Opening Arguments

On today's show, Mitchell Epner returns to help Andrew and Liz break down two New York stories: first, the allegations surrounding Trump's media company that produces "Truth Social," and second, E. Jean Carroll's efforts to amend her pending defamation lawsuit against Donald Trump to add claims related to Trump's comments at the CNN "Town Social" in light of the prior verdict. Oh, and the "Truth Social" story involves Devin Nunes because of course it does. Notes OA 732 https://openargs.com/oa-732-court-calls-bullsht-on-devin-nunes-cowsuit/ E. Jean Carroll Motion to Amend https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.543790/gov.uscourts.nysd.543790.156.0_1.pdf TMTG v. WP Company https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23819045-trump-media-v-wapo-complaint Nunes v. Guardian https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/23828415/nunes-v-guardian-complaint.pdf WaPo article, “Trust linked to porn-friendly bank could gain a stake in Trump’s Truth Social” https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/05/13/trump-truth-social-loan-questions/ Guardian Article https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/mar/15/trump-media-investigated-possible-money-laundering  -Support us on Patreon at: patreon.com/law -Follow us on Twitter:  @Openargs -Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/openargs/ -For show-related questions, check out the Opening Arguments Wiki, which now has its own Twitter feed!  @oawiki -And finally, remember that you can email us at openarguments@gmail.com

Liz and Andrew update you on a bunch of stories, including today's breaking news regarding the sentencing of Stewart Rhodes and the Texas Legislature committee referring out articles of impeachment for AG Ken Paxton. Notes OA 693 https://openargs.com/oa693-mike-pence-cant-testify-against-trump-cause-hes-a-senator-now/ OA 698 https://openargs.com/oa698-will-clarence-thomas-break-the-internet-probably-not/ OA 723 https://openargs.com/oa723-right-wing-judges-take-the-money-and-run-away-with-your-civil-rights/ OA 746 https://openargs.com/oa746-derp-off-dersh-off-2-sidney-powell-vs-kari-lake/ Investigators detail years of alleged misconduct by Texas AG Ken Paxton in stunning House committee hearing https://www.texastribune.org/2023/05/24/ken-paxton-abuse-power-house-investigation-texas/ Kari Lake ruling https://www.democracydocket.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/CV2022-095403-926-05222023-PDF.pdf Kari Lake War Room tweet 5/23 tweet https://twitter.com/KariLakeWarRoom/status/1661095473695035392?s=20 May 8 Senate Judiciary Letter to Harlan Crow https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/May%208,%202023%20letter%20to%20Harlan%20Crow16.pdf  May 22 letter from Gibson Dunn to Durbin re Harlan Crow https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/23822175/crow-letter.pdf 5 U.S.C. § 13103 https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/5/13103 -Support us on Patreon at: patreon.com/law -Follow us on Twitter:  @Openargs -Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/openargs/ -For show-related questions, check out the Opening Arguments Wiki, which now has its own Twitter feed!  @oawiki -And finally, remember that you can email us at openarguments@gmail.com

This is it! Liz and Andrew break down the debt ceiling and what can be done about it, including the Fourteenth Amendment. You'll want to share this far and wide! In the Patreon bonus, Liz and Andrew tackle a stupendously bad article arguing against the application of the 14th Amendment. NOTES OA 736 https://openargs.com/oa736-scotus-tees-up-rancid-herring-case-to-gut-the-administrative-state/ 31 U.S.C § 3101 https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/31/3101 Congressional Research Service, Debt limit votes 1978 to present https://sp.fas.org/crs/misc/R41814.pdf Congressional Research Service, The Gephardt Rule https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/RL/RL31913 HR 3877 https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/3877/text Perry v. U.S., 294 U.S. 330 (1935) https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=3388791031923623137 EO 6102 notice https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a1/Executive_Order_6102.jpg Laurence Tribe, “A Ceiling We Can’t Wish Away,” New York Times, July 7, 2011 https://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/08/opinion/08tribe.html

