March 22, 2025

How Love Wins This Week (Mar 22, 2025)

Hard Wins: Cases won, orders issued, legislation passed, etc.

• Federal Judge James Boasberg granted a TRO blocking the Trump administration's invocation of wartime powers to justify deportations and has been taking the government's lawyers to task for the administration's failure to comply with the court's orders. 'Woefully insufficient': Federal judge accuses Justice Department of evading 'obligations' to comply with deportation flights request [ABC News]
• A federal judge rejected the Trump administration’s attempt to dismiss Mahmoud Khalil’s deportation challenge, ruling that his case must be heard in New Jersey, where he was initially detained. A judge has moved a jailed Palestinian activist’s deportation fight to New Jersey [AP]; ‘I am a political prisoner’: Mahmoud Khalil says he’s being targeted for political beliefs [The Guardian]
• A federal judge in Maryland ruled that DOGE's attempts so far to unilaterally dismantle the agency USAID likely violated the Constitution in “multiple ways.” While the judge recognized that the agency's actual leadership could proceed with similar wind-down actions through its own actual authority, the ruling was a rebuke to the overreach of DOGE and the administration's dodgy attempts to recharacterize Elon Musk's responsibilities after widely publicizing his leadership role. Judge rules DOGE’s USAID dismantling likely violates the Constitution [AP]; Stand Down, Elon Musk [The Status Kuo]
• A D.C. federal judge blocked the EPA from terminating $14 billion dollars in previously-awarded grants to finance clean energy and climate-friendly projects. Judge blocks Trump administration from terminating $14 billion in ‘green bank’ grants [AP]
• A federal judge has held unconstitutional Texas's restrictive ID requirements for mail ballot applications, along with burdensome provisions around assistance provided to voters with accessibility needs. Federal judge strikes down Texas' mail ballot ID requirement [Texas Public Radio]
• A Maryland federal judge has at least temporarily blocked DOGE from accessing sensitive Social Security data. DOGE blocked in court from Social Security systems with Americans’ personal information, for now [AP]
• A D.C. federal judge blocked the Trump executive order banning trans people from serving in the military. Federal judge blocks Trump administration from banning transgender people from military service [AP]; “Soaked in Animus”: Federal Judges Strikes Down Trump’s Trans Military Ban [Erin in the Morning]
• An Ohio Court of Appeals panel ruled that the state’s ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth violates the Ohio Constitution. Appeals court blocks Ohio’s ban on gender-affirming care for minors [AP]; Ohio Appeals Court Rules Trans Care Is Healthcare, Strikes Down Ban For Trans Youth [Erin in the Morning]

Soft Wins: Cases filed, legislation introduced, etc.

• Top House Democrats seek DOGE details, questioning if it operates ‘outside the bounds’ of US law [AP]

Fighting the Good Fight: Protests, unofficial actions, and inspiration

• 'We Don’t Want an AI Demo, We Want Answers’: Federal Workers Grill Trump Appointee During All-Hands [Wired]
• Rep. Mike Flood of Nebraska is the latest GOP member of Congress to face angry crowds back home [AP]
• Some voters are pushing back on lawmakers’ efforts to overturn citizen ballot initiatives [AP]
• A good explainer from Gabe Fleischer of the importance of the judicial branch: Alexander Hamilton Saw This Coming [Wake Up to Politics]
• From history: Finnish artist Tove Jansson, creator of the Moomin universe, also stood up against fascism: Tove Jansson's Paradise [Creative Fuel]

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