How Appealing



Sunday, September 13, 2026

“Don’t force the Supreme Court to reveal its secrets; A New York Times report on how the Supreme Court handles justices’ personal papers has revived calls for more transparency; That instinct misunderstands what makes the court work”: Columnist Dace Potas has this essay online at USA Today.

Posted at 6:38 PM by Howard Bashman



“How Trump Is Wielding Power to Stifle Speech; President Trump has harnessed agencies across the government to curtail press freedoms, a sweeping campaign that free speech advocates say will have lasting effects”: Jim Rutenberg and Maggie Haberman of The New York Times have this news analysis.

Posted at 11:34 AM by Howard Bashman



“In Missouri, A Judicial Response to Politicized Election Administration”: Bob Bauer has this post at the “Executive Functions” Substack site.

Posted at 11:15 AM by Howard Bashman



“The Great Dissenter: Sotomayor’s sharply worded dissents bring the real world into a Supreme Court increasingly driven by conservative formalism.” Noah Feldman has this post at his Substack site.

Posted at 11:14 AM by Howard Bashman



Saturday, September 12, 2026

“‘Is Court Packing Constitutional?’ and Other Questions Easily Answered By Reading the Constitution; The Constitution empowers Congress to set the number of justices on the Supreme Court; Only one columnist dares to ask: What if it didn’t?” Jay Willis has this essay online at Balls and Strikes.

Posted at 11:50 PM by Howard Bashman



“Capitulation Nation: Big Law and SCOTUS are among the ‘profiles in cowardice’ in Trump 2.0; Jacob Weisberg on who buckled, and why.” You can access today’s new episode of Slate’s “Amicus” podcast via this link.

Posted at 11:47 PM by Howard Bashman



“Court Strikes Down Trump Order to Keep an Aging Coal-Burning Plant Running; The 64-year-old Michigan power plant was set to retire; Then the Trump administration intervened in a way that overstepped its authority, a court ruled”: Claire Brown and Brad Plumer of The New York Times have this report.

And Niina H. Farah of Politico reports that “Court deals first blow to Trump’s coal rescue campaign; The ruling casts a pall on the administration’s orders requiring six coal plants across the country to stay online past their retirement dates.”

You can access yesterday’s decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit at this link.

Posted at 11:32 AM by Howard Bashman



“Fifth Circuit: The Constitution Does Not Prevent the Government From Poisoning Your Drinking Water; By defining constitutional rights as narrowly as possible, conservative judges make it very easy for them to conclude that those rights do not exist.” Madiba K. Dennie has this essay online at Balls and Strikes.

Posted at 11:27 AM by Howard Bashman



“ACLJ Defends Professor and Former Trump Lawyer John Eastman From Politicized Disbarment”: Jay Sekulow and Jordan Sekulow have this essay online at Townhall.

You can view a copy of the petition for writ of certiorari, which has been redacted to remove counsel’s office addresses, at this link.

Posted at 11:15 AM by Howard Bashman



“John Roberts Is Not an ‘Institutionalist’; Based on recent history, if Roberts is the ‘only person’ who can preserve the Smithsonian’s independence, the Smithsonian’s independence should be dead by the end of June”: Jay Willis has this post at his “Balls & Strikes” Substack site.

Posted at 11:10 AM by Howard Bashman



Friday, September 11, 2026

“DOJ Ramps Up Controversial Probe of Trump’s Perceived Enemies”: Chris Strohm and Jimmy Jenkins of Bloomberg News have this report.

Posted at 11:55 PM by Howard Bashman



“Woman deported to Afghanistan in first use of Alien Terrorist Removal Court; Nazira Haji Zada conceded being an ‘alien terrorist’ in a case heard by a secretive court established three decades ago but which held its first hearing this year”: Salvador Rizzo of The Washington Post has this report.

Josh Gerstein of Politico reports that “DOJ avoids legal battle over secretive terrorism court; The U.S. deported the Afghan woman who was the first target of the Alien Terrorist Removal Court.”

And Celine Castronuovo of Bloomberg Law reports that “Afghan Immigrant Deported in First ‘Alien Terrorist’ Order.”

Posted at 11:53 PM by Howard Bashman



“The Supreme Law: A Quarter Century after 9/11; On this twenty-fifth anniversary of 9/11, it is worthwhile to reflect on how much of our current legal order traces back to that single day.” Josh Blackman has this post at Civitas Outlook.

Posted at 11:17 PM by Howard Bashman



“Brett Kavanaugh was at the White House on 9/11. It changed his life. In an exclusive interview, Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh said 9/11 was the most ‘important day in my life for the country and for me.’” Maureen Groppe of USA Today has this report.