In this (almost entirely!) Trump-free episode, Liz and Andrew break down two major steps backwards for Meatball Ron DeSantis: an own goal in his ongoing losing Woke War Against Disney, and a major setback by a group looking to aid his (doomed) 2024 Presidential bid. You won't want to miss it! In the Patreon bonus, Liz and Andrew give an update on the ongoing efforts to hold MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell accountable for his $5 million "Prove Mike Wrong" challenge when he was, in fact, very very wrong. Notes OA 734 https://openargs.com/oa-734-disney-v-desantis-you-mess-with-the-mouse-you-get-the-ears/ OA 717 https://openargs.com/oa717-lock-him-up-4-trump-gets-indicted-desantis-gets-spanked/ OA 614 https://openargs.com/oa614-the-fec-is-corrupt-and-broken-biden-has-inexplicably-neglected-to-fix-it/ Disney MTD CFTOD complaint https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/23816386/disney-mtd.pdf Federal Election Campaign Act, 52 U.S.C. §§ 30101 et seq. https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/52/30101 11 C.F.R. § 100.72 https://www.fec.gov/regulations/100-72/2022-annual-100 Ready For Ron v. FEC docket https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/65639515/ready-for-ron-v-federal-election-commission/ Ready For Ron complaint https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.248664/gov.uscourts.dcd.248664.1.0_1.pdf Ready For Ron rulinghttps://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.248664/gov.uscourts.dcd.248664.30.0.pdf Carey v. FEC, 791 F.Supp.2d 121 (D.D.C. 2011) https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=2459277047400624208 (Hilariously, the Ready for Ron complaint manages to cite the wrong Carey case and also gets the year wrong.)

It's Sanctions Day! After a quick listener question, Liz and Andrew discuss the recent attorney grievance complaint against the Krakenlawyers in Michigan and what everyone's favorite li'l election-denying weirdo, Kari Lake, has been up to. (Spoiler alert: nothing good.) Notes OA 673 https://openargs.com/oa673-dont-sanction-me-im-old-dersh/ OA 678 https://openargs.com/oa678-dershs-sanctions-defense-somehow-keeps-getting-worse/ OA 728 https://openargs.com/oa728-fox-blinks-first/ King v. Whitmer sanctions video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWiuX9CPOSA King v. Whitmer sanctions transcript https://openargs.com/wp-content/uploads/Sanctions-hearing-transcript.pdf King v. Whitmer sanctions ruling https://casetext.com/case/king-v-whitmer-7 King v. Whitmer docket https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/18693929/king-v-whitmer/ Texas attorney grievance procedures https://www.texasbar.com/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Disciplinary_Process_Overview&Template=/CM/HTMLDisplay.cfm&ContentID=29470#reciprocal Lake v. Hobbs state docket https://www.clerkofcourt.maricopa.gov/records/election-2022/cv2022-095403 Lake v. Hobbs complaint https://www.clerkofcourt.maricopa.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/4151/638064516668500000 Arizona Supreme Court ruling in Lake v. Hobbs https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/23720629/orderrepetitionforreview-4731530-0.pdf Lake v. Fontes https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.azd.1294569/gov.uscourts.azd.1294569.3.0_1.pdf Lake v. Fontes Sanctions order https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.azd.1294569/gov.uscourts.azd.1294569.106.0_2.pdf Lake v. Fontes attorneys’ fees https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.azd.1294569/gov.uscourts.azd.1294569.107.6.pdf -Support us on Patreon at: patreon.com/law -Follow us on Twitter:  @Openargs -Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/openargs/ -For show-related questions, check out the Opening Arguments Wiki, which now has its own Twitter feed!  @oawiki -And finally, remember that you can email us at openarguments@gmail.com

Liz and Andrew break down Special Counsel John Durham's report, which resulted in zero convictions in four years and makes no new recommendations for any change to any FBI policy - but continues to peddle long-debunked conspiracy theories about how the FBI is in cahoots with Hillary Clinton. Sure, Jan. Notes Durham report https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/23813392/durhamreport.pdf Durham Appointment Order https://www.justice.gov/d9/fieldable-panel-panes/basic-panes/attachments/2021/02/26/durham.order_.pdf Durham Statement On IG Report  https://www.justice.gov/usao-ct/pr/statement-us-attorney-john-h-durham New York Times, “How Barr’s Quest to Find Flaws in the Russia Inquiry Unraveled” https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/26/us/politics/durham-trump-russia-barr.html -Support us on Patreon at: patreon.com/law -Follow us on Twitter:  @Openargs -Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/openargs/ -For show-related questions, check out the Opening Arguments Wiki, which now has its own Twitter feed!  @oawiki -And finally, remember that you can email us at openarguments@gmail.com

Liz and Andrew welcome Lawfare's Anna Bower to the podcast to break down everything going on with the potential indictment of Donald Trump in Fulton County, Georgia, with a focus on Trump's recent motion to quash the Special Purpose Grand Jury report, DA Fani Willis's response, and more! Notes Fulton County docket http://www.fultonclerk.org/DocumentCenter/Index/94?Grid-orderBy=LastModifiedDate-desc Anna Bower, Lawfare, "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Georgia Special Purpose Grand Juries But Were Afraid to Ask" https://www.lawfareblog.com/everything-you-ever-wanted-know-about-georgia-special-purpose-grand-juries-were-afraid-ask Anna Bower's columns: https://www.lawfareblog.com/contributors/abower -Support us on Patreon at: patreon.com/law -Follow us on Twitter:  @Openargs -Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/openargs/ -For show-related questions, check out the Opening Arguments Wiki, which now has its own Twitter feed!  @oawiki -And finally, remember that you can email us at openarguments@gmail.com

