Opening Arguments
Opening Arguments is a law show that helps you make sense of the news! Comedian Thomas Smith and lawyer Matt Cameron help you understand not only current events, but also deeper legal concepts and areas! The schedule is M-W-F, with the main show on Monday and Friday and Vapid Response on Wednesday!
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Lawrence Lessig Thinks the Supreme Court Will End SuperPACs
... and he might actually be right! Listen in and hear why. OA1105 - Harvard Law professor and anti-corruption advocate Lawrence Lessig is almost certainly the only person on Earth to have had a personal relationship with both visionary hacker Aaron Swartz and former Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia. We warmly welcome Professor Lessig back to OA to share--among many other things--his experiences with each of these very different people, why he remains optimistic about campaign finance reform going into the second Trump administration, and the originalist argument against Super PACs. "Why They Mattered: Aaron Swartz," Lawrence Lessig, Politico (12/22/2013) They Don't Represent Us: Reclaiming Our Democracy, Lawrence Lessig (2024) Republic Lost: How Money Corrupts Congress--and a Plan to Stop It, Lawrence Lessig (2011) Support End Super Pacs Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do! If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!
Rudy Giuliani Has Lost Everything, Including His Own Lawyers
America's Dismayor, and other great stories to help close out 2024 on a positive note! Rudy Giuliani's long, greasy slide from the heights of New York power seems to be ending in the same Manhattan federal courthouse in which he made his career as the US Attorney for the Southern District of NY. We take a closer look at the often hilarious lengths America's former mayor has gone to in the past year to avoid paying the $148 million judgment he earned by casually defaming two hardworking Georgia election volunteers. Also discussed: why the House Ethics Committee decided to release its report on Matt Gaetz, Biden's commutation of 92% of the federal death row, and a legitimately good decision from the Supreme Court that we meant to talk about earlier. Finally, Matt drops a footnote with what he is promising will be the last time that he talks about fonts this year. Freeman v. Giuliani docket Giuliani's written stipulation to making per se defamatory statements (7/25/23) Judge Liman's "turnover" order (10/22/24) Judge Howell's default judgment order (8/30/23) Giuliani's 55-page response to the plaintiff's motion for sanctions (12/19/24) The America First Warehouse (America's Most Patriotic Venue) U.S. v. Rahimi (June 21, 2024) "Preferred Typefaces for Briefs," Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (12/9/24) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do! If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!
Ok, but Would AI Judges Really Be Any Worse?
Is human intelligence necessarily more rational and just than artificial intelligence? How involved should AI be in our law and government? Professor Aziz Huq of the University of Chicago School of Law joins for a fascinating conversation about everything from the "right to a human decision" to the dystopian terrors of Tinder. "A Right to a Human Decision," Aziz Huq, Virginia Law Review (2020) "The Geopolitics of Digital Regulation," Aziz Huq (2024) "Chinese scientists develop AI 'prosecutor' that can press its own charges," Steven Chen, South China Morning Post (2021) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do! If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!
Luigi Mangione Being Charged as a Terrorist Is Borderline Prosecutorial Misconduct
Why is the state of New York charging Luigi Mangione as a terrorist? And why have federal charges been filed in this case at all? We consider before moving on to try to locate any actual legal basis in the Georgia Court of Appeals decision removing Fulton County DA Fani Willis from the prosecution of Donald Trump and his alleged conspirators in Georgia. Finally, we dig into 11th Circuit judge Kevin Newsom's surprisingly defensible argument that judges and lawyers should occasionally consult with ChatGPT, and Matt drops a footnote involving judges being weird about food. New York indictment of Luigi Mangione (12/18/24) Federal indictment of Luigi Mangione (12/19/24) People v. Ferhani, 966 N.Y.S.2d 348 (2012) Georgia Court of Appeals decision removing Fani Willis from Trump's GA case (12/19/24) Snell v. Specialty Insurance Corp, 11th Cir. (5/28/2024)(Newsom, J., concurring) U.S. v. Deleon, 11 Cir. (9/5/2024)(Newsom, J., concurring) Judge Proctor's order in McCuller v. Koch (11/26/24) Ohio Supreme Court's decision in Berkheimer v. REKM (7/25/24) Ohio Supreme Court's decision denying reconsideration in Berkheimer v. REM (12/9/24) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do! If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!
