Melissa, Kate, and Leah can smell the fascism in the air as President Trump forces troops on California protesters. They discuss how he is (yet again) pushing the boundaries of authoritarianism, provide an update on the Kilmar Abrego Garcia case, and unpack another flurry of Supreme Court Opinions. Then, they talk trans rights with Chase Strangio, deputy director for transgender justice and staff attorney with the ACLU. Finally, a bit of fun with a game about iconic breakups–political and otherwise. This episode was recorded live from Sony Hall in New York City.

Hosts’ favorite things:
Kate: “How 2000s Culture Messed Us Up”, (The Culture Study Podcast); “Delay, Interfere, Undermine”, T. Christian Miller and Sebastian Rotella (ProPublica); Federalizing the California National Guard, Steve Vladek (One First)

Leah: This Is What Autocracy Looks Like, Michelle Goldberg (NYT); Argent, who dressed the hosts for the show

Melissa: What the Hell Is Posse Comitatus Anyway? Elie Mystal (The Nation); The Better Sister (Prime Video); Sarah Sclarandis’ shoes

Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!

• 10/4 – Chicago

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Leah, Kate and Melissa unpack this week’s raft of SCOTUS decisions, including cases on “reverse discrimination” and whether Mexico can sue American gun manufacturers, and explain why a unanimous vote is more complicated than it appears. Also covered: Trump’s new travel bans and the Justice Department filing a lawsuit against North Carolina because...a Democrat won the supreme court race. Finally, they discuss Kate’s rockstar testimony in front of the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary and some GOP senators’ fixation on this very podcast.

Host favorite things:

• Kate: The scholarship of Stanford’s Mila Sohoni; Leah on the Daily Show
• Leah: The Rage of Innocence: How America Criminalizes Black Youth, Kristin Henning; Betty Who’s new music for Pride; Trump vs. Musk and this resulting hall of fame tweet
• Melissa: Leah and Troy Iwata on the Daily Show; The Cerebral, Bach-Loving Patrician Who Wrote Trump’s Playbook, Sam Tanenhaus (NYT); Buckley: The Life and the Revolution That Changed America, Sam Tanenhaus; John Proctor Is the Villain (Broadway); Atmosphere: A Love Story, Taylor Jenkins Reid

Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!

• 6/12 – NYC
• 10/4 – Chicago

Learn more: http://crooked.com/events

Order your copy of Leah's book, Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conservative Grievance, Fringe Theories, and Bad Vibes

Follow us on Instagram, Threads, and Bluesky

Live from Capital Turnaround in Washington, D.C., Leah, Kate, and Melissa wade right into the swamp, breaking down the (very weird, very disturbing) sexual harassment claims against Texas’s ex-solicitor general, Judd Stone and holding their noses to read Coach Brett Kavanaugh’s opinion on the National Environmental Policy Act. Then, the hosts welcome special guests Ambassador Norm Eisen and Emily Amick, author of the Substack, Emily in Your Phone, to talk about the avalanche of litigation against the Trump administration and reproductive rights (and wrongs), respectively.

Hosts’ favorite things:

Leah: Taylor Swift's letter about buying back her art; Why Is This Supreme Court Handing Trump More and More Power?, Kate Shaw (NYT); Living by the Ipse Dixit, Steve Vladeck (One First); The New Dark Age, Adam Serwer (The Atlantic); Elon Musk’s Legacy Is Disease, Starvation and Death, Michelle Goldberg (NYT)

Kate: Beware: We Are Entering a New Phase of the Trump Era, M. Gessen (NYT), How YOU Helped Knock Musk Out of DC–& of Politics, Norm Eisen (Substack); On the Campaign Trail, Elon Musk Juggled Drugs and Family Drama, Kirsten Grind and Meghan Twohey (NYT); Cowboy Carter

Melissa: Her incredible shoes from the show; seeing Cowboy Carter; the newest season of Just Like That; Original Sin by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson

Emily: Nine Perfect Strangers (Hulu); Everyone Is Lying to You by Jo Piazza

Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2025!

• 6/12 – NYC
• 10/4 – Chicago

Learn more: http://crooked.com/events

Order your copy of Leah's book, Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conservative Grievance, Fringe Theories, and Bad Vibes

Follow us on Instagram, Threads, and Bluesky