Chaos was the law of nature; Order was the dream of man.
Henry Adams.
A glimpse into what's going on in the law, and the Court's.
April 21, 2025
1. The U.S. Supreme Court had issued a temporary stay on deportations of Venezuelans to El Salvador under the Enemy Aliens Act, as it well should have. There isn't a war going on.
The pause is so that it can take the question in chief.
On the same basic topic, a Federal judge has issued a finding of probable cause of criminal contempt for the administration's refusal to adhere to his order regarding such deportations.
2. Wyoming Tribe's Law Firm One Of The Few Fighting Trump's Big-Law Orders
Trump's ongoing assault on the law includes assaulting law firms that have displeased him. Quite a few have caved in, but this one didn't.
3. A federal judge ordered that Tufts University student Rumeysa Ozturk be transferred from a detention center in Louisiana to Vermont no later than at the start of next month.
4. The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments on the Trump administration's plans to end birthright citizenship next month. Trump, in one of his many stupid statement moments, said that this should be an easy win as birthright citizenship was tied to slavery, which is really ignorant.
5. Wyoming Supreme Court mulls constitutionality of state’s abortion bans: Much like the case, Wednesday’s hearing largely focused on whether a section of the state’s constitution that protects individuals’ rights to make their own health care decisions prevents the state from banning abortion.
A frustrating thing for conservatives who would like to find a more middle of the road set of people to vote for, now that the Wyoming Republican Party is in a civil war between real conservatives and populists, is that the Democratic Party nationally and locally just can't wash it hands of blood.
It puts voters in a horrible position. Insane gerontocracy v. seas of blood.
Former Wyoming Supreme Court Justice Keith Kautz created some controversy when he joined some legislators in a prayer session associated with the oral arguments, stating as a prayer:
I especially pray for the justices on the Wyoming Supreme Court. May they know that the true beginning of wisdom is to acknowledge you. Give each of them wisdom and courage in deciding the case coming next week. Let them see how much you love each human and the world you created.
I don't see a problem with that, but apparently some people did. Justice Kautz noted that he asked, upon retiring, not to be assigned to any cases dealing with abortion because of his religion based opposition to it. He apparently is a member of a Baptist group called "Converge".
6. A group of Wyoming lawyers wrote an open letter about recent legal developments. It was directed at Wyoming's Congressional representation.
Condemn attacks on judiciary, Wyoming lawyers and judges urge delegation
The letter was met with a "pound sand" response from that representation which went on to say that Federal courts had too much jurisdiction, which they are seeking to limit.
That's wrong, and that's a mistake.
William Roper: “So, now you give the Devil the benefit of law!”
Sir Thomas More: “Yes! What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get after the Devil?”
William Roper: “Yes, I'd cut down every law in England to do that!”
Sir Thomas More: “Oh? And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned 'round on you, where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country is planted thick with laws, from coast to coast, Man's laws, not God's! And if you cut them down, and you're just the man to do it, do you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I'd give the Devil benefit of law, for my own safety's sake!”
Robert Bolt, A Man for All Seasons: A Play in Two Acts
April 24, 2025
Trump has issued an order which takes on accrediting bodies, including the ABA.
REFORMING ACCREDITATION TO STRENGTHEN HIGHER EDUCATION
Executive Orders
April 23, 2025
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered:
Section 1. Purpose. A group of higher education accreditors are the gatekeepers that decide which colleges and universities American students can spend the more than $100 billion in Federal student loans and Pell Grants dispersed each year. The accreditors’ job is to determine which institutions provide a quality education — and therefore merit accreditation. Unfortunately, accreditors have not only failed in this responsibility to students, families, and American taxpayers, but they have also abused their enormous authority.
Accreditors routinely approve institutions that are low-quality by the most important measures. The national six-year undergraduate graduation rate was an alarming 64 percent in 2020. Further, many accredited institutions offer undergraduate and graduate programs with a negative return on investment — almost 25 percent of bachelor’s degrees and more than 40 percent of master’s degrees — which may leave students financially worse off and in enormous debt by charging them exorbitant sums for a degree with very modest earnings potential.
