President Trump began his second term with a slew of executive orders regarding the TikTok ban, birthright citizenship, and border enforcement, among other things. While his actions cover a wide range of topics, there is a common theme: the unprecedented broadening of presidential authority.

In a new analysis published in Just Security, Dean Emeritus of NYU Law Trevor Morrison analyzes how Trump's claim to an expansive executive power violates statutes and the Constitution. 

Listen to a conversation with Morrision and Brennan Center Fellow Wilfred Codrington III as they break down Trump’s opening executive orders and what they reveal about his theory of presidential power.

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Recorded on January 31, 2025.

Check out Trevor Morrison’s analysis in Just Security here: https://www.justsecurity.org/106969/trump-dictatorial-theory-presidential-power-executive-orders/

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The 2024 election broke spending records, highlighting the growing power of big money in politics. Megadonors back candidates to push their own interests and buy access and influence in our government. At the same time, the rise in untraceable dark money from undisclosed sources has made it increasingly difficult to identify who is really behind this spending.

In a new book, Corporatocracy: How to Protect Democracy from Dark Money and Corrupt Politicians, Stetson University law professor Ciara Torres-Spelliscy reveals how corporations are fueling these trends, from bankrolling politicians to funding candidates with dark money.

Listen to a recording of our virtual discussion with Torres-Spelliscy, and Natalie Tennant, former West Virginia secretary of state and newly elected Kanawha County commissioner. They explore how to strengthen American democracy against the encroaching threat of corporate control.

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Recorded on December 12, 2024.

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Donald Trump has vowed to launch the biggest deportation scheme in U.S. history, in part by invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 on his first day in office. This outdated law ast used to intern tens of thousands of foreign nationals of Japanese, German, and Italian descent during World War II. Does Trump have the power to carry out his plans now? Can we rely on Congress or the courts to stop him?

Our expert panel discusses the law’s shameful history, how the incoming administration plans to use the law, and what obstacles might stand in the way.

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Recorded on December 10, 2024.

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Rather than days of uncertainty, voters delivered a snap victory to Donald Trump. How will our democratic institutions respond to Trump’s plans to stretch presidential powers to their limits? Brennan Center experts explore what may come next.

Recorded on November 7, 2024. 

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Electing a president is not the only high-stakes choice voters will make in November. In Ohio, citizens will vote on a constitutional amendment that would end gerrymandering. Voters in 10 states have the opportunity to amend their state constitutions to affirm or expand protections for abortion care. Three states will decide whether to remove language against same-sex marriage from their state constitutions. 

All states but Delaware require voters to approve proposed amendments to state constitutions. Half of all states have a constitutional right to direct democracy, allowing citizens to place statutory or constitutional proposals on the ballot and pass them by popular vote. But some lawmakers and other elected officials are making a concerted effort to reduce citizens’ power to enact policy through ballot initiatives.

Listen to a recording of our experts panel’s virtual discussion on state ballots issues in the 2024 election and trends to watch out for.

Speakers:

• Amanda Becker, Washington Correspondent, The 19th; Author, You Must Stand Up: The Fight for Abortion Rights in Post-Dobbs America

• Alice Clapman, Senior Counsel, Brennan Center Democracy Program

• John Matsusaka, Charles F. Sexton Chair in American Enterprise, Professor of Finance and Business Economics, Executive Director of Initiative and Referendum Institute, USC Marshall School of Business

• Moderator: Alicia Bannon, Director, Brennan Center Judiciary Program; Editor in Chief, State Court Report

Produced in partnership with State Court Report. Recorded on October 29, 2024. 

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Crime has long been a political wedge issue used to stoke anxiety and stir division, and this election cycle has been no different. Although the pandemic crime spike is receding, the politicians who fearmongered about crime in 2020 continue to call for harsher punishments and the repeal of reforms.

Law enforcement officials and other experts understand that public safety and fairness are not competing interests — they go hand in hand. Brennan Center research proves as much, and groups like Law Enforcement Leaders to Reduce Crime & Incarceration know it from experience. This group of current and former leaders of the law enforcement community, convened by the Brennan Center, draws on their expertise to advocate for a fairer criminal justice system and works to reduce incarceration while keeping communities safe.

Listen to a recording of our experts panel’s virtual discussion on the latest data on crime trends and the importance of focusing on facts rather than myths.

Speakers:

• Rosemary Nidiry, Senior Counsel, Law Enforcement Leaders to Reduce Crime and Incarceration, Brennan Center Justice Program

• Beth McCann, District Attorney, Denver, Colorado; Member, Law Enforcement Leaders to Reduce Crime and Incarceration

• Shon F. Barnes, Chief of Police, Madison, Wisconsin; Member, Law Enforcement Leaders to Reduce Crime and Incarceration

• Ames Grawert, Senior Counsel, Brennan Center Justice Program

• Moderator: Natalie Tennant, Former West Virginia Secretary of State

Produced in partnership with Law Enforcement Leaders to Reduce Crime & Incarceration, a project of the Brennan Center. It was recorded on October 17, 2024.

