Main Justice

In this episode:
The Supreme Court is back in session and plans to hear two cases that could dramatically alter the lives of thousands of people caught up in Trump’s mass deportation agenda, namely those at risk of being deported to third countries and those detained even after years of living in the US without any criminal record.
The Trump administration is blocked from firing court-appointed prosecutors after a Washington U.S. attorney takes them to court when he was fired immediately after being appointed to the role.
Mary and Andrew talk through Jack Smith’s memorable congressional testimony, comparing Smith’s poise to FBI Director Kash Patel’s combativeness, and the viral exchange with Senator Schmitt that felt like watching an SNL skit happen in real time.
Plus: the co-hosts offer some "reflection" on the Reflecting Pool, the “Broadview Six” prosecutors face legal scrutiny over their conduct in the investigation, and Mary and Andrew discuss the District Attorney "passing the buck" on the gang rape case out of Cornell University.

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In this episode:
“That’s Propaganda,” says former DOJ senior ethics attorney, Joseph W. Tirrell, on the Trump administration’s re-airing of their 2024 campaign ad, on the taxpayer’s dime
Why Mary and Andrew think SCOTUS’ decision to uphold Trump’s SAVE voter database will have a greater effect on the next election
How irked the high court is about having to reject the Trump-back Missouri congressional map for a third time
The legal status of the attempted media ban by the White House
Anthropic’s heated fight with the government over being labeled a “supply chain risk”
The “hot mess” surrounding FBI agents reportedly being subpoenaed to testify in the grand conspiracy investigation in the Southern District of Florida, all while Jack Smith testifies in front of Congress yet again

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Mary and Andrew begin by addressing President Trump banning CNN, MS NOW and POLITICO from White House grounds. Andrew calls the move “blatantly unconstitutional,” making an allusion to Nazi Germany and noting that the control of the free press is “the tool of autocrats”: “‘You will believe what I tell you and you will see only what I want you to see,’” he summarizes. Then, the co-hosts move to Trump’s “vanity projects,” beginning with what they call the “Arc de Trumph” — a proposed 250-foot arch in Washington DC that Trump says will serve as a military complex. Then, more on the Kennedy Center drama: a federal judge has blocked Trump’s name from being added to the building, after which Trump stated that the building will stay closed and without necessary renovations until that decision is reversed. Plus, several organizations file two lawsuits aimed at preemptively keeping federal agents from polling locations.

Further Reading:
Read the civil rights coalition lawsuit here: https://cdn.sanity.io/files/iroghafc/production/4aa15ae3e51d5acca66ae163c2fafd25ced778e7.pdf
Read the LULAC-led lawsuit here: https://democracyforward.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/LULAC-v-DHS.pdf

A Note to Listeners: As the 2026 midterm elections heat up, MS NOW is headed to the Lone Star State. Join more than a dozen of your favorite hosts - including Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell, Jen Psaki, Michael Steele, Ali Velshi and more - in Arlington, Texas on September 26 for a day of community and conversation about the issues that matter most to you. Get your tickets at ms.now/together.

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The mail-in ballot saga has come to an end — for now. Mary and Andrew detail yesterday’s Supreme Court decision rejecting President Trump’s restrictions on mail-in voting, which they call “good news” in the fight against election interference. “Knock it off,” Andrew says to paraphrase the Supreme Court: “we are not engaging in this.” Then, the co-hosts delve into two more examples of what they consider attempts by government bodies to meddle in the midterms, the first being Missouri’s failed redistricting effort as the Supreme Court rejects the state’s new Trump-backed congressional district map. The second: the Solicitor General’s emergency motion to stay an injunction on the Trump administration’s SAVE database, urging the court to restore the immigration verification system that was blocked by a lower court. Plus, the prosecutor who led the “grand conspiracy” investigation into Trump’s political enemies earlier this year has left the probe. And former CIA Director John Brennan preemptively goes to court ahead of the government’s likely prosecution against him.
A Note to Listeners: As the 2026 midterm elections heat up, MS NOW is headed to the Lone Star State. Join more than a dozen of your favorite hosts - including Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell, Jen Psaki, Michael Steele, Ali Velshi and more - in Arlington, Texas on September 26 for a day of community and conversation about the issues that matter most to you. Get your tickets at ms.now/together.

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

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The updates just keep coming. On Sunday, the Trump administration returned to the Supreme Court to ask for more control over mail-in ballots, coming two days after U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani’s order blocking the government from implementing parts of the new Postal Service rule. Mary and Andrew analyze the case’s implications as states begin sending out their ballots ahead of the midterms before turning to another update: a preliminary injunction issued in the CASA Inc. v. Trump case on birthright citizenship. Then, the co-hosts turn to the ICE agent involved in the shooting of a Venezuelan man during Trump’s “Operation Metro Surge” in Minneapolis, who is now being federally charged with making false statements to the FBI about the event. They call this “good news” — an instance of the federal government choosing to intervene in an “outrageous” case instead of leaving it up to the states’ discretion. Plus, the Supreme Court allows the construction of Trump’s White House ballroom to continue.
A Note to Listeners: As the 2026 midterm elections heat up, MS NOW is headed to the Lone Star State. Join more than a dozen of your favorite hosts - including Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell, Jen Psaki, Michael Steele, Ali Velshi and more - in Arlington, Texas on September 26 for a day of community and conversation about the issues that matter most to you. Get your tickets at ms.now/together.

Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows.

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