

Elsewhere in Donald Trump’s DOJanother one of his personal lawyers — New Jersey’s newly minted interim U.S. attorney, Alin Habba — dressed up in a bulletproof vest for a gang arrest documented in a New York Post photoshoot. To be clear, this is not the sort of thing that prosecutors do. One reason is that a prosecutor who witnesses an arrest risks becoming a witness in the case, which can complicate matters.

And while Habba’s lack of qualifications raises concerns about her getting the job permanently, she has work to do if she wants to catch up with the outlandish behavior of And MartinTrump’s top prosecutor pick for the nation’s capital. Former prosecutors are disturbed at the prospect of the former Jan. 6 defense lawyer getting the permanent nod for that office. Martin’s antics could probably fill their own newsletter, but for now, I’ll note the latest reporting on his strange tenurewhich is that he compared the Jan. 6 prosecutions to the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II.

Speaking of Washington, D.C., and Trump DOJ issuesa judge there pressed the government on its apparent violation of his orders to halt certain deportation flights to El Salvador last month. At a Thursday hearingD.C.’s chief federal trial judge, James Boasberg, had a hard time getting answers from DOJ lawyer Drew Ensign about the government’s conduct. Boasberg didn’t say when exactly he’d rule, but we’re awaiting his forthcoming order to see if officials might be held in contempt — and what sort of consequences they might face as a result.

Stepping back, the case stems from Trump’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act to summarily deport immigrants his administration claims are Venezuelan gang members. Separate from the compliance issue pending before Boasberg, the administration asked the Supreme Court to halt the judge’s orders themselves. The high court application was one of several recent filings urging the justices to help Trump implement his agenda, in the face of lower court judges around the country blocking what they’ve determined to be various likely illegal aspects of that agenda.

The justices sided with Trump on Friday on one of those emergency motions, related to his administration’s cancellation of education grants. The court split 5-4, with Chief Justice John Roberts and the three Democratic appointees dissenting. One of the dissents called the majority’s decision to insert itself into the ongoing litigation at this early stage “equal parts unprincipled and unfortunate.”

In nonemergency litigationthe justices wrapped the term’s penultimate two-week argument session, holding hearings on religion and taxesdue process in terrorism lawsuitsand the GOP’s bid to defund Planned Parenthood in a case with Medicaid implications. The court also decided previously argued disputes, siding with the Food and Drug Administration in a case about flavored vapes and with a truck driver fired over a drug test.

Later this month, the justices will hear arguments in more religion-related cases and others before finishing the term’s final rulings. Those usually come by late June but sometimes can go into July. At any rate, lawsuits against Trump’s executive actions should keep the high court busy with emergency litigation.

And don’t forget about the state courts, where Elon Musk’s preferred candidate lost the Wisconsin top court race to Susan Crawford, maintaining the court’s 4-3 liberal majority. Notably, Wisconsin voters on Tuesday also enshrined voter ID requirements, which are typically put forward by conservatives but have bipartisan appeal among voters. And in North Carolina, a GOP-majority ruling from an intermediate appeals court could flip a Democratic state supreme court justice’s victory over a Republican. A Democratic appellate judge dissented from Friday’s panel ruling, writing that if the majority decision to toss out votes stands, “the impact will be to disenfranchise North Carolina voters even though they were eligible to vote on election day.”

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Jordan Rubin

Jordan Rubin is the Deadline: Legal Blog writer. He was a prosecutor for the New York County District Attorney’s Office in Manhattan and is the author of “Bizarro,” a book about the secret war on synthetic drugs. Before he joined BLN, he was a legal reporter for Bloomberg Law.

The Dictatorship

Trump ‘thunderously booed’ while attending NBA Finals Game 3 in New York City

Published

2 hours ago

June 9, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Trump ‘thunderously booed’ while attending NBA Finals Game 3 in New York City

Jun. 8, 2026, 9:03 PM EDT

President Donald Trump was “thunderously booed” Monday night at Madison Square Garden in New York City when he was shown on the Jumbotron ahead of Game 3 of the NBA Finalsaccording to the White House press pool report.

