Current Events Again--and Some Theory Too

This current events episode uses the Alien Enemies Act case before Judge Boasberg as our vehicle for examining what constitutional theory can contribute to understanding fast-moving current events. We argue about how nervous we should be about Seidman’s arguments for constitutional disobedience in our current context and about the contributions, if any, constitutional litigation can make to alleviating—or exacerbating—what’s going on. We conclude with a description of what commentators might mean when they describe Trump’s actions as “illegal,” and discuss why such descriptions might not be as helpful as you might initially think.