An Important Reminder about the Special Danger of the Chris Krebs Trump Announcement

April 10, 2025, 7:01 amauthoritarian threats in US, Department of JusticeRick Hasen

Politico: A president ordering investigations of specific individuals whom he considers to be his political enemies is a remarkable breach of the traditional wall of separation between the White House and the Justice Department. Under that norm of separation,… Continue reading

Sixth Circuit on 2-1 Vote Lifts Stay in Longrunning Dispute over Ohio AG’s Failure to Approve Ballot Language Summary for Petition Circulation; AG Goes to SCOTUS

April 10, 2025, 6:55 amdirect democracy, Supreme CourtRick Hasen

You can find the Sixth Circuit’s order and dissent at this link. The AG is already off to SCOTUS.

“Fear and loathing over California ballot counting”

April 10, 2025, 6:47 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Politico: California’s notoriously slow vote-counting process has led to a rare bipartisan realization in Sacramento — the state needs to dramatically pick up the pace in producing election results. But Democrats and Republicans are nowhere near in agreement on how… Continue reading

Trump Targets CISA’s Chris Krebs (and Miles Taylor)

April 9, 2025, 6:14 pmauthoritarian threats in USRick Hasen

AP: President Donald Trump intensified his efforts to punish his critics on Wednesday by signing a pair of memoranda directing the Justice Department to investigate two officials from his first administration and stripping them of any security clearances they… Continue reading

“Judge finds Newsmax aired false and defamatory claims about voting-tech company”

April 9, 2025, 6:10 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

NPR: A Delaware judge, once again, has found that a conservative news outlet broadcast false and defamatory claims about the role a voting technology company played in the 2020 presidential election. This time, that network is Newsmax, Fox News’ upstart… Continue reading

“Tulsi Gabbard Declared Her Residency in Texas. Then She Voted in Hawaii”

April 9, 2025, 1:30 pmchicaneryRick Hasen

CNN: As Tulsi Gabbard completed her transformation from a Hawaii Democratic politician to a MAGA surrogate last year, she put down stakes in a far redder state. Gabbard and her husband bought a home outside of Austin and declared under… Continue reading

“DOJ: Some Jan. 6 defendants should be repaid money they sent to Congress”

April 9, 2025, 7:24 amelection subversion riskRick Hasen

Politico: Jan. 6 defendants whose convictions were wiped out by President Donald Trump are entitled to a refund of restitution payments they made to cover damage to the Capitol, the Justice Department said Tuesday. The department’s determination could result in… Continue reading

I’ll Be Interviewing Elie Mystal About His New Book, “Bad Law” at the UCLA Hammer Museum on April 17

April 9, 2025, 7:16 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Join us! Event is free and tickets are first come. first served. There is no livestream but a recording will be available after the event.

“Trump Wants Mail Votes to Arrive By Election Day. Red States Are Rushing to Toe the Line.”

April 9, 2025, 7:12 amabsentee ballots, election administration, fraudulent fraud squadRick Hasen

Bolts: Frustrated by slowing mail delivery, particularly in rural areas, the Kansas legislature in 2017 passed a law to let elections officials count mail ballots that arrived after Election Day, for up to three extra days, so long as the… Continue reading

Campaign Legal Center Asks FEC to Clarify Scope of Its Power After Trump Executive Order on the President’s Purported Power over Independent Agencies

April 8, 2025, 1:14 pmfederal election commissionRick Hasen

Creative filing.

DC Circuit Rejects First Amendment Challenge to White House Press Pass Credentialing Policy in Opinion That Requires Policy to Be Applied in Viewpoint Neutral Way (a Holding that Could Help AP)

April 8, 2025, 9:42 amFirst Amendment theoryRick Hasen

I have been following the Ateba case closely, writing about it in From Bloggers in Pajamas to The Gateway Pundit: How Government Entities Do and Should Identify Professional Journalists for Access and Protection, forthcoming in THE FUTURE OF PRESS… Continue reading

Mitch McConnell WSJ Oped: “Trump Gives Democrats a Voting Gift”

April 8, 2025, 9:31 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Senator McConnell oped: In the near term, Executive Order 14248 will face constitutional scrutiny. That isn’t because the citizenship requirement for participation in elections is unclear but because the delegation of authority over election administration is crystal clear. Elections… Continue reading

“Former Wisconsin justice to give up law license over 2020 election review”

April 8, 2025, 7:08 amchicanery, fraudulent fraud squadRick Hasen

WaPo: A former Wisconsin Supreme Court justice agreed Monday to give up his law license for three years after facing a string of ethics allegations stemming from his error-riddled review of the 2020 election for Republican state lawmakers. In… Continue reading

“Judge rejects state’s effort to overturn Huntington Beach’s voter ID law”

April 8, 2025, 7:06 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

OC Register: An Orange County judge on Monday, April 7, denied the state attorney general’s efforts to overturn Huntington Beach’s voter ID law, saying he disagreed with arguments it would disenfranchise voters in future elections. “There is no showing that… Continue reading