The stadium’s reaction comes after some New York Knicks fans warned he would not receive a warm welcome during the home game matchup against the San Antonio Spurs — despite New York City being the president’s hometown.

The White House press pool report described the boos as “loud and long” and noted the reaction “quickly changed to cheers when the camera quickly panned to [Knicks guard] Jalen Brunson on the court.”

Trump was “standing with his hand over his heart” during the National Anthem as he was met with boos, the pool report said, adding that he was standing between his granddaughter Kai Trump and Knicks owner James Dolan, who “seemed to be smirking at the boos.”

The president’s posse included several administration officials, also watching in the suite, including Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.

At least one Trump official made a courtside appearance with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick seated next to rappers Fat Joe and famed producer DJ Khaled.

The Knicks came into Monday night’s game leading the series 2-0, and fans are hoping for a sweep. That is, defeating the Spurs in four consecutive games without a single loss. The team is on the precipice of earning its first championship since 1973, but Trump’s attendance has sparked outcry from many fans.

Trump, who was invited to attend by Dolan, is the first sitting president to attend an NBA Finals game. Security at the arena has been enhanced in response, and fans attending the game have been encouraged to arrive at least two hours before tipoff to allow extra time for TSA-style screening.

To many fans’ disappointment, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced that the watch party typically held outside MSG during games has been canceled due to Trump’s visit after the mayor, the U.S. Secret Service and the NYPD determined that it would hinder the heightened security measures required for Trump.

Mamdani announced Monday that Bryant Park will serve as a free alternative Knicks watch party location.

The president’s attendance comes against the backdrop of high-stakes elections and international conflict, including the war with Iranwhich has entered its 15th week, marking just over 100 days since the U.S. and Israel launched a joint attack against the country on Feb. 28. His visit also comes weeks after he declined to attend the wedding of his eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., citing “a thing called Iran and other things.”

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Erum Salam is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW, with a focus on how global events and foreign policy shape U.S. politics. She previously was a breaking news reporter for The Guardian.

The Dictatorship

Trump’s latest ‘voter fraud’ claims may backfire on him in the fall

Published

2 hours ago

June 9, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Jun. 8, 2026, 8:09 PM EDT

ByRichard L. Hasen

During normal times, the president of the United States would not routinely claim, without evidence, an epidemic of “voter fraud.” But Donald Trump is on another tirade about supposed fraud — this time in California’s primary elections. If there’s any good news, though, the publicity and pushback against his claims will inoculate the public against similar unsupported charges in November’s midterms, if control of Congress depends upon late-arriving results in the Golden State.

Let’s begin with some obvious points. California’s vote-counting process is notoriously slow. Millions of the state’s voters choose to vote by mail, and election officials’ efforts to confirm that voters have followed all the rules take some time. The state has unusually lenient rules for both the receipt of mail-in ballots (timely postmarked ballots may be counted if election officials receive them within seven days of the election) and for curing defective ballots (such as mail ballots on which a voter forgets to add their signature). Despite the popularity of mail-in ballots, the state has not prioritized saving state resources over a quicker vote count.

Further, it is rather routine that California results show Republican and more conservative candidates doing well in initial tallies, only for Democrats and liberal candidates to appear to “gain” as more ballots are tallied. Voters who have lived in the same place longer, own a home, are white and are wealthier are all more likely to receive and send back their ballots early — and they are also more likely to vote Republican.

President Trump has incessantly fueled beliefs on the right that voter fraud is prevalent in Democratic states.

Think about election tallying this way. You have to be away from your television during the Super Bowl and so you record the game. When you watch it the next day — having avoided hearing the result in between — the game is already over. The winner was the same before you watched and after. It is the same with California’s election ballots: All the ballots were cast by Election Day, the election is over, and we just must wait to learn the final results.

