Michael C. Dorf
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Michael C. Dorf
@dorfonlaw.bsky.social
11K followers 300 following 920 posts

Cornell constitutional law professor and dilettante in many other fields. Vegan. Cyclist. Knicks fan. I mostly provide links to my work, especially my Verdict columns & blog posts (as well as those of my co-bloggers). I also occasionally post snark. .. more

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Michael C. Dorf is an American law professor and a scholar of U.S. constitutional law. He is the Robert S. Stevens Professor of Law at Cornell Law School. In addition to constitutional law, Professor Dorf has taught courses in civil procedure and federal courts. He has authored, co-authored, or edited six books, including Beating Hearts: Abortion and Animal Rights and On Reading the Constitution. He is also a columnist for Verdict and a regular contributor to his blog, Dorf on Law. Dorf is a former law clerk to Justice Anthony Kennedy of the U.S. Supreme Court and Judge Stephen Reinhardt of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. .. more

Political science 40%
Economics 21%
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Reposted by Eric J. Segall

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 1d
On the blog: In approving Trump's transphobic policy of listing sex assigned at birth on passports, SCOTUS said govt was "merely attesting to a historical fact," thus echoing the obtuseness of Plessy v Ferguson's statement that Black folks were only choosing to see segregation as white supremacy. 👇
SCOTUS Echoes Plessy v Ferguson in Greenlighting Trump's Transphobic Passport Policy
Repeating a pattern that has become all too familiar, late last week the Roberts Court issued a per curiam order staying a lower court rulin...
www.dorfonlaw.org

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 3d
On the blog, Prof Neil Buchanan critically examines (and questions) the instant consensus that Democrats' focus on affordability issues was the magic elixir in Tuesday's elections.
"Affordability Issues": Did Democrats Land on a Good Strategy for a Bad Reason?
By now, everyone who pays attention to US politics has heard some version of the immediate conventional wisdom explaining the Democrats' acr...
www.dorfonlaw.org

Reposted by Eric J. Segall

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 5d
Here's the blog post. 👇
What the Oral Argument in the Tariffs Cases Clarified
After two and a half hours of oral argument in yesterday's tariff cases , I ended up roughly where I started. I am nearly certain that Justi...
www.dorfonlaw.org

Reposted by Eric J. Segall

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 5d
You can listen to the @bloomberglaw.com episode at the link below or wherever you get your podcasts.
Bloomberg Law: SCOTUS Dubious About Trump Tariffs - Bloomberg
Host June Grasso speaks with prominent attorneys and legal scholars, analyzing major legal issues and cases in the news.
www.bloomberg.com

Reposted by Eric J. Segall

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 5d
🧵 I discussed the tariffs oral argument with June Grasso of @bloomberglaw.com. Today on the blog, I suggest that if the Court is concerned about excessive delegation, it should hold that the emergency declarations are insufficient to support Trump's tariffs even under a deferential standard.

Reposted by Eric J. Segall

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 6d
At stake in today's tariff cases at SCOTUS is how to parse the International Economic Emergency Powers Act, but more fundamentally and in all cases, questions about "about politics, power, and country, not unhelpful and misleading legal formalisms." @espinsegall.bsky.social has details on the blog 👇
The Constitution in Crisis: The Supreme Need for Justice Robert Jackson's Legal Realism
Donald Trump is asserting more executive power than any President since the Civil War. He would likely not only agree with that assessment b...
www.dorfonlaw.org

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 6d
One year on, Prof Neil Buchanan questions the narrative that Trump's victory in 2024 was either decisive or due to high prices. Looking at the data, he points the finger at racism and sexism. If we have future competitive elections, Democrats would do well, to understand that, and run accordingly. 👇
It Matters That the Extremely Close 2024 US Election Results Were Not Due to "the Economy"
Three hundred sixty-four days ago was Election Day 2024.  The polls going into the final weeks had been tight, but Donald Trump's increasing...
www.dorfonlaw.org

Reposted by Elizabeth Saunders, Simon Lester, Eric J. Segall

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 8d
On the blog, I preview the issues in Wednesday's SCOTUS oral argument in the tariff case. I also discuss the prominent quotations of Trump's idiocy in the SG's lead brief, which cannot be persuasive but are probably included as a warning to the justices not to cross the mad king who loves tariffs.
Some Major Questions for Wednesday's Oral Argument in the Tariff Case
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court will hear oral argument in two consolidated cases that present the question whether President Trump's impos...
www.dorfonlaw.org