Notwithstanding this slide in graduation rates and graduates’ performance in the labor market, the spike in debt obligations in relation to expected earnings, and repayment rates on student loans, accreditors have remained improperly focused on compelling adoption of discriminatory ideology, rather than on student outcomes. Some accreditors make the adoption of unlawfully discriminatory practices a formal standard of accreditation, and therefore a condition of accessing Federal aid, through “diversity, equity, and inclusion” or “DEI”-based standards of accreditation that require institutions to “share results on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the context of their mission by considering . . . demographics . . . and resource allocation.” Accreditors have also abused their governance standards to intrude on State and local authority.
The American Bar Association’s Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar (Council), which is the sole federally recognized accreditor for Juris Doctor programs, has required law schools to “demonstrate by concrete action a commitment to diversity and inclusion” including by “commit[ting] to having a student body [and faculty] that is diverse with respect to gender, race, and ethnicity.” As the Attorney General has concluded and informed the Council, the discriminatory requirement blatantly violates the Supreme Court’s decision in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College, 600 U.S. 181 (2023). Though the Council subsequently suspended its enforcement while it considers proposed revisions, this standard and similar unlawful mandates must be permanently eradicated.
The Liaison Committee on Medical Education, which is the only federally recognized body that accredits Doctor of Medicine degree programs, requires that an institution “engage[] in ongoing, systematic, and focused recruitment and retention activities, to achieve mission-appropriate diversity outcomes among its students.” The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, which is the sole accreditor for both allopathic and osteopathic medical residency and fellowship programs, similarly “expect[s]” institutions to focus on implementing “policies and procedures related to recruitment and retention of individuals underrepresented in medicine,” including “racial and ethnic minority individuals.” The standards for training tomorrow’s doctors should focus solely on providing the highest quality care, and certainly not on requiring unlawful discrimination.
American students and taxpayers deserve better, and my Administration will reform our dysfunctional accreditation system so that colleges and universities focus on delivering high-quality academic programs at a reasonable price. Federal recognition will not be provided to accreditors engaging in unlawful discrimination in violation of Federal law.
Sec. 2. Holding Accreditors Accountable for Unlawful Actions. (a) The Secretary of Education shall, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law, hold accountable, including through denial, monitoring, suspension, or termination of accreditation recognition, accreditors who fail to meet the applicable recognition criteria or otherwise violate Federal law, including by requiring institutions seeking accreditation to engage in unlawful discrimination in accreditation-related activity under the guise of “diversity, equity, and inclusion” initiatives.
(b) The Attorney General and the Secretary of Education shall, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law, investigate and take appropriate action to terminate unlawful discrimination by American law schools that is advanced by the Council, including unlawful “diversity, equity, and inclusion” requirements under the guise of accreditation standards. The Secretary of Education shall also assess whether to suspend or terminate the Council’s status as an accrediting agency under Federal law.
(c) The Attorney General and the Secretary of Education, in consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall investigate and take appropriate action to terminate unlawful discrimination by American medical schools or graduate medical education entities that is advanced by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education or the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education or other accreditors of graduate medical education, including unlawful “diversity, equity, and inclusion” requirements under the guise of accreditation standards. The Secretary of Education shall also assess whether to suspend or terminate the Committee’s or the Accreditation Council’s status as an accrediting agency under Federal law or take other appropriate action to ensure lawful conduct by medical schools, graduate medical education programs, and other entities that receive Federal funding for medical education.
Sec. 3. New Principles of Student-Oriented Accreditation. (a) To realign accreditation with high-quality, valuable education for students, the Secretary of Education shall, consistent with applicable law, take appropriate steps to ensure that:
(i) accreditation requires higher education institutions to provide high-quality, high-value academic programs free from unlawful discrimination or other violations of Federal law;
(ii) barriers are reduced that limit institutions from adopting practices that advance credential and degree completion and spur new models of education;
(iii) accreditation requires that institutions support and appropriately prioritize intellectual diversity amongst faculty in order to advance academic freedom, intellectual inquiry, and student learning;
(iv) accreditors are not using their role under Federal law to encourage or force institution to violate State laws, unless such State laws violate the Constitution or Federal law; and
(v) accreditors are prohibited from engaging in practices that result in credential inflation that burdens students with additional unnecessary costs.
