“I Don’t Know”

This Week in Democracy

• When asked on NBC’s “Meet the Press” if he needs to uphold the Constitution, President Trump said “I don’t know”—even though he swore to “preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution” in his oath of office. The question came after Trump gave the same answer when asked if everyone in the United States is entitled to due process, as the Fifth Amendment says.
• Nineteen states and D.C. sued the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, arguing that the department’s layoffs of 10,000 employees were unconstitutional and exceeded the department’s authority. The lawsuit says the layoffs have hindered the states’ ability to run preschool programs, conduct food safety inspections, provide substance abuse treatment services, and more. The states are asking a judge to reverse the mass layoffs and block any more.

  ➡️ READ: Sharing the Facts About the State Impact of Federal Workforce Cuts

• A federal judge in New York ruled that the Trump administration failed to show evidence that would justify its use of the Alien Enemies Act as the basis to deport people. The judge blocked the administration from removing anyone from his jurisdiction under the Act. A federal judge in Texas issued a similar ruling last week.

  A federal judge in Maryland refused to withdraw a previous order that directed the administration to facilitate the return of a man wrongly deported under the Act. The judge first ordered the administration to bring the man back in April, but there is no evidence yet that the administration has worked to do so.

  ➡️ READ: Sharing the Facts About the Alien Enemies Act

• A federal judge permanently blocked Trump’s executive order targeting Perkins Coie, a law firm. The judge found that the order violated multiple parts of the Constitution. “The importance of independent lawyers to ensuring the American judicial system’s fair and impartial administration of justice has been recognized in this country since its founding era,” the judge wrote.

  Former Deputy U.S. Attorney General Donald Ayer, a member of States United’s Bipartisan Advisory Board, spoke to CBS’s “60 Minutes” about the dangers of Trump’s orders targeting law firms. “Our whole system of government is at stake,” he said.

• Secretary of Education Linda McMahon announced that the Trump administration will not provide any new grants to Harvard University unless it complies with the administration’s demands. The administration in April froze more than $2 billion in grants to Harvard after the university refused. Harvard sued, seeking to prevent the administration from holding up any funds.

  “Harvard will also continue to defend against illegal government overreach aimed at stifling research and innovation that make Americans safer and more secure,” a spokesperson for the university said.

  ➡️ READ: Sharing the Facts About the Impact of Targeting Higher Education

• New polling from States United shows that Americans across the political spectrum believe that Trump’s tariffs will increase the price of goods. The data also shows that since February, the share of Americans that believe tariffs will hurt the economy has grown.

  ➡️ READ: Sharing the Facts About the Limits of Presidential Power on Tariffs

• Trump withdrew the nomination of Ed Martin to be the U.S. Attorney for D.C. after U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis said he would not support him. Tillis, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said that he had concerns about Martin’s defense of Jan. 6 rioters. Trump said that he would appoint Martin to another position in the Justice Department instead.

  Trump announced that he would appoint Jeanine Pirro, a television host and former prosecutor and judge, as D.C.’s interim U.S. Attorney. Pirro promoted lies about election fraud on Fox News after Trump lost the 2020 election.

• The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments about Trump’s executive order that seeks to deny citizenship to some U.S.-born children next Thursday, May 15.

  ➡️ READ: Sharing the Facts About Birthright Citizenship

State of the States

In Maine, Attorney General Aaron Frey announced that the state had reached a settlement with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Frey sued the department in April after it froze federal education funding for his state, telling a federal judge that the money was scheduled to be used to pay for school meals, among other things. The judge ordered the Trump administration to release the funds shortly after.

“It’s unfortunate that my office had to resort to federal court just to get USDA to comply with the law and its own regulations,” Frey said in a statement. “But we are pleased that the lawsuit has now been resolved and that Maine will continue to receive funds as directed by Congress to feed children and vulnerable adults.”

In North Carolina, Judge Jefferson Griffin conceded the race for a seat on the state Supreme Court. A federal judge found that state court rulings that upheld some of Griffin’s challenges to more than 60,000 voters’ eligibilities were unconstitutional and ordered the state’s election board to certify his opponent, Justice Allison Riggs, as the winner of the election.

Separately, after State Auditor Dave Boliek appointed new members to the state’s election board last week, the board voted to replace its executive director.

The States United newsletter will be on hiatus next week. We’ll be back Friday, May 23.