Amicus With Dahlia Lithwick | Law, justice, and the courts Trump’s Tariffs Overturned
106 snips
Feb 21, 2026 
RonNell Andersen Jones, a law professor focused on press freedom, and Sonja West, a First Amendment scholar, join Mark Joseph Stern, legal journalist and analyst. They unpack the Supreme Court striking down sweeping presidential tariffs and probe the shrinking protection for the press. Short, sharp conversations cover statutory limits on executive power and how attacks on journalism have shifted from words to regulatory and financial pressure.
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Press Clause Was A Structural Bulwark
- Framers prioritized press freedom as a structural right to enable self-governance and check power.
- Over time the press clause blurred with free speech and lost distinct protections for news-gathering practices.
Escalation From Rhetoric To Lawfare
- The second Trump term shows escalation from rhetoric to targeted institutional and economic tactics against media.
- Strategies include lawfare, regulatory pressure, access cuts, and financial strangulation of news outlets.
Equal Time Rule Has Narrowed Over Decades
- The equal time rule traces to broadcast regulation but has been relaxed, enabling partisan talk radio and complicating late-night obligations.
- The administration pressured the FCC to reinterpret exceptions, influencing networks like CBS.