Liz and Andrew update you on the latest developments in Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg's criminal case against Donald Trump as well as Peter Strzok's ongoing civil suit against the DOJ. Notes OA 700 https://openargs.com/oa700-rumors-of-trumps-testimony-in-strzok-suit-may-be-greatly-exaggerated/ OA 716 https://openargs.com/oa-716-jim-jordan-is-not-alvin-braggs-daddy/ Trump Protective Order https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/23807787/protective-order-5-8-23.pdf Trump notice of removal https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.598311/gov.uscourts.nysd.598311.1.0_1.pdf 5 U.S.C. § 552a https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/5/552a 28 U.S.C. § 1442 https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/28/1442 28 U.S.C. § 1455 https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/28/1455  In re Commonwealth,  790 F.3d 457 (3d Cir. 2015) https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=5539437264593415986 Jordan 3/20 Letter to Bragg https://judiciary.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/republicans-judiciary.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/2023-03-20-jdj-bs-jc-to-bragg-re-trump-investigation.pdf -Support us on Patreon at: patreon.com/law -Follow us on Twitter:  @Openargs -Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/openargs/ -For show-related questions, check out the Opening Arguments Wiki, which now has its own Twitter feed!  @oawiki -And finally, remember that you can email us at openarguments@gmail.com

In light of Linda Yaccarino being named CEO of Twitter, Liz and Andrew break down Trumpworld's never-ending lawsuits against social media, and yet another defamation suit against Fox News, this one by Nina Jankowicz. Happy Mother's Day! For the Patreon bonus, we discuss beer, the Superbowl, and Rule 62.1 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, because of course we do. Notes OA 551 https://openargs.com/oa551-trump-may-out-of-office-but-his-federal-judges-are-not/ Donato dismissal Trump v. Twitter https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cand.387133/gov.uscourts.cand.387133.165.0_6.pdf Trump v. Twitter, Motion for Indicative Ruling https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cand.387133/gov.uscourts.cand.387133.191.0.pdf FRCP 62.1 https://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/frcp/rule_62.1 Jankowicz federal docket https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/67365497/jankowicz-v-fox-news-network-llc/ Jankowicz complaint https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23809394-jankowicz-v-fox-complaint -Support us on Patreon at: patreon.com/law -Follow us on Twitter:  @Openargs -Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/openargs/ -For show-related questions, check out the Opening Arguments Wiki, which now has its own Twitter feed!  @oawiki -And finally, remember that you can email us at openarguments@gmail.com

Liz and Andrew break down the latest developments in Fulton County, GA; some truly terrible takes on the E. Jean Carroll verdict by Alan Dershowitz; and the indictment of Congressman Astronaut Rabbi George Santos. Be there, will be wild! NotesOA 738 https://openargs.com/oa-738-trump-flops-proud-boys-drop/ Surveillance footage of Cathy Latham https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2022/09/20/coffee-county-georgia-cathy-latham/ SPGJ report sections made public http://www.fultonclerk.org/DocumentCenter/View/1706/EX-PARTE-ORDER-OF-THE-JUDGE-2-16-2023-Report Willis Modification of Motion to Disqualify Debrow http://www.fultonclerk.org/DocumentCenter/View/1918/SPGJ--STATES-MODIFICATION-OF-MOTION-TO-DISQUALIFY-5-10-23 Shafer letter Fulton County https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/23800972/shafer-final-march-26-letter-to-da-willis-w-exhibits.pdf FEC Complaint - Santos https://campaignlegal.org/sites/default/files/2023-01/Campaign%20Legal%20Center%20-%20Santos%20Complaint%20%28Final%29.pdf Santos indictment https://www.justice.gov/d9/2023-05/santos.indictment.pdf 18 U.S.C. § 1343 https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1343 Federal Sentencing Guidelines https://www.ussc.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/guidelines-manual/2021/GLMFull.pdf -Support us on Patreon at: patreon.com/law -Follow us on Twitter:  @Openargs -Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/openargs/ -For show-related questions, check out the Opening Arguments Wiki, which now has its own Twitter feed!  @oawiki -And finally, remember that you can email us at openarguments@gmail.com