Opening Arguments

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=

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, Jul

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.

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#recipr

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!  @o

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 openarg

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

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-co

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 Sa

Liz and Andrew bring on former sex crimes prosecutor and New York attorney Mitchell Epner for a discussion of the breaking civil verdict awarding E. Jean Carroll $5 million for Trump's assault and subsequent defamation. We go WAY beyond the regular media coverage; you won't want to miss this episode! This episode is a paid post on Patreon and was released early to supporters. Notes Carroll verdict form (blank) https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/23808239/carrollvtrumpverdictform.pdf Screenshots of actual verdict form (Pagliery tweet) https://twitter.com/Jose_Pagliery/status/1656020932031389697?s=20 Trump depo testimony - full video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DkU49iYkw2A -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

Today, Liz and Andrew interview Cary Joshi and Brian Glasser of Bailey Glasser, who successfully won a $5 million arbitration award against Mike Lindell for claims of election fraud data.   Notes Prove Mike Wrong Challenge Official Rules https://openargs.com/wp-content/uploads/Prove-Mike-Wrong-Challenge-Official-Rules.pdf   Arbitration Award  https://www.washingtonpost.com/documents/a68b42f4-d5dc-4ff9-b34e-84d52fa3fc32.pdf?itid=lk_inline_manual_11 -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

Today, Liz and Andrew check in on three stories we've previously covered: the conclusion of the E. Jean Carroll lawsuit against Donald Trump; the recent convictions of the Proud Boys in connection with the January 6 insurrection; and what's going on in Fulton County, Georgia. It's a whirlwind and you don't want to miss it! In the Patreon bonus, Andrew and Liz discuss what really happened in Hawaii in 1960 and why it doesn't help the insurrectionists no matter what John Eastman tells you. NOTES OA 728 https://openargs.com/oa728-fox-blinks-first/ Wikipedia on Georgia post-election lawsuits https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post-election_lawsuits_related_to_the_2020_United_States_presidential_election_from_Georgia Fake electors transmittal https://www.archives.gov/files/foia/ga-full.pdf Fulton County docket http://www.fultonclerk.org/DocumentCenter/Index/94?Grid-orderBy=LastModifiedDate-desc July 2022 Motion to Quash subpoenas http://www.fultonclerk.org/DocumentCenter/View/1222/MOTION-TO-QUASH-AND-DI

Today, Liz and Andrew discuss the latest ethical lapse from Clarence Thomas, as well as the horrible activism of the next Republican Supreme Court nominee, Stu Duncan. In the Patreon bonus, Liz and Andrew break down the latest sanctions issued against Donald Trump in New York. -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 just-filed lawsuit by Disney with respect to Ron DeSantis and his Republican buddies' shenanigans in Florida. Who will prevail? Listen and find out! This photograph of a Famous Mouse was taken 21 April 2009 by Marcus Quigmire of Florida and originally posted to Flickr. It was downloaded by Opening Arguments Media, LLC on April 27, 2023 from Wikimedia Commons and is used without modification under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-SA 2.0) license, which is linked below. No endorsement by any other party than Opening Arguments Media, LLC is implied. CC License of Famous Mouse https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/legalcode Original source for Famous Mouse (Wikimedia Commons) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Famous_mouse_%283463764209%29.jpg Notes OA 717 https://openargs.com/oa717-lock-him-up-4-trump-gets-indicted-desantis-gets-spanked/ Disney v. DeSantis complaint https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/23789600/file-stamped-dis

Liz and Andrew take a look at a letter sent by Donald Trump's lawyers to House Republicans and bring back expert National Security Lawyer Kel McClanahan to help answer all their questions about Trump's dubious assertions about how the National Archives should have handled the Mar-a-Lago documents. Notes In re Sealed Case (Pence-Boasberg) https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/67164305/in-re-sealed-case/?order_by=desc Parlatore Trump letter https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/23789802/read-trump-lawyers-letter-to-congress-reveal-foreign-leader-briefings-may-be-among-classified-documents-taken-from-white-house.pdf Less-redacted search warrant https://openargs.com/wp-content/uploads/Reinhart-Mar-a-Lago-less-redacted-affidavit.pdf NARA Oct. 11, 2022 statement https://www.archives.gov/press/press-releases/2022/nr22-001#october-11-2022 Debra Steidel Wall 1/17/23 letter to Jim Comer https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/23575130/nara-response-to-rep-james-comer.pdf 18 USC §793(e) https://www.law.

Liz and Andrew give a brief update on how it's going for Donald Trump in the E. Jean Carroll defamation lawsuit. (Spoiler alert: not good! Like, contempt of court not good.) Then, the duo break down the trial court's grant of summary judgment in favor of Ryan Lizza in the LOLsuit filed by former Representative and guy-who-sued-an-Internet-cow-and-lost, Devin Nunes. It's informative AND hilarious! In the Patreon bonus, we tell you how the omniversal fear of Antonin Scalia created modern supplemental jurisdiction law! Notes Nunes v. Lizza Order https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.iand.55763/gov.uscourts.iand.55763.149.0.pdf  Eighth Circuit holding https://ecf.ca8.uscourts.gov/opndir/21/09/202710P.pdf Devin Nunes’s Family Farm Is Hiding a Politically Explosive Secret https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/a23471864/devin-nunes-family-farm-iowa-california/ -Support us on Patreon at: patreon.com/law -Follow us on Twitter:  @Openargs -Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/openargs/

Liz and Andrew break down the other Fox News lawsuit (by Abby Grossberg) that probably contributed to Tucker Carlson's firing, and then a hilarious arbitration loss for The Pillow Guy. You won't want to miss it! Notes OA 715 https://openargs.com/oa715-fox-blunders-into-dumpster-fire-lawsuit-no-a-different-one/ New Grossberg 2nd Amended Complaint https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/23774175/grossberg-de-court-second-amended-complaint-and-exhibit-a-1.pdf Grossberg federal complaint https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.595940/gov.uscourts.nysd.595940.1.0.pdf Grossberg DE docket https://courtconnect.courts.delaware.gov/cc/cconnect/ck_public_qry_doct.cp_dktrpt_frames?backto=P&case_id=N23C-03-180&begin_date=&end_date= Arbitration award against Mike Lindell https://www.washingtonpost.com/documents/a68b42f4-d5dc-4ff9-b34e-84d52fa3fc32.pdf?itid=lk_inline_manual_11 -Support us on Patreon at: patreon.com/law -Follow us on Twitter:  @Openargs -Facebook:  https://w

Liz and Andrew update a bunch of stories they've been tracking before breaking down exactly what the Supreme Court's Friday night stay in the mifepristone case means... and exactly how unhinged Samuel Alito's dissent was.   In the Patreon bonus, Liz and Andrew do a deep dive on the shady behaviors of Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk. Notes OA 712 https://openargs.com/oa712-lock-him-up-3-rise-of-the-machines/ OA 714 https://openargs.com/oa714-gonna-be-hard-for-steve-bannons-sugar-daddy-to-write-those-checks-from-prison/ OA 717 https://openargs.com/oa717-lock-him-up-4-trump-gets-indicted-desantis-gets-spanked/ OA 729 https://openargs.com/oa729-bragg-loses-a-round-trump-loses-five/ SB 1604 Amendment https://myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Documents/loaddoc.aspx?FileName=603230.DOCX&DocumentType=Amendments&BillNumber=1604&Session=2023 DOJ Letter Motion re: protective order https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.595325/gov.uscourts.nysd.595325.49.0.pdf The Jurisprudence of the Bod