Cristian Farias

You don’t need to have a take about everything, every day. Be free.

You can always count on at least one Trump judge — in this case, Judge Patrick Bumatay — to lend his vote, and veneer of legitimacy, to the wildest, hackiest, and Trumpiest legal theories in the history of U.S. law.

The producers were freaking out with the turtleneck. 10/10 no notes.

I lightly listened to this oral argument while going to vote, to the library, and food-shopping — yes, it was that long — and my only thought is that the theory that a federal criminal statute prohibiting one specific form of voting can be used to enjoin a state from tabulating votes is … overreach.

I didn’t know who “Shemar Moore”was, but the bug control person who came to my door thought I looked like him. I’ll allow it.

Mean-mugging with @elienyc.bsky.social

🚨🚨🚨 Q: Is there any scenario in which DOJ would try to block states from certifying the election? AG TODD BLANCHE: Yes, of course. It is not DOJ's intention to improperly interfere with elections or the state certification process, but ...

I think we need to move away from the framing that these candidates/elected officials "believe" 2020 was stolen. They *say* 2020 was stolen *knowing* that it wasn't. That's worse.

Here's the non-watermarked order: storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us... I do wonder if the Ninth Circuit will limit the scope of the preliminary injunction since, post-Trump v. CASA, judges aren't allowed to do big, multi-state injunctions anymore, and this isn't a multi-state lawsuit.

During the next Reconstruction, the Justice Department must be smashed to bits, sold for parts, and whatever emerges in its place called something else.

NEW: Nearly 200 people granted pardons or other clemency by President Trump for Jan. 6 riot prosecutions are suing so far for millions in US payouts. More than a quarter were convicted of assaulting or interfering with police, court records show. Deep dive: buff.ly/keDq09P

SCOTUS making its first move to go after race-neutral high school admissions standards:

May 2017

DOJ's woeful attempt to disqualify Judge Reyes in the golf course case is rightly DENIED We will see the Trump administration in court bright and early Monday morning on our preliminary injunction motion!

“Yes, we’re finally in a constitutional crisis. And yes, democracy hangs on the line. But before I give you my exclusive legal analysis of what is happening, you must become a paid subscriber.” More or less something I just read before I hit a paywall.

The only thing I’ll add to this fine statement is that vindictive prosecutions are now a feature, not a bug, of our constitutional system, thanks to Trump v. United States. Unless and until Congress adopts deep, structural measures, presidential harassment through the criminal system won’t go away.

too often trump v us is understood as just giving trump/presidents immunity from criminal process. horrible as that is, the decision opened up broad admin wide lawlessness. we will live with the consequences until it’s finally reversed, which eventually it must be.

This is true and true in a way that "well it wasn't actually that broad a decision" misses. Trump v. US was, and has had the effect of, the Roberts Court's political endorsement of total executive lawlessness and corruption far beyond the four corners of any direct application to prosecuting Trump.

The only thing I’ll note is that, as @dieworkwear.bsky.social is fond of reminding us, you never, ever pair a four-in-hand knot with a ghastly, super-spread collar. Actual, actionable wisdom you can use.

Watch this whole video. All the way to the end.

The case for a vindictive prosecution is only getting stronger. The Kilmar Ábrego García criminal prosecution fell apart after Todd Blanche started running his mouth on Fox News.

Surprising no one, the show trial the White House has set up as the “process” before firing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook is closed to the public and the press and will be headed by cronies, including the chairman of the employment agency who wants to root out discrimination against white men.

“Under the terms of the warrant, prosecutors were supposed to inform Omar's lawyers about the protocol for protecting legislative records, but that has not ​happened, one of the people said.”

Semi-relatedly: I still marvel that not a single Republican state attorney general that wanted the 2020 election overturned in key battleground states faced any professional repercussions for their stance. As someone once said: “RAGA rhymes with MAGA.”

Here’s one of the policies Marcy is referencing here: www.justice.gov/jm/jm-9-8500...

There was a time, back when there were rules and norms, when any federal law enforcement action related to political candidates in the immediate lead-up to the election was expressly forbidden. We don’t live in such a time. www.justice.gov/jm/jm-9-8500...

This is the first time I see anyone report that back in 2020, Justice Samuel Alito personally lobbied the local government in his New Jersey hometown of Trenton to preserve a statue of Christopher Columbus the community and its leaders wanted removed. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/11/o...

Justice Samuel Alito will notice. He’s a huge stan of Cristoforo Colombo and his likeness: www.nytimes.com/2026/10/11/o...

No running, they said.

I just got out of ‘14th,’ Ava DuVernay’s new Netflix documentary out in December, premiering today at the New York Film Festival. I won’t review it here, but its undisputed star is @sifill.bsky.social, whom the director introduced as “the Meryl Streep of our film.” And that’s not an overstatement.

a livestreamed execution is just a lynching

I think people should listen to what the administration trying to bring back spectacle lynchings, race riots, and middle passage-esque deportation voyages are trying to tell you about themselves. bsky.app/profile/bren...

Fun fact: Tesla went with a giant touchscreen instead of knobs for the Model 3 purely to save time and money. Knobs would have required spinning up a whole supply chain. The company spun it as a luxury feature and much of the industry followed suit. But it was always an inferior substitute.

“Attending a live CLE webinar from the beach. Is that lawyerly?” A meta CLE course on ethics, taught by Cristian Farías.

The IceCube neutrino detector has won the 2026 Nobel Prize in physics. The Trump administration has proposed slashing its budget in half in 2027.

Relative got a $500 check from US Treasury and a shocking letter full of lies signed by Trump and ending with "May God bless you". Basically a pre-electoral bribe. News reports say they're sending almost a million of these. Full text in alt below. (I told him to cash it quick before it bounces.)

“Snap back to reality, oops, there goes gravity” Supreme Court term about to start

A Haitian man legally immigrated to Ohio, then was given an ankle monitor bc Trump withdrew his status. He threw himself in front of truck. The trucker, who voted for Trump, is haunted. “Pierre was doing what he was supposed to do. We did not do right by him.” www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...

New personal policy: If a publication I write for doesn’t have free gift links for me to share with people, I’ll make one of those annoying “Reporter Reads” videos off a teleprompter and put it up freely. Fair is fair! Upside: You get a load of my imperfect accent and perfectly symmetrical mug.

Yes, I did go in.

Before people make up lies about the common law, aliens in England had the right to not be detained indefinitely and could challenge their imprisonment.

Over dissents from the three Democratic appointees, #SCOTUS *grants* Tennessee's request to vacate the stay of execution the Sixth Circuit had entered in the case of Christa Pike, clearing the way for her execution: www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25p...

Someone called me a “lawtino” unironically, and I need to sit with that for a moment. It’s Hispanic Heritage Month, so I may just allow it.