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In It to Win It
In It to Win It's Journal
In It to Win It's Journal
June 25, 2026
Hasan sits down with law professor and host of @strictscrutinypodcast Kate Shaw, to discuss the shadow docket, the gutting of the Voting Rights Act, and a few other ways the Supreme Court is f***ing up the country.
How The Supreme Court is F**king up the Country (with Kate Shaw) - Hasan Minhaj
Hasan sits down with law professor and host of @strictscrutinypodcast Kate Shaw, to discuss the shadow docket, the gutting of the Voting Rights Act, and a few other ways the Supreme Court is f***ing up the country.
June 25, 2026
The Supreme Court handed down two 6-3 immigration rulings, both written by Justice Alito, gutting protections for asylum seekers and TPS holders. Melissa, Kate, and Leah break down what the Court did, why Sotomayor warned "more people will die," and Alito's rare off-the-cuff rebuttal from the bench.
Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
2:27 The Asylum Case
7:45 Sotomayor's Dissent & Holocaust Parallels
8:55 Alito's Unprecedented Bench Response
14:57 Ad Break
20:05 The TPS Case
23:22 Racial Animus & The Court's Double Standard
29:19 Kagan's Dissent
33:14 Court Culture Corner: Clarence Thomas
34:35 Closing
BREAKING: SCOTUS Sides with Trump in MAJOR Decision - Strict Scrutiny Podcast
The Supreme Court handed down two 6-3 immigration rulings, both written by Justice Alito, gutting protections for asylum seekers and TPS holders. Melissa, Kate, and Leah break down what the Court did, why Sotomayor warned "more people will die," and Alito's rare off-the-cuff rebuttal from the bench.
Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
2:27 The Asylum Case
7:45 Sotomayor's Dissent & Holocaust Parallels
8:55 Alito's Unprecedented Bench Response
14:57 Ad Break
20:05 The TPS Case
23:22 Racial Animus & The Court's Double Standard
29:19 Kagan's Dissent
33:14 Court Culture Corner: Clarence Thomas
34:35 Closing
June 25, 2026
The Supreme Court Is a Pro-Gun Activist Group - Balls and Strikes
https://ballsandstrikes.org/scotus/wolford-v-lopez-the-supreme-court-is-a-pro-gun-activist-group/Whenever the Supreme Court’s six-justice conservative supermajority issues a high-stakes decision, the majority opinion’s author always strains to make one point clear: that all they are doing is faithfully interpreting the Constitution, and that they are not (and would never) purposefully warp its meaning to further their policy agenda.
Justice Samuel Alito’s opinion in Wolford v. Lopez is no different. In Wolford, which the Court decided on Thursday, the six conservatives voted to strike down a Hawaii law that requires people to obtain consent from owners of private property—shops, restaurants, and so on—before bringing guns on the premises. This restriction, Alito wrote, is inconsistent with the “historical” understanding of the right the Framers designed the Second Amendment to protect. Scrupulous fidelity to the norms of that era, he continued, is essential in order to avoid what is, in his mind, the single worst thing a modern court can do: engage in an “interest-balancing inquiry” that “empowers” judges to rewrite the Constitution as they see fit.
The premise here—that hyper-focusing on the “history and tradition” of American firearms regulation is the correct way to Do Law, Not Politics—has always been a lie. But it is an especially obvious lie today, when, just four years after creating a new test for deciding Second Amendment cases, the conservatives have (again) reimagined it to strike down (another) gun safety law enacted by the people’s elected representatives to keep their constituents safe.
What Wolford makes clear, wrote Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson in a dissent joined by the other two liberals, is that “the Court’s objective is protecting guns, not consistently preserving any rule of law.” The history-and-tradition approach, she concluded, is a “free-for-all” system that allows judges to “thwart the will of legislatures by privileging access to firearms above all else.”
Justice Samuel Alito’s opinion in Wolford v. Lopez is no different. In Wolford, which the Court decided on Thursday, the six conservatives voted to strike down a Hawaii law that requires people to obtain consent from owners of private property—shops, restaurants, and so on—before bringing guns on the premises. This restriction, Alito wrote, is inconsistent with the “historical” understanding of the right the Framers designed the Second Amendment to protect. Scrupulous fidelity to the norms of that era, he continued, is essential in order to avoid what is, in his mind, the single worst thing a modern court can do: engage in an “interest-balancing inquiry” that “empowers” judges to rewrite the Constitution as they see fit.