Pete Hegseth Is Finally Going to Make the US Military Less Woke
You know... that super woke institution... the US Military... well, NO LONGER! Trump's man for the job is a real piece of work. And if you don't believe us, take it from his own mom. As usual, Lydia gives us the doozy breakdown, and also how Hegseth fits right into the Project 2025 design. Then, it's T3BE 52! Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do! If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!
Mass Deportation Is Much Harder Than Trump Thinks
Donald Trump's promises of "mass deportation" have been dominating the headlines, but what do we actually know about what the coming administration is planning--and who should actually be concerned? Matt explains how immigration enforcement actually works in practice under the current system, including its current practical and logistical limitations. We then break down the ways that Trump has told us that he intends to subvert or get around the existing system and the law (or lack thereof) behind these unprecedented proposals before ending with some ideas for how you can help to prepare to stand up to mass enforcement actions in your community. Watch our new video on how Joe Biden can go out a legend!!! "Trump's Possibly Illegal Border Posse," Matt Cameron, The New Republic (5/2/2019) "The 287(g) Program: An Overview," American Immigration Council (July 2021) "License to Abuse: How the 287(g) Program Empowers Racist Sherriffs," ACLU (2022) "National Map of 287(g) Agreements," Immigration Legal Resource Center "Sweeping Raids, Giant Camps, and Mass Deportations: Inside Trump's 2025 Immigration Plans," New York Times (11/11/2023) Make the Road v. Wolf, 962 F. 3d 612, D.C. Cir. (2020) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do! If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!
The Luigi Mangione Case: A NY Defense Attorney Breaks It Down
Superstar Gavel Gavel contributor Liz Skeen joins to answer all of your questions about the arrest of Luigi Mangione and the charges he will soon be facing for his alleged shooting of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson in the courthouse where she serves as a public defender. Also: Biden's record-breaking day of clemency. Listen to Thomas, Matt, Liz, and our talented cast of People v. Trump transcript re-enactors on Gavel Gavel! Watch our new video on how Joe Biden can go out a legend Sign the official OA petition for Joe Biden to go out a legend White House press release on Biden's December 12, 2024 clemency actions Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do! If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!
There's Something Deeply Wrong With Stephen Miller (And There Always Has Been)
OA1098/T3BE51 - We conclude our review of Trump's immigration enforcement team with the man behind Donald Trump's immigration policies.. Who is Steven Miller, and why? You'll want to listen to this one even if you think you know who this man is, because it's all a lot weirder--and, somehow, worse--than you might have ever imagined. Then, it's time for the answer to last week's bar exam question, and Q51! Hatemonger: Stephen Miller, Donald Trump, and the White Nationalist Agenda, Jean Guerrero (2020) "How Stephen Miller Manipulates Donald Trump to Further His Immigration Obsession," Jonathan Blitzer, The New Yorker (2/20/2020) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do! If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!
Trump Doubles Down on Immigration Plans In Softball NBC Interview
Trump's Staff Infection, Vol. 5 Donald Trump has just reiterated his intentions for mass immigration enforcement in a Sunday Meet the Press interview, and Lydia joins for a closer look at the people who will actually be carrying these policies out. We take a quick introductory look at runner-up Attorney General pick Pam Bondi before Lydia reviews some of Project 2025's plans and Matt explains the different roles of the DOJ and DHS in the US immigration system. Also, why has the former governor of a lightly-populated state nearly 1000 miles from the Mexican border with nothing related to immigration on her CV been chosen as the next head of Homeland Security? We have some theories--but absolutely no questions as to why family separation expert Thomas Homan will be the next American "border czar." "Project 2025: A Mandate for Leadership," The Heritage Foundation (2024) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do! If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!
