Christian Mott
@cjmott.bsky.social
Moral psychology & experimental jurisprudence. Interested in mental state attributions, risk, punishment, personal identity, criminal law & procedure, constitutional & statutory interpretation, statistics, etc., etc., etc. christianmott.com
Is this official suggesting that Hegseth is using cocaine? As in, the substance he is ordering the military to kill people for carrying on small boats in the Caribbean? Or is there some non-monstrous way of reading this passage?
"Beforehand, according to an American official present, Mr. Hegseth dabbed his nose with powder from a small compact. 'Look commanding,' he told one aide. The handshake with the Ukrainian might be shown on Fox; the president might be watching." (Gift link)
The Separation: Inside the Unraveling U.S.-Ukraine Partnership
As President Trump sought a peace deal and Vladimir V. Putin sought victory, factions in the White House and Pentagon bled the Ukrainian war effort.
www.nytimes.com
December 31, 2025 at 7:59 PM
Is this official suggesting that Hegseth is using cocaine? As in, the substance he is ordering the military to kill people for carrying on small boats in the Caribbean? Or is there some non-monstrous way of reading this passage?
This particular document, with Donald Trump's name unredacted, has also been posted on a public docket for over a year. (It's the last page of the linked document.) Tells you something about the level of thought being put into these redactions...
December 21, 2025 at 6:23 AM
This particular document, with Donald Trump's name unredacted, has also been posted on a public docket for over a year. (It's the last page of the linked document.) Tells you something about the level of thought being put into these redactions...
Reposted by Christian Mott
Is virtue good for you? Or is it just good for others or society at large? Theories as old as Plato make opposing claims. My coauthors and I tested their predictions in two intensive, longitudinal studies (N = 43,164 obs. from 1,218 participants), focusing on 3 seemingly unpleasant virtues.
December 19, 2025 at 11:42 PM
Is virtue good for you? Or is it just good for others or society at large? Theories as old as Plato make opposing claims. My coauthors and I tested their predictions in two intensive, longitudinal studies (N = 43,164 obs. from 1,218 participants), focusing on 3 seemingly unpleasant virtues.
Admin law people: Is there a cause of action here? (E.g., perhaps the decision to release documents with illegal redactions is a final agency action that is contrary to law, so there's an APA action as long as there's standing.)
2. Khanna says, among other issues, that the DOJ is not explaining its redactions and has completely redacted a 119-page grand jury file, even though the judge ordered it released.
Khanna says he and Massie are exploring their legal options.
Khanna says he and Massie are exploring their legal options.
December 19, 2025 at 11:32 PM
Admin law people: Is there a cause of action here? (E.g., perhaps the decision to release documents with illegal redactions is a final agency action that is contrary to law, so there's an APA action as long as there's standing.)
Directly violates Epstein Files Transparency Act, Section 2(b).
December 19, 2025 at 10:06 PM
Directly violates Epstein Files Transparency Act, Section 2(b).
This is the same type of argument Trump uses whenever an undocumented person commits a violent crime: If this person weren't in the US, the crime wouldn't have happened. Thus, we need to deport and keep out all undocumented people so none of them can commit a violent crime in the US in the future.
More collective punishment from Kristi Noem: x.com/sec_noem/sta...
December 19, 2025 at 6:20 AM
This is the same type of argument Trump uses whenever an undocumented person commits a violent crime: If this person weren't in the US, the crime wouldn't have happened. Thus, we need to deport and keep out all undocumented people so none of them can commit a violent crime in the US in the future.
Anyone know of any polling on what the public thinks the parties' positions on gerrymandering are?
I once got into an argument about gerrymandering while waiting in line for a Supreme Court oral argument. My interlocutor refused to believe that Dems wanted to ban gerrymandering and GOP didn't.
I once got into an argument about gerrymandering while waiting in line for a Supreme Court oral argument. My interlocutor refused to believe that Dems wanted to ban gerrymandering and GOP didn't.