The premise here—that hyper-focusing on the “history and tradition” of American firearms regulation is the correct way to Do Law, Not Politics—has always been a lie. But it is an especially obvious lie today, when, just four years after creating a new test for deciding Second Amendment cases, the conservatives have (again) reimagined it to strike down (another) gun safety law enacted by the people’s elected representatives to keep their constituents safe.
What Wolford makes clear, wrote Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson in a dissent joined by the other two liberals, is that “the Court’s objective is protecting guns, not consistently preserving any rule of law.” The history-and-tradition approach, she concluded, is a “free-for-all” system that allows judges to “thwart the will of legislatures by privileging access to firearms above all else.”
The Supreme Court's conservative justices love guns, and want there to be more guns in more places. They think gun safety laws are bad policy, and they are happy to substitute their preferences for laws enacted by the people's representatives. It's not more complicated than that.
— Jay Willis (@jaywillis.net) 2026-06-25T21:55:34.717Z
A throughline of Sam Alito's jurisprudence is that the law protects conservatives from getting their feelings hurt. Here, he says Hawaii's gun licensing law is unconstitutional because it forces business owners who are fine with guns to risk "alienating other customers." Straight-up policy choice.
— Jay Willis (@jaywillis.net) 2026-06-25T15:56:18.662Z
Genuinely funny for Alito to end his opinion in this case by (1) talking about how important it is to protect the rights of Black people and (2) footnoting to Eric Foner's "The Second Founding," a book I would bet a substantial sum that Alito has not and will never read
— Jay Willis (@jaywillis.net) 2026-06-25T16:05:24.609Z
June 25, 2026
BREAKING: The Supreme Court rules 6-3 in favor of the Trump admin on Temporary Protected Status
The final SCOTUS opinion today is Mullin v. Doe. Alito has the 6-3 opinion, holding that the temporary protected status statute bars court review of non-constitutional claims and the Haiti plaintiffs are unlikely to succeed in their equal protection claim. www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25p...
— Chris Geidner (@chrisgeidner.bsky.social) 2026-06-25T14:26:01.660Z
The Supreme Court of the United States has concluded, as a matter of law, that Donald Trump and his administration's racism and vitriol toward Haitians—in its termination of TPS—is not "overtly racial."
— Cristian Farias (@cristianfarias.com) 2026-06-25T14:34:13.808Z
Justice Kagan, in dissent, calls them out:
www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25p...
BREAKING: The Supreme Court rules 6-3 in favor of the Trump admin on Temporary Protected Status, blocking the lawsuit on jurisdictional grounds, allowing DHS to strip over 350,000 people of legal status even though they utterly failed to follow the required legal procedures.
— Aaron Reichlin-Melnick (@reichlinmelnick.bsky.social) 2026-06-25T14:25:39.067Z
The Supreme Court ALSO gives Trump another pass on racism, declaring that his horrific and bigoted comments against Haitians are actually not evidence of racism and that the plaintiffs cannot show evidence of racial bias, essentially plugging their ears and letting Trump spew filth as policy.
— Aaron Reichlin-Melnick (@reichlinmelnick.bsky.social) 2026-06-25T14:34:33.058Z
Fourth (and *last*) ruling from #SCOTUS is in TPS.
— Steve Vladeck (@stevevladeck.bsky.social) 2026-06-25T14:24:02.124Z
For the usual 6-3 majority, Justice Alito holds that federal law forecloses judicial review of statutory challenges to the executive branch's termination of temporary protected status for Haiti, Syria, etc.:
www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25p...
With seven decisions with the *same* 6-3 lineup over the last three days, I really can't wait for all of the hot takes from the folks who keep insisting that #SCOTUS *isn't* defined by its ideological division.
— Steve Vladeck (@stevevladeck.bsky.social) 2026-06-25T14:34:44.884Z
June 23, 2026
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/06/23/senate-votes-halt-iran-war-00972648
Senate votes to halt Iran war despite Trump's push for peace deal
The Senate on Tuesday voted to cut off the U.S. military campaign against Iran, handing a fresh loss to President Donald Trump despite his attempts to convince lawmakers and the public that a deal to end the war is at hand.
Four Republicans broke ranks to help approve a resolution to block further military action unless it is green-lighted by Congress.
The war powers measure is largely symbolic — the resolution cleared Tuesday doesn’t go to the president to sign or veto. But the bipartisan 50-48 vote is a damaging milestone for the Trump administration: Both the Senate and House have now weighed in against the Middle East conflict that’s stretched on for more than 100 days. The same measure passed the House in early June after months of close calls.
