Jed H. Shugerman
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jedshug.bsky.social
Jed H. Shugerman
@jedshug.bsky.social
Prof Boston U. Law. JD/PhD History & dad jokes.
5th most-cited legal historian, 2019-23
Book: The People’s Courts. Next: A Faithful President: The Founders v. the Originalists
http://shugerblog.com
http://ssrn.com/author=625422
Pinned
I filed an amicus brief in Trump v. Cook (the emergency appeal over the firing of Fed Governor Lisa Cook) with @democracyforward.org, who did amazing work editing & filing on a tight lightning docket schedule.

Special thanks to @janemanners.bsky.social
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
The Fed, Offices as Property, and the Meaning of "Cause"
The Federal Reserve Act states that "each member shall hold office for a term of fourteen years from the expiration of the term of his predecessor, unless
papers.ssrn.com
I always experienced dissonance and anxiety with the names for the yoga poses "Warrior 1," "Warrior 2," and "Reverse Warrior."

For me personally, I will start calling them Worrier 1, Worrier 2, and Reverse Worrier.
January 2, 2026 at 5:44 PM
Rock-Paper-Lizard.

Aggressive orange males defeat cooperative blue males
Cooperative blue males defeat sneaky yellow males
Sneaky yellowmales defeat aggressive orange males

Mate and repeat.

This Diminutive Reptile Plays Rock-Paper-Scissors www.nytimes.com/2026/01/01/s...
This Diminutive Reptile Plays Rock-Paper-Scissors
www.nytimes.com
January 2, 2026 at 12:25 PM
Reposted by Jed H. Shugerman
I regret to report that this is where we are with the anti-birthright-citizenship stuff papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
December 28, 2025 at 3:40 PM
I reviewed last night’s sunset on Google:

Just one star.

Literally.
December 28, 2025 at 1:45 PM
The Spurs have beaten the Thunder three straight times, away, home, and neutral site…
If Wemby and Fox can stay healthy, they’re the new favorites to win the title.
And not long after we declared the start of a Thunder dynasty, could this be the start of a new Spurs dynasty?
December 25, 2025 at 10:01 PM
Reposted by Jed H. Shugerman
Plz join us for one or both of these interesting webinars--the first one is taking place already next week! For deets, see ads below. @narosenblum.bsky.social @nicholashandler.bsky.social @nicholasbednar.bsky.social @blakeprof.bsky.social @jedshug.bsky.social
December 22, 2025 at 10:43 PM
Reposted by Jed H. Shugerman
CBS didn't run the 60 Minutes segment on CECOT, but over here at @propublica.org we've been working on the story since March, including finding out who each and every man sent to that maximum security prison was.

You can see our reporting here: www.propublica.org/series/depor...
Deported and Imprisoned Archives
A case-by-case investigation that examines the Trump administration’s claims that these immigrants are all “sick criminals” and “terrorists” and that shows what they suffered during months in one of t...
www.propublica.org
December 22, 2025 at 4:08 PM
Yep, AI is now super reliable in reporting very basic facts and generating coherent sentences.

(Even if you're not a sports fan, see if you can spot the sentence with the obvious factual/mathematical contradiction).
December 19, 2025 at 3:27 PM
The coincidence of Rob Reiner's death and SCOTUS oral arguments got me thinking:

The Roberts Court seems to have a Colonel Nathan Jessup theory of presidentialism:

They want immunity & unchecked power on that Wall.
They NEED immunity & unchecked power on that Wall.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FnO...
You Can't Handle the Truth! - A Few Good Men (7/8) Movie CLIP (1992) HD
YouTube video by Movieclips
www.youtube.com
December 18, 2025 at 4:36 PM
Public service announcement:
None of the Jews you know are ambassadors from the state of Israel.
We are no more responsible for the Israeli govt than you are for the Russian or British govt or the Palestinian Authority...

Don't ask us to make a special declaration or whatever to end this conflict.
+1.
Yes, I have experienced this kind of request.
From a law professor.

As if I were the ambassador from the state of Israel because I wear a kipa.
December 18, 2025 at 2:54 PM
Reposted by Jed H. Shugerman
Shockingly normal experience for Jews
Australians found my post about this being a shitty Hanukkah and are now informing that if I personally ask Netanyahu (who will listen to me) to stop committing genocide against Palestinians, then random Jews around the world won't be shot anymore.
December 18, 2025 at 12:06 PM
Reposted by Jed H. Shugerman
Lazy Sunday left such a gargantuan footprint, few remember that the same episode featured this absolute banger from Robert Smigel and friends:
TV Funhouse: Christmastime For The Jews - SNL
YouTube video by Saturday Night Live
www.youtube.com
December 18, 2025 at 1:33 AM
Reposted by Jed H. Shugerman
Good discussion between @jedshug.bsky.social and Tom Berry of Cato. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/w...
Can President Trump Fire a Federal Trade Commissioner Without Cause?
Podcast Episode · We the People · 12/11/2025 · 1h 7m
podcasts.apple.com
December 17, 2025 at 7:01 PM
Reposted by Jed H. Shugerman
Thanks so much to Jeffrey Rosen for having me on the @constitutionctr.bsky.social's We the People Podcast to debate the Trump v. Slaughter case with Professor @jedshug.bsky.social, it was a great conversation (link in reply).
December 15, 2025 at 5:12 PM
Reposted by Jed H. Shugerman
A Few Good Men. Best in Show. A Mighty Wind. Miss Congeniality. Barcelona. All three movies in Linklater's "Before" trilogy. Music & Lyrics. Michael Clayton. All films that were able to be made because of the production company Reiner co-founded in order to give talented filmmakers creative freedom.
without Rob Reiner’s Castle Rock production company we wouldn’t have:

City Slickers, Honeymoon in Vegas, In the Line of Fire, The Shawshank Redemption, Before Sunrise, Dolores Claiborne, Lone Star, Waiting for Guffman, and more - in a six-year period alone
December 15, 2025 at 6:31 AM
Reposted by Jed H. Shugerman
I kind of like the idea of making it into a homeless shelter instead.
It is important to promise, now, that whatever Trump builds at the White House will be torn down as soon as he leaves.

www.hamiltonnolan.com/p/if-he-buil...
If He Builds It, Tear It Down
Pendulums must swing.
www.hamiltonnolan.com
December 14, 2025 at 1:23 AM
Reposted by Jed H. Shugerman
You know what? I'm willing to empirically test this as many times as it takes to reach statistical certainty about any conclusions we reach
Michael C. Rockefeller got shipwrecked in 1963, washed up on an island, and was promptly eaten by cannibals.
December 14, 2025 at 12:38 AM
Reposted by Jed H. Shugerman
@jedshug.bsky.social just merking the unitary executive out in these streets, in full view.
podcasts.apple.com
December 12, 2025 at 10:34 PM
Reposted by Jed H. Shugerman
This essay is really good, and really important. Not just saying that bc it confirms my priors
Sunstein posted an admirably frank essay yesterday on the Unitary Executive Theory:
How he participated in this elite bipartisan political consensus —
and how he has been persuaded by overwhelming historical evidence that he & other high-ranking lawyers were wrong.
open.substack.com/pub/casssuns...
The Unitary Executive
Notes on how people know things
open.substack.com
December 9, 2025 at 1:19 AM
This is where Agarwal went predictably off the rails.

Seems like relying on a precedent that stands for unchecked maximal presidential power over investigation & enforcement might not be the best argument for...

[checks notes]

**independent agencies that investigate & enforce**
35/ Kavanaugh and Gorsuch ask the obvious:
What are the lines around "conclusive and preclusive" if all of these agencies have some core powers that implicate foreign policy?
Like the FTC itself? (T = "TRADE"!)
Doesn't your "rule" mean that the FTC should not be independent?
They make good points.
December 8, 2025 at 8:16 PM
Reposted by Jed H. Shugerman
Deepak Gupta has been defending independent agencies—their leaders, structure, and workforce—since the very start of this administration.

Why he wasn’t asked to handle this seminal case is beyond me.
I assume Amit Agarwal was chosen to defend independent agencies at the Supreme Court today because he's a former Alito and Kavanaugh clerk with a conservative pedigree. But he is doing a very poor job, and I think a progressive advocate with subject matter expertise would've been far more effective.
December 8, 2025 at 4:34 PM
I’ll attempt to live-skeet the Trump v. Slaughter oral arguments at 10 am.
I might be considered biased b/c I filed amicus briefs in Slaughter & Cook, with particular historical interpretations.
Or I might be considered well-informed.

You can judge for yourself.
See the summary below & a thread…
Helpful and concise Brennan Center preview for today’s big case on the unitary executive oral arguments (against the historical claim of an unchecked presidential removal power)

Annotated Guide to Historical Amicus Briefs in the Slaughter and Cook Removal Cases
www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...
Annotated Guide to Historical Amicus Briefs in the Slaughter and Cook Removal Cases
As the Supreme Court prepares to hear arguments in two cases challenging the removal of independent agency heads, several historians and legal scholars have filed friend-of-the-court briefs focused on...
www.brennancenter.org
December 8, 2025 at 2:33 PM
Helpful and concise Brennan Center preview for today’s big case on the unitary executive oral arguments (against the historical claim of an unchecked presidential removal power)

Annotated Guide to Historical Amicus Briefs in the Slaughter and Cook Removal Cases
www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...
Annotated Guide to Historical Amicus Briefs in the Slaughter and Cook Removal Cases
As the Supreme Court prepares to hear arguments in two cases challenging the removal of independent agency heads, several historians and legal scholars have filed friend-of-the-court briefs focused on...
www.brennancenter.org
December 8, 2025 at 1:53 PM