All posts by Rick Hasen

“How prosecutors’ evidence mistakes could let Menendez walk away from corruption charges”

December 25, 2024, 6:25 pmbribery, Speech or Debate ClauseRick Hasen

Politico: Five months after a jury convicted Sen. Bob Menendez of corruption-related charges that ended his political career, federal prosecutors have admitted to a series of errors that could upend the verdicts. The missteps have handed Menendez’s attorneys just… Continue reading

“The Big Companies Funding Trump’s Inauguration Despite Denouncing Jan. 6”

December 25, 2024, 8:36 amelection subversion riskRick Hasen

WSJ: Four years ago, dozens of companies denounced the invasion of the U.S. Capitol and pledged to withhold support from those who disputed the 2020 election results. Now, many of those companies are lining up to fund Donald Trump… Continue reading

“Trump’s Re-election Defines a New Era of American Politics”

December 25, 2024, 8:10 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Nate Cohn for NYT’s The Upshot: When Barack Obama won re-election in 2012, it seemed to mark the beginning of a new era of Democratic dominance, one propelled by the rise of a new generation of young, secular and nonwhite… Continue reading

“Rep. Granger’s Hill absence, revelation of ‘dementia issues’ reignite age debate”

December 24, 2024, 4:31 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

WaPo reports.

Rick’s Opeds and Commentaries, 2024

December 24, 2024, 4:16 pmUncategorizedRick Hasen

Voting in the U.S. Shouldn’t Be This Hard, MSNBC Opinion, Nov. 5, 2024 Thousands of Pennsylvania Ballots Will Be Tossed on a Technicality. Thanks SCOTUS, Slate, Nov. 4, 2024 Why the “Blue Shift” Everyone Seems to Have Forgotten … Continue reading

“Protracted GOP speaker fight could complicate Electoral College count”

December 24, 2024, 10:38 amelectoral collegeRick Hasen

Roll Call: Lingering ill will among House Republicans after another messy spending fight could complicate Speaker Mike Johnson’s bid to retain the House gavel — and potentially the Jan. 6 formalizing of Donald Trump’s election victory. As president of the… Continue reading

“Experts: Trump’s use of consumer fraud law to sue Des Moines Register unlikely to succeed”

December 24, 2024, 10:05 amauthoritarian threats in US, First Amendment theoryRick Hasen

Des Moines Register: Legal experts representing different ends of the political spectrum say the recent lawsuit by President-elect Donald Trump against the Des Moines Register is based on a strained interpretation of Iowa law and is unlikely to find success… Continue reading

“This company rates news sites’ credibility. The right wants it stopped.”

December 24, 2024, 9:54 amauthoritarian threats in US, First Amendment theoryRick Hasen

WaPo: When veteran newsmen L. Gordon Crovitz and Steven Brill started their news site rating company, they were prepared for the inevitable cries of bias from both sides. What they didn’t anticipate was that NewsGuard, their company of some… Continue reading

“Here’s why business leaders are spending big on Trump’s inaugural committee”

December 24, 2024, 9:48 amcampaign finance, Plutocrats UnitedRick Hasen

CNBC: Top CEOs and their companies are pledging to donate millions of dollars to President-elect Donald Trump’s inaugural committee, as they seek to get on his good side and make inroads before he takes office. Some of the planned … Continue reading

“Stein and Cooper go to court to challenge GOP shift of elections power to NC auditor”

December 24, 2024, 9:45 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

News and Observer: Incoming Gov. Josh Stein and Gov. Roy Cooper sought to expand a lawsuit on Monday to challenge a new wide-ranging law passed by the GOP-led legislature earlier this month that removes power from incoming Democratic officeholders. Cooper… Continue reading

“A North Carolina Supreme Court Candidate’s Bid to Overturn His Loss Is Based on Theory Election Deniers Deemed Extreme”

December 23, 2024, 9:11 pmfraudulent fraud squad, judicial elections, recountsRick Hasen

ProPublica: Months before voters went to the polls in November, a group of election skeptics based in North Carolina gathered on a call and discussed what actions to take if they doubted any of the results. One of the ideas… Continue reading

California: “Orange County GOP pushes back on ‘false claims of voter fraud'”

December 23, 2024, 9:27 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

LAT: The Republican Party of Orange County has forcefully swatted down unfounded claims of voter fraud in the 2024 election, debunking allegations that went viral after Democrats flipped a hotly contested congressional seat. In a county home to some of… Continue reading

“A Pro-Trump Group’s Risky Bet on Infrequent Voters Seems to Have Paid Off”

December 23, 2024, 9:17 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

NYT: Heading into the 2024 election, the conservative group Turning Point Action made a risky and expensive bet as it tried to fix Republicans’ early-voting problem: It zeroed in on infrequent voters who seemed to lean to the right.… Continue reading

“Racial Turnout Gap Grew in Georgia — Again”

December 23, 2024, 8:43 amVoting Rights ActRick Hasen

Brennan Center: Over the past 15 years, the racial turnout gap in the United States has grown dramatically. A good deal of the widening gap — but by no means all of it — can be attributed to… Continue reading