(b) To advance the policies and objectives in subsection (a) of this section, the Secretary of Education shall:
(i) resume recognizing new accreditors to increase competition and accountability in promoting high-quality, high-value academic programs focused on student outcomes;
(ii) mandate that accreditors require member institutions to use data on program-level student outcomes to improve such outcomes, without reference to race, ethnicity, or sex;
(iii) promptly provide to accreditors any noncompliance findings relating to member institutions issued after an investigation conducted by the Office of Civil Rights under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.) or Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.);
(iv) launch an experimental site, pursuant to section 487A(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094a(b)), to accelerate innovation and improve accountability by establishing new flexible and streamlined quality assurance pathways for higher education institutions that provide high-quality, high-value academic programs;
(v) increase the consistency, efficiency, and effectiveness of the accreditor recognition review process, including through the use of technology;
(vi) streamline the process for higher education institutions to change accreditors to ensure institutions are not forced to comply with standards that are antithetical to institutional values and mission; and
(vii) update the Accreditation Handbook to ensure that the accreditor recognition and reauthorization process is transparent, efficient, and not unduly burdensome.
Sec. 4. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:
(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or
(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.
(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.
(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.
DONALD J. TRUMP
THE WHITE HOUSE,
April 26, 2025
The Trump administration really took a step towards Nazism with the arrest of Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan for supposedly interfering with immigration laws.
Wyoming’s crossover voting ban and closed primary elections are being challenged in a newly filed civil action.
This should be really interesting.
Virginia Giuffre, who accused Prince Andrew and Jeffrey Epstein of sexual abuse, has died by suicide at age 41. Prince Andrew's fall is directly tied to her, and there's no doubt that they met when she was just 17 years old, although he denied any improper conduct with her.
She was a married woman with three children, and had relocated to Australia. Apparently she and her husband had recently separated, and she had recently been in an automobile accident.
The topic of releasing the Epstein files has come up, but so far the Trump administration has failed to release them. Trump, of course, knew Epstein.
April 29, 2025
Hageman, Barrasso Say Judges Who Shield Illegal Immigrants Should Be Arrested
April 30, 2025
Judge: Rock Springs school didn’t violate parental rights in transgender pronoun case: School district officials, educators did not keep information from high schooler’s parents or violate mother’s religious rights, federal judge concludes.
May 2, 2025
A federal judge in Texas barred the Trump administration from deporting Venezuelans from South Texas under the Enemy Aliens Act.
May 3, 2025
I missed it, as I was busy, but Law Day, which is May 1, was rebranded by Trump as Loyalty Day.
The meanings aren't even remotely close.
A Federal Court blocked the Trump administration sanctions on a U.S. law firm.
May 16, 2025
A retired lawyer has sued Secretary of State Chuck Gray maintaining that as Gray spread lies about the January 6 insurrection, he supported the campaign of insurrectionist Donald Trump and therefore is disqualified from office under the 14th for being an insurrectionist himself.
That suit will go nowhere, it's really strained.
Trump is an insurrectionist and isn't qualified to hold office, and Gray did support him, but there was never an adjudication in Wyoming as to Trump's status and therefore Gray would have been entitled to argue in favor of him, even with wild fantasies that the election was stolen.
Moreover, the 14th Amendment in the end disallows an insurrectionist from being seated in office, which is why I take the position that Trump is not currently the President, but it also allows for the disqualification to be lifted by Congress. I think, therefore, that it would have been valid to argue that Trump should be elected, as Congress could have lifted the disability. It simply never came up.
Lawsuits like this amount to pointless tilting at windmills and frankly discredit those who oppose Trump by being goofy. Gray has resorted to his usual speech decrying the "radical left". That speech has grown tiresome and I frankly doubt anyone listens to it anymore, but it is giving him something to complain about that fits in with his campaign's past themse, and it likely future one.
On other news, the Federal Court is allowing UW sorority sisters to amend their complaint against the man who has been admitted as a sister in their sorority.
A lot of people have heard that the Supreme Court heard arguments on birthright citizenship this week, but it didn't. It heard a case on nationwide injunctions which involved birthright citizenship. The court can, and probably will, issue its opinion without addressing the question of citizenship.
May 17, 2025
The US Supreme Court extended an injunction prohibiting the deportation of Venezuelans under the Enemy Alien Act, with their being two dissents.