Four Republicans broke ranks to help approve a resolution to block further military action unless it is green-lighted by Congress.
The war powers measure is largely symbolic — the resolution cleared Tuesday doesn’t go to the president to sign or veto. But the bipartisan 50-48 vote is a damaging milestone for the Trump administration: Both the Senate and House have now weighed in against the Middle East conflict that’s stretched on for more than 100 days. The same measure passed the House in early June after months of close calls.
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/06/23/senate-votes-halt-iran-war-00972648
June 23, 2026
This administration needs guardrails. That starts with a congress that will do their jobs. Help me stop the chaos by flipping the Senate!
@PoliticsGirl - We Gotta Flip The Senate
This administration needs guardrails. That starts with a congress that will do their jobs. Help me stop the chaos by flipping the Senate!
June 23, 2026
The SCOTUS opinions nobody's covering today are quietly rewriting who actually gets to enforce their rights in court. Leah and Kate break down what just happened and why it matters.
The SCOTUS Opinions Nobody Covered Today Are Quietly Gutting YOUR Rights - Strict Scrutiny Podcast
The SCOTUS opinions nobody's covering today are quietly rewriting who actually gets to enforce their rights in court. Leah and Kate break down what just happened and why it matters.
June 23, 2026
This week, guest host Melissa Murray, host of Crooked Media’s Strict Scrutiny podcast is joined by Erin Ryan, co-host of Crooked Media’s Hysteria.
They juxtapose the Obama Presidential Center opening with Trump’s UFC event celebrating his 80th birthday, and talk about the two very different visions of our country that those events (and their attendants) represent. They also touch on Trump’s dismal approval ratings, the biggest takeaways from primary battles in states like New York and Georgia, the positive vibes at the World Cup, and why the right just can’t move on from attacking pride month.
Chapters:
0:00 Intro
0:42 Obama Presidential Center
8:00 Obama's Library, Trump's UFC 250, and Two Very Different Americas
10:05 Ad Break
13:05 MAGA, Polls & the National Mood
26:16 Ad Break
29:02 Iran, Primaries & the Midterms
41:00 Georgia Redistricting & Protest
50:44 Ad Break
52:51 World Cup & NYC Politics
1:01:10 Pride Month & Gender Politics
1:11:41 Learn & Do More: Read the Constitution
1:22:27 Outro
The Real Reason Obama Stays Quiet in the Trump Era (w/ Melissa Murray and Erin Ryan)
This week, guest host Melissa Murray, host of Crooked Media’s Strict Scrutiny podcast is joined by Erin Ryan, co-host of Crooked Media’s Hysteria.
They juxtapose the Obama Presidential Center opening with Trump’s UFC event celebrating his 80th birthday, and talk about the two very different visions of our country that those events (and their attendants) represent. They also touch on Trump’s dismal approval ratings, the biggest takeaways from primary battles in states like New York and Georgia, the positive vibes at the World Cup, and why the right just can’t move on from attacking pride month.
Chapters:
0:00 Intro
0:42 Obama Presidential Center
8:00 Obama's Library, Trump's UFC 250, and Two Very Different Americas
10:05 Ad Break
13:05 MAGA, Polls & the National Mood
26:16 Ad Break
29:02 Iran, Primaries & the Midterms
41:00 Georgia Redistricting & Protest
50:44 Ad Break
52:51 World Cup & NYC Politics
1:01:10 Pride Month & Gender Politics
1:11:41 Learn & Do More: Read the Constitution
1:22:27 Outro
June 21, 2026
DACA renewal delays fuel worries Trump is quietly undermining 'Dreamers'
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/06/20/daca-delays-dreamers-uscis-00968561Concerns are mounting on Capitol Hill and among immigration advocates that the Trump administration is quietly gutting a landmark program allowing unauthorized immigrants who came to the U.S. as children to stay, work and study legally in the United States.
A major immigrant rights advocacy group recently documented in a study that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is taking months longer on average to renew legal protections for recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, often referred to as “Dreamers.”
Those delays are causing some supporters of the program on Capitol Hill to worry the Trump administration is weaponizing bureaucracy to undermine DACA. In floor speeches and on social media last week, prominent Democrats accused the Trump administration of targeting DACA recipients unfairly as part of the White House’s immigration crackdown.
“I can’t see how it’s not intentional,” Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), one of the main legislative champions for the DACA program, said in a brief interview. “In previous years, we’d get maybe a dozen cases” in which DACA recipients were left waiting for long stretches of time for their work permits to be approved. Now, Padilla notes, “it’s in the hundreds.”