Posted at 12:14 AM by Howard Bashman



Thursday, September 10, 2026

“Indiana Supreme Court weighs limits of religious exemptions to abortion ban; In question is an injunction protecting a class of Hoosiers who say thier religious beliefs conflict with the state’s near-total ban”: Casey Smith of Indiana Capital Chronicle has this report.

Andrew Lapin of Jewish Telegraphic Agency reports that “A case pitting Indiana Jews against an abortion ban heads back to court; Indiana was one of several states to pass severe abortion restrictions following the 2022 US Supreme Court ruling overturning its 1972 Roe v. Wade decision guaranteeing the right to an abortion.”

And David Wells of Courthouse News Service reports that “Religious freedoms tested in Indiana abortion ban case; The state’s abortion ban provides exceptions in cases of rape, incest and lethal fetal anomalies where the mother might be permanently impaired; But what about individuals with religious objections?

The Supreme Court of Indiana has posted online the video of today’s oral argument at this link.

Posted at 11:46 PM by Howard Bashman



“Joe diGenova, loyalist tapped by Trump to oversee controversial DOJ probe targeting his foes, resigns: Sources; DiGenova had been probing officials involved in past investigations of Trump.” Katherine Faulders, Alexander Mallin, and Luke Barr of ABC News have this report.

Eric Tucker and Alanna Durkin Richer of The Associated Press report that “Prosecutor brought in to lead investigation of Trump foes tells AP that he has resigned his position.”

Evan Perez of CNN reports that “Trump admin pick to oversee a conspiracy investigation into president’s foes resigns after DOJ clashes.”

Ryan J. Reilly, Michael Kosnar, and Raquel Coronell Uribe of NBC News report that “Prosecutor who led ‘grand conspiracy’ probe of Trump targets resigns without charging anyone; Joe diGenova, 81, was part of a group that tried to overturn the 2020 election.”

Josh Gerstein of Politico reports that “DOJ prosecutor resigns from probe into alleged anti-Trump conspiracy; Joseph diGenova declined to explain his abrupt departure.”

Chris Strohm and Jimmy Jenkins of Bloomberg News report that “Trump Loyalist Tapped to Lead Controversial DOJ Probe Quits.”

And Kaelan Deese of Washington Examiner has a report headlined “Reagan-era prosecutor hired for Trump’s ‘grand conspiracy’ resigns: ‘Differences of opinion.’

Posted at 11:33 PM by Howard Bashman



“Ballots differ from cremains: The Postal Service’s rule is illegal.” Adam Unikowsky has this post at his Substack site, “Adam’s Legal Newsletter.”

Posted at 11:16 PM by Howard Bashman



“Defying Precedent in Ten Commandments Case; A much-reversed appeals court upheld a Texas law requiring schools to post the sacred text”: Adam Liptak has this new installment of his “The Docket” newsletter online at The New York Times.

Posted at 1:56 PM by Howard Bashman



“The Final Battle for America’s Democracy: Forget November 3; It’s January 3 when Donald Trump and his MAGA Republicans might bury our democracy once and for all; Here’s how.” Michael Luttig has this essay online at The New Republic.

Posted at 1:06 PM by Howard Bashman



“Sorry, Justices — the Constitution Doesn’t Belong to You; A new book argues that Americans need to reclaim ownership of their founding charter from nine robed lawyers”: Jesse Wegman has this post at his “Major Questions” Substack site.

Posted at 1:04 PM by Howard Bashman



“SCOTUSblog” now offers a $199 annual subscription to access certain posts that used to appear for free, plus additional content: Details here, including how to obtain a lifetime membership for a mere $3,000.

Posted at 12:40 PM by Howard Bashman



“Did John Marshall Continue as Secretary of State? No, as a curious scheme perpetrated by Thomas Jefferson helps show.” Ed Whelan has this post at his “Confirmation Tales” Substack site.

Posted at 12:36 PM by Howard Bashman



“The Most Hated Justice Of All Time? How Clarence Thomas went from civil rights activist to the Court’s most uncompromising originalist . . . and why his influence is only growing.” Noah Feldman has this essay online at his Substack site.

Posted at 12:26 PM by Howard Bashman



“The Emergency Supreme Court Order of Sept. 12, 2001; Chief Justice Rehnquist was adamant about not letting terrorists disrupt the judicial routine”: Gregg Costa has this op-ed in today’s edition of The Wall Street Journal.

Posted at 12:24 PM by Howard Bashman