December 17, 2025 at 7:05 PM
Anyone know of any polling on what the public thinks the parties' positions on gerrymandering are?
I once got into an argument about gerrymandering while waiting in line for a Supreme Court oral argument. My interlocutor refused to believe that Dems wanted to ban gerrymandering and GOP didn't.
I once got into an argument about gerrymandering while waiting in line for a Supreme Court oral argument. My interlocutor refused to believe that Dems wanted to ban gerrymandering and GOP didn't.
If there's another Democratic administration in the next 20 years, Jack Smith should receive consideration for AG.
NEW: Jack Smith told lawmakers he developed "proof beyond a reasonable doubt” that Trump engaged in a “criminal scheme” to overturn his election loss.
www.nbcnews.com/politics/jus...
www.nbcnews.com/politics/jus...
Jack Smith tells Congress he could prove Trump engaged in a 'criminal scheme' to overturn 2020 election
Smith testified about his investigations into Trump during a closed-door hearing with members of the House Judiciary Committee.
www.nbcnews.com
December 17, 2025 at 6:04 PM
If there's another Democratic administration in the next 20 years, Jack Smith should receive consideration for AG.
What could SCOTUS dream up to invalidate CA's map? Maybe: The redistricting was not motivated by the partisan goal of helping Ds, it was motivated by the goal of retaliating against TX. (Would CA have redistricted if TX hadn't? If not, is it partisan?) That violates the equal sovereignty principle.
December 9, 2025 at 7:07 AM
What could SCOTUS dream up to invalidate CA's map? Maybe: The redistricting was not motivated by the partisan goal of helping Ds, it was motivated by the goal of retaliating against TX. (Would CA have redistricted if TX hadn't? If not, is it partisan?) That violates the equal sovereignty principle.
If I didn't know any better, I'd say that regime-aligned oligarchs were slowly taking over previously independent media outlets and changing their editorial positions in exchange for favorable regulatory treatment and government contracts.
The Wall Street Journal reports that Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison “offered assurances” he would drastically transform CNN if he bought Warner Bros. Discovery www.wsj.com/business/med...
December 9, 2025 at 4:07 AM
If I didn't know any better, I'd say that regime-aligned oligarchs were slowly taking over previously independent media outlets and changing their editorial positions in exchange for favorable regulatory treatment and government contracts.
Frustrating that the court gives such short shrift to the severability questions these cases raise (pp. 35-36). These cases all involve unconstitutional combinations (per @williambaude.bsky.social), so courts could solve the (perceived) problem by striking down either the protections or the powers.
CADC, 2-1, says Trump could illegally fire Wilcox and Harris.
Trump judges in majority say Humphrey’s doesn’t apply to NLRB or MSPB, and so don’t have to wait for SCOTUS to overrule it.
Biden judge in dissent says the ruling “paves the way to autocracy.”
media.cadc.uscourts.gov/opinions/doc...
Trump judges in majority say Humphrey’s doesn’t apply to NLRB or MSPB, and so don’t have to wait for SCOTUS to overrule it.
Biden judge in dissent says the ruling “paves the way to autocracy.”
media.cadc.uscourts.gov/opinions/doc...
December 5, 2025 at 4:50 PM
Frustrating that the court gives such short shrift to the severability questions these cases raise (pp. 35-36). These cases all involve unconstitutional combinations (per @williambaude.bsky.social), so courts could solve the (perceived) problem by striking down either the protections or the powers.
Reposted by Christian Mott
🚨Super excited that Dartmouth's Society of Fellows is hiring a postdoc with the Program in Cognitive Science 🚨 Specialization in computational and empirical approaches to artificial and natural intelligence, including perception, representation, and complex planning: apply.interfolio.com/176946
Apply - Interfolio
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apply.interfolio.com
December 4, 2025 at 8:40 PM
🚨Super excited that Dartmouth's Society of Fellows is hiring a postdoc with the Program in Cognitive Science 🚨 Specialization in computational and empirical approaches to artificial and natural intelligence, including perception, representation, and complex planning: apply.interfolio.com/176946
This would be a minefield for people with foreign parents (and potentially grandparents), since they may hold citizenship in another country by operation of that country's laws and without knowing it.
Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, just introduced a bill to ban Americans from holding dual citizenship. The bill says that to “preserve the integrity of national citizenship, allegiance to the United States must be undivided.” It’s called the Exclusive Citizenship Act.
December 1, 2025 at 9:25 PM
This would be a minefield for people with foreign parents (and potentially grandparents), since they may hold citizenship in another country by operation of that country's laws and without knowing it.
Reposted by Christian Mott
1/ Can causal models and causal inference engines emerge through next-token prediction? Judea Pearl and others (Zečević et al. 2023) have argued no. We present behavioral and mechanistic evidence that this is possible. #neurips2025 #NeurIPS
November 18, 2025 at 2:11 AM
1/ Can causal models and causal inference engines emerge through next-token prediction? Judea Pearl and others (Zečević et al. 2023) have argued no. We present behavioral and mechanistic evidence that this is possible. #neurips2025 #NeurIPS
As I understand it, this settlement is around the same size as the previous one and does not include nonconsensual third-party releases. The Harrington dissent's pessimistic predictions seem not to have come true.
(Though I welcome correction from anyone familiar with the exact terms of the deals.)
(Though I welcome correction from anyone familiar with the exact terms of the deals.)
November 14, 2025 at 6:49 PM
As I understand it, this settlement is around the same size as the previous one and does not include nonconsensual third-party releases. The Harrington dissent's pessimistic predictions seem not to have come true.
(Though I welcome correction from anyone familiar with the exact terms of the deals.)
(Though I welcome correction from anyone familiar with the exact terms of the deals.)
On 6/21/19, Epstein texted with someone who seemed to be Bannon (though not entirely clear), seemingly about the linked article (which came out that day):
?Bannon: Is this New York magazine story real
Epstein: Yes BUT!!
E: Not for texts
?B: K
E: Do your homework. Put someone on It
E: Guaranteed
?Bannon: Is this New York magazine story real
Epstein: Yes BUT!!
E: Not for texts
?B: K
E: Do your homework. Put someone on It
E: Guaranteed
E. Jean Carroll: “Trump attacked me in the dressing room of Bergdorf Goodman.”
The Elle advice columnist says the assault took place in Bergdorf Goodman.
nymag.com
November 13, 2025 at 8:57 PM
On 6/21/19, Epstein texted with someone who seemed to be Bannon (though not entirely clear), seemingly about the linked article (which came out that day):
?Bannon: Is this New York magazine story real
Epstein: Yes BUT!!
E: Not for texts
?B: K
E: Do your homework. Put someone on It
E: Guaranteed
?Bannon: Is this New York magazine story real
Epstein: Yes BUT!!
E: Not for texts
?B: K
E: Do your homework. Put someone on It
E: Guaranteed
Now Alito's vote might be in play.
November 10, 2025 at 8:25 PM
Now Alito's vote might be in play.
If he has been briefed, he hasn't been briefed particularly well, since this is primarily a statutory case (about whether IEEPA in fact delegated him the power to impose tariffs) and not a constitutional case (about whether such a delegation is possible).
The president seems to have been briefed on how the tariffs oral argument at SCOTUS went:
November 9, 2025 at 2:44 PM
If he has been briefed, he hasn't been briefed particularly well, since this is primarily a statutory case (about whether IEEPA in fact delegated him the power to impose tariffs) and not a constitutional case (about whether such a delegation is possible).
The margins in Virginia, and the results in the House of Delegates, are truly shocking.
November 5, 2025 at 4:27 AM
The margins in Virginia, and the results in the House of Delegates, are truly shocking.
Reposted by Christian Mott
TLDR; The PSF has made the decision to put our community and our shared diversity, equity, and inclusion values ahead of seeking $1.5M in new revenue. Please read and share. pyfound.blogspot.com/2025/10/NSF-...