June 10, 2025
Wyoming sorority sisters file new lawsuit, but drop transgender student from case
June 14, 2025
Wyoming Education Association files lawsuit to stop school voucher payments: Complaint argues that the state funding private education violates the Wyoming Constitution in two key ways.
June 30, 2025
Lots of big Supreme Court cases this past week, including one that held that nationwide injunctions in Federal Courts are normally improper.
On that has also received some notice is one that hold that forcing students to receive sexual indoctrination contrary to their faith violates the Establishment Clause.
Pam Bondi improperly fired two January 6 prosecutors.
July 1, 2025
Once again the legislature proves itself to be the gang that couldn't shoot straight.
First the legislature proposes an amendment to the state constitution to protect personal medical choices, out of an absurd fear that Obamacare would cause there to be death panels, but it ends up wiping out their later legislation on abortion, and now they pass a moronic bill to protect prescribing ivermectin for humans but it ends up applying again, to abortion, this time chemical abortion.
Wyoming is really not being well served by the hard right in the legislature.
Some people need to be sent back to the truck stop sweet roll counter to which their talents and conspiracy theories are better suited.
July 2, 2025
A federal judge ruled that mass layoffs at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services were likely unlawful and ordered the Trump administration to halt plans to downsize and reorganize the agency.
Trump toured a new immigration alligator swamp surrounded immigration concentration camp in Florida.
Chuck Gray got help from his hero:
Trump Administration Seeks To Defend Wyoming’s New Citizenship Voter Law
July 9, 2025
The Supreme Court ruled that mass layoffs of Federal employees started by DOGE can proceed. Hundreds of thousands of Federal employees stand to lose their jobs.
Closer to home:
Gravel operator digs in with another lawsuit to open Casper Mountain: Prism Logistics has asked a judge to review the state's recent decision to deny several lease renewals.
July 11, 2025
A Federal Court granted class action status to a suit challenging Trump's clearly unconstitutional effort to attack birth right citizenship and stayed enforcement, nationwide, of efforts to do just that,
This will head back to the Supreme Court where we'll learn in the court is a court, or simply a branch of the sitting monarchy.
July 27, 2025
The League of Women Voters is supporting the lawsuit against Chuck Gray on voting laws.
The US deported five immigrants the administration says were convicted of serious crimes to Eswatini, which you have never heard of.
Wild horses in Wyoming’s ‘checkerboard’ region get 6-week reprieve from whole-herd removals: With an appeals court ruling looming, federal officials indicate they won’t start rounding up horses where elimination is the end goal until Aug. 25.
Federal Court Halts Roundup Of Rare Wyoming Curly-Haired Mustangs
The CST had a long article on protests over Radiant Energy's plans to put in a compact nuclear reactor manufacturing facility north of Bar Nunn, and hence north of Casper.
It's been really interesting in that the proposal has garnered very vocal opposition in Bar Nunn, while it has support of the governing bodies of Casper and Natrona County. Nuclear power in general is not usually controversial in Wyoming, but disposal of nuclear wastes has always been, and this manufacturing proposal seems to be.
I'm not going to voice an overall opinion, but it's interesting that the extractive industries, which after all are dangerous, are hugely supported here, while "green energy" has not been, and now this is not. A "not in my backyard" view is common for a lot of things, but this one seems to at least have an element of tradition to it, which has been very strong in how Wyomingites view the economy in general. Things we've done traditionally, we seem to like. Things that are new, at least if they are large, we do not.
It'll be interesting to see how this plays out in regard to cryptocurrency, which Sen. Lummis is backing in a major way. My strong suspicion is most Wyomingites don't care about cryptocurrency whatsoever, so it'll get her no political credits. But will their be outright opposition in a state in which the Secretary of State insists we should be using paper ballots?
July 20, 2025
Trump's lawsuit against Bob Woodward was dismissed.
His lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal will be headed towards a similar fate.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against U.S. Masters Swimming (USMS), alleging the organization engaged in "deceptive practices" by allowing transgender women to compete in women's events at a San Antonio meet this spring.
July 23, 2025
Federal court tosses lawsuit challenging Wyoming’s new voter registration law: The voting-rights group that filed the complaint failed to adequately state a claim, U.S. District Court Judge Scott Skavdahl ruled.
Judge Throws Out Challenge To New Wyoming Voter Registration Law, Gray Cheers
