The Federal Judiciary Is Trapped

Amicus With Dahlia Lithwick | Law, justice, and the courts

Slate Podcasts

News Commentary, Politics, Government, News

4.6 • 3.1K Ratings

🗓️ 1 November 2025

⏱️ 68 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

“The Chief Justice… is presiding over the end of the rule of law in America”. That quote did not come from host Dahlia Lithwick, but this week’s guest, former Federal Circuit Court Judge and George H. W. Bush appointee, J Michael Luttig. On this week’s show, Judge Luttig explains the unprecedented split we’re seeing between the federal courts and the highest court in the land in response to Trump’s lawlessness on everything from tariffs, to due process, to deploying the National Guard, and what it all means for the future of American democracy. Next, Dahlia talks to the CEO of the small family business at the center of the tariffs case that will be argued at SCOTUS on Wednesday. Rick Woldenberg of Learning Resources explains why he’s standing up to Trump’s monarchic power grab, and why he sees himself standing shoulder-to-shoulder with James Madison. Want more Amicus? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes with exclusive legal analysis. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Amicus show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/amicusplus to get access wherever you listen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Ever wondered what power is.
0:02.0	Power is transforming the sun into your own energy source.
0:06.0	Power is getting energy companies to pay you.
0:10.0	Power is enjoying your morning coffee, knowing you created the energy to make it.
0:15.0	Well, you and the colossal ball of fire in the sky.
0:19.0	Because with solar panels from Hive, the sun works for you.
0:23.0	Hive, know your power.
0:25.0	May not cover all electricity usage, roof and weather dependent.
0:27.6	Paid for surplus requires eligible SEC tariff.
0:34.2	This is Amicus, Slate's podcast about the courts and the law and the Supreme Court.
0:39.4	I'm Dahlia Lithwick.
0:44.4	The lower courts are trying mightily to honor their oath,
0:50.9	and they are holding Donald Trump accountable for every single violation of the
0:58.6	Constitution and laws of the United States. But of course, the Supreme Court of the United States
1:03.9	is doing anything by.
1:28.0	If Amicus were a daily podcast about the courts and the law, we would be hard-pressed to clock every norms violation, every injunction, every extrajudicial murder taking place in the Caribbean or the Pacific throughout the past months.
1:34.6	And on weeks like this, it's not even clear that an hourly show could do justice to the havoc being brought at the Justice Department, the Pentagon, to snap recipients, to
1:39.2	lawful protesters on the streets of Chicago and Portland, inside the FBI and ICE or CBP or indeed
1:46.4	among members of the federal judiciary. So we try as best we can to make meaning of it all
1:53.0	to find trend lines and themes to find exit ramps and optimism and legal leverage and wins by
1:59.7	increments. And this week we are talking to one of the most
2:02.5	stalwart defenders of the law and the Constitution and the vision of the founders that I have had
	...

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