On the other side of the aisle, Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-Fla.) said she had “serious concerns” about the slowdown in processing.
A major immigrant rights advocacy group recently documented in a study that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is taking months longer on average to renew legal protections for recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, often referred to as “Dreamers.”
Those delays are causing some supporters of the program on Capitol Hill to worry the Trump administration is weaponizing bureaucracy to undermine DACA. In floor speeches and on social media last week, prominent Democrats accused the Trump administration of targeting DACA recipients unfairly as part of the White House’s immigration crackdown.
“I can’t see how it’s not intentional,” Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), one of the main legislative champions for the DACA program, said in a brief interview. “In previous years, we’d get maybe a dozen cases” in which DACA recipients were left waiting for long stretches of time for their work permits to be approved. Now, Padilla notes, “it’s in the hundreds.”
On the other side of the aisle, Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-Fla.) said she had “serious concerns” about the slowdown in processing.
June 20, 2026
https://balleralert.com/trump-elon-musk-spacex-wildlife-refuge-land/
Trump Handed Elon Musk's SpaceX 700 Acres of Endangered Wildlife Refuge and Called It Conservation
Trump handed Elon Musk more than 700 acres of a protected Texas wildlife refuge, and the federal agency that gave it away is calling the move conservation. The land sits inside the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge, home to endangered animals and sacred to the Indigenous people who have lived alongside it for generations, and now it is being cleared for the world’s first trillionaire to launch more rockets.
The deal runs through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which approved a land swap that moves roughly 712 acres of the wildlife refuge into SpaceX’s hands. In exchange, SpaceX hands the government about 683 acres it owns elsewhere in Cameron County, some of it sitting as far as 20 miles from the refuge. On paper it is a trade. In practice the public is giving up irreplaceable protected coastline so a private rocket company can expand a launch site it already built on top of wetlands. The acreage has been reported as high as 775 in some documents, but the number everyone agrees on is more than 700.
What lives on that land is the whole point. The wildlife refuge shelters two endangered wild cats, the ocelot and the jaguarundi, along with the aplomado falcon, sea turtles, and migratory birds that move through one of the last intact wildlife corridors on the Gulf Coast. The area is also a designated National Historic Landmark, and it is sacred ground to the Carrizo Comecrudo Tribe of Texas, whose tribal chair has said the government is allowing the destruction of their lands and ecosystems in pursuit of space ventures. This is not empty scrubland. It is one of the most ecologically and culturally loaded stretches of coast in the country.
The timing makes it worse. Elon Musk just became the first trillionaire in human history, riding the largest public offering the stock market has ever seen for SpaceX. Days later, the same man is being handed hundreds of acres of a public wildlife refuge at no real cost to him. A government that tells working families there is never enough money for housing or healthcare found 700 acres of protected habitat to give a man who could buy the entire state several times over. The optics are not subtle, and neither is the transfer.
The deal runs through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which approved a land swap that moves roughly 712 acres of the wildlife refuge into SpaceX’s hands. In exchange, SpaceX hands the government about 683 acres it owns elsewhere in Cameron County, some of it sitting as far as 20 miles from the refuge. On paper it is a trade. In practice the public is giving up irreplaceable protected coastline so a private rocket company can expand a launch site it already built on top of wetlands. The acreage has been reported as high as 775 in some documents, but the number everyone agrees on is more than 700.
What lives on that land is the whole point. The wildlife refuge shelters two endangered wild cats, the ocelot and the jaguarundi, along with the aplomado falcon, sea turtles, and migratory birds that move through one of the last intact wildlife corridors on the Gulf Coast. The area is also a designated National Historic Landmark, and it is sacred ground to the Carrizo Comecrudo Tribe of Texas, whose tribal chair has said the government is allowing the destruction of their lands and ecosystems in pursuit of space ventures. This is not empty scrubland. It is one of the most ecologically and culturally loaded stretches of coast in the country.
The timing makes it worse. Elon Musk just became the first trillionaire in human history, riding the largest public offering the stock market has ever seen for SpaceX. Days later, the same man is being handed hundreds of acres of a public wildlife refuge at no real cost to him. A government that tells working families there is never enough money for housing or healthcare found 700 acres of protected habitat to give a man who could buy the entire state several times over. The optics are not subtle, and neither is the transfer.
https://balleralert.com/trump-elon-musk-spacex-wildlife-refuge-land/
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