Reposted by Eric J. Segall

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 11d
Will the recent indictments lead the NBA and other pro sports leagues to re-evaluate their relationships with FanDuel, DraftKings, and other gambling sites? Don't bet on it. On the blog, I analyze the various actors' motives.
Say it ain't so, Chauncey
The news that NBA Hall-of-Famer and current Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, former NBA player ...
www.dorfonlaw.org

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 11d
On the blog, Prof Neil Buchanan explains what's very wrong with: (a) the bipartisan consensus that government debt is inherently bad; and (b) the parallel bipartisan consensus that debt measured in very large numbers is very bad.
Conservatives' Lies About the National Debt -- and They Are Indeed Lies -- Have Tragic Consequences
There is a truly bipartisan consensus in the US on one issue, a consensus that is demonstrably -- even trivially -- wrong but that harms mil...
www.dorfonlaw.org

Reposted by Maya Sen, Eric J. Segall

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 13d
Yesterday Trump appeared to rule out a 3rd term, but he also said "we'll see what happens." Given his history of lying and changing his mind, the 3rd-term issue won't just go away. Thus, on the blog, I consider Trump's arguably legal and clearly illegal options for circumventing the 22nd Amendment.👇
Trump's Not-So-Cute Means of Becoming President-for-Life
As if we don't have more immediate problems, on Monday a reporter asked President Trump whether he was considering running for Vice Presiden...
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Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 13d
Why is the stock market at record highs despite Trump's tariffs? On the blog, economist Neil Buchanan points to three factors: 1) the stock market isn't the economy as a whole; 2) long-term damage takes time to show up; and 3) an AI bubble (that is itself problematic) is masking tariffs' impact.
Why Hasn't Even More Wealth Been Destroyed? (Who Knew That Trump's Superpower Would Be Destroying Wealth? Part 4)
I ate a low-fat cookie for dessert, but I didn't lose weight. It rained, but I didn't get soaked to the skin. Tariffs went up, but the econo...
www.dorfonlaw.org

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 13d
Her lawsuit asks the court to declare that is so.

Reposted by Eric J. Segall

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 14d
It has been over a month since Adelita Grijalva was elected to Congress, yet Mike Johnson still has not administered her oath of office. In my new column for @justiaverdict.bsky.social, I ask what's at stake in her lawsuit seeking a declaratory judgment that she's a House member. Answer: democracy👇
What’s at Stake in Mike Johnson’s Refusal to Administer the Oath to Adelita Grijalva?
Cornell Law professor Michael C. Dorf discusses House Speaker Mike Johnson’s refusal to administer the oath of office to Adelita Grijalva, a duly elected representative from Arizona, and examines the....
verdict.justia.com

Reposted by Eric J. Segall

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 15d
On the 10th anniversary of SCOTUS recognition of a constitutional right to same-sex marriage, @espinsegall.bsky.social praises the ruling for its honest accounting of the value judgments underlying it--and criticizes the Roberts Court more broadly for its disingenuous originalism and formalism.
Judicial Transparency and the Tenth Anniversary of Obergefell v. Hodges
I was pleased and honored last week to be part of a symposium at Mercer University School of Law celebrating the tenth anniversary of Oberge...
www.dorfonlaw.org

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 17d
On Monday, I criticized Justice Alito for saying that political gerrymandering is constitutional rather than that it presents a nonjusticiable political question (PQ). Today, I address 2 questions about PQs: 1) Was Alito right as a practical matter? and 2) Can a statute can ever present a PQ? 👇
Two Questions About Political Questions
In my essay on this blog on Monday , I criticized Justice Alito's statement during the oral argument in Louisiana v. Callais  characterizing...
www.dorfonlaw.org

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 18d
On the blog, Prof Neil Buchanan distinguishes among pretextual and sincere (if misguided) freakouts over Mamdani (by both some of my landsmen and some of his fellow goyim), as well as what they portend for Mamdani's very likely mayoralty. 👇
More of What’s in Store for Mamdani That Won’t Be Pretty
In my two most recent Dorf on Law  columns ( here and here ), I discussed the frantic efforts by the Democratic Party's establishment -- to...
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Reposted by Eric J. Segall

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 20d
On the blog, I explain that Congress could (but of course won't) repeal the standing appropriation that allows the Grifter-in-Chief's DOJ lackeys to gift him $230 million to settle his bogus claims that he was the victim of multiple witch hunts. 👇
Don't Worry. Trump will take the $230 million in taxpayer money that his hand-picked lawyers will award him and "give it to charity or something."
As reported yesterday by The New York Times , President Donald J. Trump has demanded that the federal government pay him $230 million to set...
www.dorfonlaw.org