The issue of late-voting Democrats was especially pronounced in last week’s elections. In the Los Angeles mayoral race, polls show many voters undecided between unpopular incumbent Mayor Karen Bass, reality TV star Spencer Pratt (running to her right) and Los Angeles City Council member Nithya Raman (running to Bass’ left). Bass made it to the runoff, and the first vote totals showed Pratt in second. But late Monday, with 93% of the ballots counted the Associated Press projected that Raman will join Bass in this fall’s general election.

In the state’s gubernatorial primary, the initial results placed Republican Steve Hilton in first, ahead of Democrats Xavier Becerra and Tom Steyer. As more ballots were processed, Becerra moved into first late Friday. Hilton is still likely to finish in the top two and advance to the general election, but Steyer has not yet been ruled out given the number of outstanding ballots.

This “blue shift” would not be a problem if we lived in normal times. If we have to wait a week or two to find out which candidates will face Bass and Becerra, that’s plenty of time to prepare for November. Unfortunately, President Trump has incessantly fueled beliefs on the right that voter fraud is prevalent in Democratic states, and in particular that California’s slow vote count shows that the system is “crooked.” He did it again last week. It undermines voters’ confidence in our elections’ integrity for no good reason.

And he’s not alone. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson told reporters the “efforts are so diabolical and so far upstream it’s impossible to prove. But I think everybody knows instinctively that something is wrong here.” Yes, the alleged voter fraud claimed by Trump and his allies is always the perfect crime: happening on a massive scale yet impossible to detect. It’s quite convenient to have a theory that is completely unfalsifiable.

Some supporters of Pratt have made similar charges without evidence or simply “asked questions” about potential fraud. They only embarrass themselves by showing that either they don’t understand how California’s process works or they are cynical enough to think the public will accept false claims.

Even now, there is much to worry about regarding November’s elections.

If the race for control of the House of Representatives is close in November, the balance of power could well come down to races in California. Media reports on early returns will show Republican candidates “in the lead” but Democrats “gaining” as more votes are counted. Should that come to pass, I fully expect that Trump and his supporters will again cry fraud and try to delegitimize any Democratic victories and the integrity of the election process.

Even now, there is much to worry about regarding November’s elections. Trump’s U.S. attorney in Los Angeles, Bill Essayli, said he is investigating potential fraud in California’s primaries based upon no evidence. This follows the administration’s ongoing probes related to the 2020 election — efforts that could be a test run for the midterms.

The administration is trying to assemble a national citizen database and attempting to forbid the the U.S. Postal Service from returning mailed ballots from voters who are not on approved lists, a matter now being litigated in courts. Both federal law enforcement and cybersecurity officials have reportedly canceled efforts to help state and local election officials secure the 2026 elections.

But Trump has shown his hand and he’s come up short. It is hard to overstate the importance of the exchange on Sunday between Trump and NBC News’ “Meet the Press” anchor Kristen Welker. Speaking about California’s elections, Trump said“They’re crooked just like you’re crooked, your press is crooked. And ‘Meet the Press’ is crooked.” As Welker pushed him repeatedly for evidence, Trump could only repeat his entirely unsupported charges: “There’s tremendous evidence. There’s nothing but evidence.” In the end, he stormed out.

In the long term, California should still do what it can to speed up the vote count; that would help maintain confidence in elections. With enough resources thrown at the problem and commands from the Legislature, election officials can improve their ballot processing time. But serious progress is unlikely before November.

For this year, election officials, the media and even the public all play roles in assuring voters about the fairness and integrity of the process. California election officials have been quite transparent about their processes all along the way, and that should continue. Media outlets should stop reporting which candidate is “in the lead.” This is not an ongoing election; the election is over, and the results are simply “too early to call.”

In response to charges of “voter fraud,” ordinary people can share media, such as the two-minute exchange between Trump and Welkerwhich show the emptiness of the president’s claims.