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A white supremacist of color seems like a contradiction. Yet recent years have brought to light unsettling examples, including an Afro-Latino leader of the Proud Boys and a Latino mass shooter with neo-Nazi sympathies. These men are among a small but growing number of Latinos in the United States who gravitate toward the far right and adopt radical views on race, Christian nationalism, and immigration. 

In an eye-opening new book, Defectors, Emmy Award–winning journalist Paola Ramos uses interviews, historical context, and expert analysis to shatter the longtime understanding of Latinos as a political monolith and uncover a diversity of opinion that makes room for white nationalists and avowed racists.

Listen to a recording of our expert panel’s virtual discussion of this alarming trend.

Speakers:

• Paola Ramos, Author, Defectors: The Rise of the Latino Far Right and What It Means for America; MSNBC Contributor

• Michael German, Former Special Agent, Federal Bureau of Investigation; Fellow, Brennan Center Liberty & National Security Program

• Eduardo Gamarra, Professor of Politics and International Relations, Florida International University

• Moderator: Mireya Navarro, Editor in Chief, Brennan en español

If you enjoy this program, please give us a boost by liking, subscribing, and sharing with your friends. If you’re listening on Apple Podcasts, please give it a 5-star rating. 

Recorded on October 10, 2024.

Check out Paola Ramos’s new book here: Defectors: The Rise of the Latino Far Right and What It Means for America (bookshop.org)

You can subscribe to Brennan en español’s Spanish-language newsletter here: https://go.brennancenter.org/suscribirse 

Keep up with the Brennan Center’s work by subscribing to our weekly newsletter, The Briefing: https://go.brennancenter.org/briefing

In its last term, the Supreme Court undermined the federal government’s power to solve problems and the people’s ability to hold their political leaders accountable. The Court was flooded with false historical arguments, and the justices relied on profoundly flawed ideas about the deep American past to help justify their radical overhaul of the law. Additionally, the Court’s conservative supermajority was forced to confront the implications of one of its most damaging originalist rulings, Bruen, which undermined gun control nationwide. Meanwhile, in lower courts around the country, judges are dealing with a deluge of cases under the Court’s new history-based rules about abortion, guns, and affirmative action.

Where does the fight against originalism stand in 2024? And what might come next?

Listen to a recording of our virtual discussion with leading historians and Brennan Center experts exploring some of the Supreme Court’s most significant recent rulings, how they’ll shape upcoming legal debate, and how the Court’s disastrous originalist opinions are affecting hundreds of millions of lives.

Speakers:

• Jonathan Gienapp, Associate Professor of Law, Associate Professor of History, Stanford University; Author, Against Constitutional Originalism: A Historical Critique

• Gautham Rao, Associate Professor of History, American University

• Rachel Shelden, Associate Professor of History, Director of George and Ann Richards Civil War Era Center, Pennsylvania State University

• Thomas Wolf, Director of Democracy Initiatives, Founder of Historians Council on the Constitution, Brennan Center

• Moderator: Kareem Crayton, Vice President for Washington, DC, Brennan Center

Produced with support from the Kohlberg Center on the U.S. Supreme Court. Recorded on October 2, 2024. 

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You can check out Jonathan Gienapp’s book here: https://bookshop.org/p/books/against-constitutional-originalism-a-historical-critique-jonathan-gienapp/21320944?ean=9780300265859 

Keep up with the Brennan Center’s work by subscribing to our weekly newsletter, The Briefing: https://go.brennancenter.org/briefing

On October 7, the Supreme Court begins its 2024–2025 term — the fourth in which it is dominated by a supermajority of conservative justices.

Just months after a disastrous presidential immunity decision, and in the face of continued controversy over the justices’ ethics and partisanship, the Court will reconvene to hear arguments on issues with profound consequences for American life.

Among the questions on the docket: whether so-called “ghost guns” are subject to regulation, whether prosecutorial misconduct invalidates a death sentence, the power of federal agencies to protect waterways, the applicability of criminal sentence reduction laws, and access to gender-affirming medical care. 

This live panel featured Brennan Center President Michael Waldman, who served on the 2021 Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court, and Brennan Center Senior Fellow Caroline Fredrickson, former president of the American Constitution Society. They were interviewed by constitutional law scholar Wilfred Codrington III.

It was recorded on September 25, 2024.

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Election workers are unsung heroes, ensuring behind the scenes that our elections run smoothly and securely. Yet many people don’t fully grasp what their job entails, leaving room for election deniers to spread misinformation. This lack of understanding has fueled a disturbing rise in threats, intimidation, and abuse against election officials since 2020.

This live panel was moderated by the Brennan Center’s Natalie Tennant, former secretary of state of West Virginia, and it featured Adrian Fontes, secretary of state of Arizona; Brenda Cabrera, former director of elections for Fairfax, Virginia; and Brianna Lennon, country clerk of Boone County, Missouri. They shared their day-to-day challenges and the vital role that they play in ensuring in free and fair elections in a time of increased misinformation. It was recorded on September 19, 2024.

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