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 20d
On the blog, Prof Neil Buchanan discusses the challenges very-likely-next NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani will face once in office, including the usual extremely short honeymoon for any NYC mayor and concerted opposition from the right, center, and nominally center-left Democrats & NY Times.
What’s in Store for Mamdani Isn’t Pretty, But the Alternative is Worse
In my column this past Friday, " Democratic Bigwigs versus Their Own Voters, Mamdani, and the Future ," I expanded on a couple of side comme...
www.dorfonlaw.org

Reposted by Eric J. Segall

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 22d
On the blog, I recap a very dispiriting oral argument in last week's SCOTUS Voting Rights Act case. I explain why questions by Justice Barrett about the permissibility of a discriminatory effects prohibition may be decisive, and I call out Justices Alito and Gorsuch for how they framed the issues. 👇
Justice Barrett's "Evil Day" and Other Infuriating Lowlights From the Voting Rights Act Oral Argument
The instant consensus--with which I agree--is that last Wednesday's oral argument in Louisiana v. Callais  portends the final step in the Ro...
www.dorfonlaw.org

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 24d
Now that Trump has commuted the sentence of George Santos and wished him well ("Good luck George, have a great life!”), professional volleyball teams the world over will likely be bidding for his services, given his unbelievable success in the sport at Baruch College. Good luck indeed, George.
Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 24d
Prof Neil Buchanan, who cuts Democratic leaders slack when they deserve it, laments their cowardly self-defeating response to the NYC Mayoral race: "Even if Mamdani had never existed, this fake outrage about Democrats being extremists was going to continue to be the Republicans' go-to set of lies."👇
Democratic Bigwigs versus Their Own Voters, Mamdani, and the Future
There is one truly optimistic story on the US political scene right now, and it is the mayoral election in New York City.  With disgraced in...
www.dorfonlaw.org

Reposted by Eric J. Segall

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 25d
NY Times and others are breathlessly reporting on an article by originalist Caleb Nelson concluding that the unitary executive was not part of the original meaning of the Constitution. But why? SCOTUS conservatives don't actually care about original meaning, as @espinsegall.bsky.social shows here👇
The Emperor's New Clothes Originalism
Law Professor Caleb Nelson made a big splash this week by arguing that under the text and original meaning of the Constitution, Congress ha...
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Reposted by Eric J. Segall

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 27d
Following up on yesterday's SCOTUS oral argument, I continue my deep dive into whether Congress is forbidden from exercising its power under the Exceptions Clause in a way that impedes the Supreme Court's essential functions and, if so, what those functions are. Spoiler alert: it's complicated!
What are the "Essential Functions" of the Supreme Court?
Yesterday the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Bowe v. United States . In my Verdict column previewing the case, I highlighted the case...
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Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 27d
The more limited version proposed by Larry Sager fits with other aspects of the constitution, as I explained in the Tex L Rev article I link in the blog post.
Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 27d
Barrett asked if saying SCOTUS must be able to resolve circuit splits would vitiate the Exceptions Clause. Bowe's lawyer said it might. No! The existence of certiorari, rather than mandatory appellate jurisdiction, is a clear exercise of the Exceptions Clause power. More tomorrow on the blog. 🧵 End/
Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 27d
His answer to Roberts was a non-answer. He simply referred to the Federal Courts Scholars' amicus brief and urged avoidance. However, as I argue in my column for @justiaverdict.bsky.social, the amicus brief arguably overstates the authority of Hart's essential functions theory.
Will SCOTUS Decide What Its “Essential Functions” Are?
Cornell Law professor Michael C. Dorf discusses the U.S. Supreme Court case Bowe v. United States, which raises the question of whether limits on successive habeas petitions for state prisoners also a...
verdict.justia.com

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 27d
Sotomayor wanted to know why his argument wouldn't also apply to habeas cases by state prisoners. His answer: They can file original petitions in SCOTUS but federal prisoners can't. That's a good answer. It jibes with the view that Ex Parte McCardle depended on the availability of other habeas.
Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 27d
🧵Roberts, Sotomayor & Barrett each asked Bowe's lawyer about his argument that the Court should find SCOTUS jurisdiction to avoid the constitutional question whether Congress has prevented the Court from performing an "essential function." He handled Sotomayor well but not Roberts or Barrett.

Reposted by Eric J. Segall

Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · 28d
Oral argument today in Bowe v US presents one of the most profound constitutional questions: Just how much power does Article III's Exceptions Clause give Congress to strip SCOTUS of appellate jurisdiction? I offer some history and context in my latest column for @justiaverdict.bsky.social 👇
Will SCOTUS Decide What Its “Essential Functions” Are?
Cornell Law professor Michael C. Dorf discusses the U.S. Supreme Court case Bowe v. United States, which raises the question of whether limits on successive habeas petitions for state prisoners also a...
verdict.justia.com