Rumormongering about California was always likely to be central to the president’s attempts to weaken faith in this year’s elections. But thanks to Trump himself, anyone paying any attention knows that California’s vote count is notoriously slow, that the “blue shift” favoring Democrats routinely happens and that Trump has produced no evidence to support his claims. The boy has cried wolf too many times, and if he tries this again in November, the appropriate response should be repudiation, not panic.

Richard L. Hasen

Richard L. Hasen is professor at UCLA School of Law, where he directs its Safeguarding Democracy Project.

The Dictatorship

Raman to advance in Los Angeles mayor’s race, taking on Bass in November

Published

2 hours ago

June 9, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Raman to advance in Los Angeles mayor’s race, taking on Bass in November

Jun. 8, 2026, 7:57 PM EDT

Los Angeles Council member Nithya Raman will advance to the November general election in the mayoral race to face the incumbent, Karen Bassafter overtaking ex-reality TV star Spencer Pratt in the primary, The Associated Press projects.

Raman has steadily trended upward in the vote count since Election Day, and she overtook Pratt on Sunday. Monday’s vote update gives Raman a cushion of more than 20,000 votes, making her position in the top two safe, with an estimated 93% of the vote counted.

The runoff between Raman, 44, and Bass, 72, is the latest example of a younger Democrat trying to oust an older incumbent. Raman, a Harvard- and MIT-educated member of the Democratic Socialists of America who has represented LA’s 4th City Council District since 2020, launched her surprise mayoral campaign in February — less than two weeks after she endorsed Bass’ campaign for re-election.

The runoff between Raman, 44, and Bass, 72, is the latest example of a younger Democrat trying to oust an older incumbent.

She campaigned on a pledge to bring change to the city, but struggled to deliver consistent messaging during debates, where she walked back some of her more left-wing policy stancesincluding support for defunding the police and opposing anti-camping zones for homeless people.

Bass previously represented LA in the California Assembly, including as speaker. She has served six terms in the U.S. House and entered the mayor’s race facing extensive criticism from Angelenos over both her handling of last year’s deadly LA wildfires — she was in Ghana when the blazes broke out — and her failure to achieve her goal of ending homelessness by the end of her first term.

She has pledged that, if re-elected, she will deliver on that goal. She has also vowed to continue standing up to the Trump administration, pointing to her confrontation with federal agents when the president deployed Immigration and Customs Enforcement to the city last year.

In a statement provided to MS NOW Monday night, Raman thanked her supporters and sought to cast herself as a change agent, pledging to “fight for a healthier, safer, more affordable, and more joyful Los Angeles.”

“For too long, City Hall has prioritized giving political advantage to powerful interests that fund elections. Meanwhile, working people pay the price in higher rents, depleted services, and a city that has stopped working for them,” Raman said. “If you’re as frustrated by the broken status quo as I am, I hope you’ll join our movement to build a city that works for everyone.”

Meanwhile, Bass campaign strategist Douglas Herman said in a statement to MS NOW Monday night: “A campaign against Nithya Raman, who allows encampments near schools and cuts the police force, is one Mayor Bass looks forward to winning.”

Pratt’s fast rise, social media savvy and massive online audience also seemed to make it more difficult for Raman to break through in the primary. He outraised both Bass and Raman since launching his campaign in January.

But some strategists predictedPratt’s backing by MAGA, and President Donald Trump himself, would ultimately help catapult Raman to second place in deep-blue LA.

Indeed, Pratt’s lead over Raman steadily narrowed since primary night as mail-in ballots came in — a fact that Trump and other MAGA allies baselessly alleged proved “fraud” in the race. On Tuesday, Pratt led Raman by 9 percentage points; by Sunday night, she had overtaken him by less than 1 percentage point.

Spokespeople for Pratt’s campaign did not immediately respond to MS NOW’s requests for comment after the results were called Monday night.

Julianne McShane is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW who also covers the politics of abortion and reproductive rights. You can send her tips from a non-work device on Signal at jmcshane.19 or follow her on X or Bluesky.