Supreme Court Justices Should Not Be This Good At Playing Dumb
The President of the United States has just pardoned a blood relative and it's--fine, actually. We review the full pardon of Hunter Biden in the greater context of presidential pardons before moving on to our main story: this week's oral arguments in the trans rights case U.S. v. Skrmetti. The most important and very likely the most consequential case of this Supreme Court term featured the first openly trans lawyer ever to appear before the high court patiently trying to explain to some of our finest legal minds why a Tennessee law denying life-saving healthcare to certain people based on which letter is printed on their birth certificates is in fact unconstitutional discrimination. Finally, Matt drops a quick footnote to acknowledge one of the shortest periods of martial law in democratic history and to see what we might be able to learn from it. Statement from President Joe Biden re: pardon of Hunter Biden(12/1/24) Office of the Pardon Attorney | Pardons Granted by President Donald J. Trump (2017-2021) U.S. v. Skrmetti oral arguments (12/4/24) L.W. v. Skrmetti (6th Cir)(7/8/2023) President Yoon's Speech Declaring Martial Law in South Korea - The New York Times (12/3/24) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do! If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!
Trump's Intelligence Picks - Doozies and Russian Assets
Trump's Staff Infection, part 4 plus T3BE50! Lydia Smith joins us once again to take us through another volume of Trump's Staff Infection. This time, we focus on the Intelligence Agencies. Then, it's T3BE50! Submit your answer on Bluesky or Reddit! Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do! If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!
Please Stop Spreading Panic About Denaturalization
Denaturalization and an executive order revoking birthright citizenship for children of undocumented parents have both been in the news a lot recently, and Matt would like everyone to take a breath and do some realistic risk assessment. We review what it actually takes to denaturalize someone under our current system, and what it would take for a majority of even this Supreme Court to say that the Fourteenth Amendment doesn't say exactly what it says. Departure Statement of Wong Kim Ark, National Archives San Francisco U.S. v Wong Kim Ark, 169 US 649 (1898) Trump announcement on birthright citizenship executive order, Agenda 47 (2024) Birthright Citizens: a History of Race and Rights in Antebellum History, Martha Jones (2018) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do! If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!
Drakesgiving Special
In this episode recorded on Thanksgiving Day, two vegetarians carve up the Canadian turkey born Aubrey Drake Graham. Are Drake's exploratory legal actions against Universal Music in response to Kendrick Lamar's "Not Like Us" the weakest move in the history of rap beefs? Matt shares some of his favorite diss tracks before we consider these filings and how Drake thought he could possibly come out of this looking good. We also take a look at Jack Smith's motion to dismiss both of the federal criminal cases against the 47th President-elect of the United States, and what we can learn about the possible future (?) of these cases from both his motion and DC federal judge Tanya Chutkan's order granting it. Finally, in today's footnote Thomas provides valuable evidence for the prospective plaintiffs in a cease and desist demand recently made against the ONLY guitar endorsed by Donald Trump. Government's Motion to Dismiss in U.S. v. Trump (11/25/240 Judge Chutkan's order on government's motion to dismiss U.S. v. Trump (11/25/24) OLC memo on immunity for sitting presidents (10/16/2000) OLC memo on presidential self-pardons (8/5/1974) Verified Petition in Frozen Moments LLC v UMG/Spotify (NY Drake payola filing)(11/25/24) Verified Petition seeking depositions in TX (TX Drake defamation filing)(11/25/24) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do! If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!
What It Really Takes To Immigrate "The Right Way"
We are honored to welcome Somali-American author and advocate Abdi Nor Iftin for the first of a 2-part Thanksgiving episode dedicated with gratitude to the incredible efforts that so many naturalized Americans have made to be a part of this country. Abdi has recorded the full story of his life in his book Call Me American, in which he details the long journey from his escape from being forced into service as a child soldier in war-torn Somalia to his years as a refugee in Kenya before winning the U.S. diversity visa lottery and building a thoroughly American life in one of the last states you might expect. In this extended interview we get to know Abdi as he shares his story and his unique perspective on what the current American moment means for him and his community. Call Me American: A Memoir,: Abdi Nor Iftin (2018) "Now is the time to buckle up and fight, not to flee," Abdi Nor Iftin, The Forecaster (11/19/24) "Abdi and the Golden Ticket," This American Life (7/3/2015) Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do! If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!
"The Right Way" Part 2
OA1092 plus T3BE49 - we continue our conversation with Somali-American author and advocate Abdi Nor Iftin. Then, it's answer time for T3BE question 48, and our new question 49! Play along on BlueSky! Check out the OA Linktree for all the places to go and things to do! If you'd like to support the show (and lose the ads!), please pledge at patreon.com/law!