The Sunday Morning Wrap-Up

Here’s the highlight reel of the past week’s posts and events. Grab a cup of coffee (or two, it was that kind of week again) and get ready to catch up on anything you may have missed.

• The Week Ahead: With the State of the Union looming, we started the week with a look at that along with other important legal developments including the death of Ruben Ray Martinez, a U.S. citizen, at the hands of federal agents in Texas during a traffic stop last March, only coming to light now due to a FOIA request; ongoing reports of deaths at ICE-run facilities in Texas; the likely ongoing legal battle over tariffs; Judge Aileen Cannon’s ruling barring the release of Volume II of Jack Smith’s special counsel report involving classified documents; and more.

• Live with Miles Taylor: Counterprogramming SOTU: Miles Taylor of Defiance.org joined me to talk about the organization’s “State of the Swamp,” a rebuttal to SOTU with real-time fact-checking, Portland frogs, and more. Our conversation touched on working across party and ideology differences protect democratic principles and on embracing joyful defiance and lighthearted humor to combat the absurdity of this moment.

• If DOJ is Trump’s Law Firm, Aileen Cannon is His Judge: Judge Aileen Cannon’s order barring the release of Volume II of Jack Smith’s special counsel report is only the latest development in the long history of the case. We deep dive into that history of (very) questionable rulings and their pattern of favoring Trump.

• How to Watch the State of the Union Address: We touched on Miles Taylor’s SOTU counterprogramming and then we all connected on Substack Notes as we watched (or didn’t watch) the address, which made it more tolerable for me.

• SOTU: I watched in case you just couldn’t. Read here for my in-the-moment analysis and a few hot takes.

• The Other Red Hat: We turned our focus to two of my favorite things—knitting and craftivism, to learn how knitters in Minneapolis have begun a new red hat movement called Melt the ICE, inspired by citizens of Norway who wore red knitted caps as an act of resistance during the Nazi occupation of their country. With links to a pattern (or to finished products for non-knitters), you can get involved too. MAGA does not own the color red.

• The SAVE Act Is Dead, Fulton County Is Fighting Back; So, Of Course, Trump Wants To Seize Control Of The Election: The good news of the day was the legislative failure of the SAVE Act, along with a significant order from Judge J.P. Boulee in the Georgia case in which Fulton County election officials want their election records back from DOJ. Meanwhile, reports of a draft executive order declaring an “emergency” (read: opportunity for Trump power grab) based on the false claim that China interfered in the 2020 elections are very concerning.

• Substack Live with Former Senator John Tester and Journalist Maritsa Georgiou: I joined John Tester and his podcast co-host Maritsa Georgiou to discuss my book and the news of the day. And we had fun. It’s hard to believe because it’s been such a serious, somber week. But we agreed Trump can’t be permitted to take the fun out of our lives, even as we’re forced to fight for democracy.

• Five Questions with Alabama Journalist Kyle Whitmire: Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Kyle Whitmire joined us to discuss the evolution of journalism, the war on dumb, the war on truth, and how Alabama can be a Rosetta Stone for developments nationwide. And if you collect stories of Republican hypocrisy around voter fraud, this one is for you, with Kyle’s brilliant reporting on an Alabama Republican candidate to be lieutenant governor.

• Live with Ruth Ben-Ghiat: No one speaks more eloquently about the art of resistance and why we shouldn’t give up than historian Ruth Ben-Ghiat. If you need a shot of encouragement, watch our conversation, and make sure you stay to the end, where she provides precisely the encouragement I needed.

• The Law of War: In light of the strikes on Iran, we revisit some bedrock principles—why the rule of law exists, why it restrains all of us (especially the powerful), and why “doing whatever feels good in the moment” has never been a substitute for constitutional order, especially when it comes to war.

These are complicated legal times, and it’s easy for the truth to get lost in the chaos. Civil Discourse doesn’t just track today’s headlines—it connects them to the legal and political history that explains why they matter. We won’t forget what’s at stake, or let Trump and his allies rewrite the past. You can subscribe to Civil Discourse for free and get clear analysis that helps you see the whole picture, delivered straight to your inbox. If you’re in a position to, your paid subscription helps me devote the time and resources it takes to write the newsletter. That means everyone has access to information they can share with friends and family—a constructive act we can all participate in right now, helping more Americans understand how critical this moment is.

We’re in this together,

Joyce