Trump & Libel
5/16/17 //
Commentary
A particularly brazen part of Trump’s attack on the press has been his assertion—both as a candidate and as President—that he will change the libel laws to make it easier to sue the media for unfavorable coverage. That won't work, for many reasons. But Trump’s outrageous threats are brilliantly successful in other ways, no matter how unlikely they are to formally succeed.
First Tragedy, Now Farce
5/15/17 //
In-Depth Analysis
Those who forget history are indeed doomed to repeat it. But when history repeats, it often shifts in the repetition: first acts come as tragedy and then return as farce. By many measures, Nixon was a tragic figure. Trump, by contrast, is pure farce. And unlike tragedies, farces don’t end with a flash of recognition—a moment of self-awareness like King Lear’s on the heath. Farces just keep going until someone cries "enough!"
Trump, Trust, and the 25th Amendment
5/15/17 //
Commentary
Imagine that the President lacked credibility entirely, whether because he was a pathological liar or because his lying was – hypothetically speaking – one symptom of a narcissistic personality disorder. Would there be anything the American people or government officials should or could do about it, short of waiting until the end of the President’s term.
Ten Minutes of History on: The Constitutionality of Funding HBCUs
5/12/17 //
Commentary
President Donald Trump is known for changing his political views after a ten-minute history lesson. In this continuing feature, I encourage the president to take a few minutes to learn about the historical background of things he says. This first edition, on his signing statement regarding HBCUs, concerns one of his favorite historical topics: A nineteenth-century general who saw the Civil War coming, was angry, and did something about it.
Jason Harrow is Wrong About the First Amendment
5/12/17 //
Uncategorized
Freedom of speech is great. Nobody denies it. But the lawsuit against Trump for inciting violence at a campaign rally is legally meritorious, at least at the motion to dismiss stage. And the notion that finding liability against Trump here would imperil protests for all Americans just doesn't hold water.