🧵
🧵
The official home of the Python Programming Language
www.python.org
October 27, 2025 at 2:47 PM
TLDR; The PSF has made the decision to put our community and our shared diversity, equity, and inclusion values ahead of seeking $1.5M in new revenue. Please read and share. pyfound.blogspot.com/2025/10/NSF-...
🧵
🧵
May be worth amending federal law so a future administration could cooperate with any ICC proceeding based on these actions. (Cf. the linked article about an ICC proceeding against Duterte for murder in connection with his war on drugs.) The immunity discovered in US v. Trump wouldn't apply there.
October 23, 2025 at 9:18 PM
May be worth amending federal law so a future administration could cooperate with any ICC proceeding based on these actions. (Cf. the linked article about an ICC proceeding against Duterte for murder in connection with his war on drugs.) The immunity discovered in US v. Trump wouldn't apply there.
The First Circuit affirms the district court's dismissal of a suit against MIT alleging that the university violated Title VI (and other statutes) by failing to suppress the pro-Palestine protests.
Notably, the court rejects the argument that "anti-Zionist speech" is "inherently antisemitic" (p.32)
Notably, the court rejects the argument that "anti-Zionist speech" is "inherently antisemitic" (p.32)
www.ca1.uscourts.gov
October 21, 2025 at 9:39 PM
The First Circuit affirms the district court's dismissal of a suit against MIT alleging that the university violated Title VI (and other statutes) by failing to suppress the pro-Palestine protests.
Notably, the court rejects the argument that "anti-Zionist speech" is "inherently antisemitic" (p.32)
Notably, the court rejects the argument that "anti-Zionist speech" is "inherently antisemitic" (p.32)
The 5th Circuit held 922(g)(3) unconstitutional as applied to individuals not "presently under the influence" while carrying the firearm. US v. Connelly, 117 F. 4th at 282.
SCOTUS will review that rule.
SCOTUS will review that rule.
The Supreme Court granted review in three new cases this morning, including a big case over the constitutionality of the federal law barring gun possession by a person who “is
an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance,”
The other cases address arbitration and bankruptcy law.
an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance,”
The other cases address arbitration and bankruptcy law.
October 20, 2025 at 4:30 PM
The 5th Circuit held 922(g)(3) unconstitutional as applied to individuals not "presently under the influence" while carrying the firearm. US v. Connelly, 117 F. 4th at 282.
SCOTUS will review that rule.
SCOTUS will review that rule.
Reposted by Christian Mott
The Personal Rule of Donald J. Trump continues.
JUST IN: US Supreme Court lifts order that blocked Trump's mass federal layoffs reut.rs/4eOW547
July 8, 2025 at 7:50 PM
The Personal Rule of Donald J. Trump continues.
This is not normal.
One of the reasons the administration is able to engage in this abnormal and unlawful behavior is that the Office of Special Counsel and Merit System Protection Board are no longer independent agencies. As a result, a Trump ally is acting head of OSC and the MSPB lacks a quorum.
One of the reasons the administration is able to engage in this abnormal and unlawful behavior is that the Office of Special Counsel and Merit System Protection Board are no longer independent agencies. As a result, a Trump ally is acting head of OSC and the MSPB lacks a quorum.
I am told that furloughed Department of Labor employees were instructed today that out-of-office messages should blame Democrats.
October 2, 2025 at 2:07 AM
This is not normal.
One of the reasons the administration is able to engage in this abnormal and unlawful behavior is that the Office of Special Counsel and Merit System Protection Board are no longer independent agencies. As a result, a Trump ally is acting head of OSC and the MSPB lacks a quorum.
One of the reasons the administration is able to engage in this abnormal and unlawful behavior is that the Office of Special Counsel and Merit System Protection Board are no longer independent agencies. As a result, a Trump ally is acting head of OSC and the MSPB lacks a quorum.