Opening Arguments

Plus, commingling secret documents with personal things: bad when Trump does it, but not when Biden does it? Is the left being hypocritical on that? And, EVEN MORE lawyer sanctioning as Reynal gets slapped down in Texas. Here are the entire show notes and links.

It's just so bad and so dumb. Somehow these people are lawyers. Their arguments make T3BE look like a legal master class. Listen in for the hilarious details! Here are the show notes!

Hooo boy! Lots of very energetic feedback on our DnD episode. Spoiler: many, many people think Andrew totally biffed the analysis. So, he's gone through a ton of it and has some fresh analysis for you. Is this an Andrew was wrong? Find out! Here's the fb thread where you can insult Andrew. Here are the original show notes!

The story of the classified documents found in various Biden related locations is still developing, but National Security Counselors Executive Director Kel McClanahan joins us to give his expert opinion on what we know so far! For full links and show notes, go here! To find Kel on whatever Mastodon is, go to https://mstdn.social/@NatlSecCnslrs

The internet is aflame over a leaked draft of Wizards of the Coast new licensing agreement for Dungeons and Dragons. But, should they be? Our resident legal expert Andrew says no and calls the Gizmodo piece that started all of this "irresponsible fear mongering." Listen in to find out why! For full links and show notes, click here!

You know the deal, Liz Dye Wednesday! Wednesdye! Liz breaks down Norm's little mandated vacation...

Definitely not anyone that we know of's Ethics Professor Alan Dershowitz has responded to his sanctions motion with a bunch of feeble lies. In other words, more unethical stuff. Listen in for why his defense is terrible. For full links and show notes, click here!

Andrew takes us back into Citizens United to illustrate for the umpteenth time just how glaringly dishonest originalists are, and the rabbit trail takes us all the way to 1910's Montana and elections bought and paid for at $750 a pop. In the first segment, is Clint Curtis f@cking crazy? Yes. So, despite what Andrew said in a past episode, he will NOT be following up with him. Then, Thomas AND Chat GPT take the bar exam! For full links and show notes, click here!

Sorry this is just so funny and we all deserve to enjoy it. We recorded this early due to a cyclone that wasn't very bomb, and yet everything Andrew said and researched remains perfectly timely as of release due to the fact that McCarthy has failed EVEN MORE VOTES. It's so great. But Andrew has for us a deep-dive on the history of this, and just how unprecedented it really is. PLUS an update – Elon Musk is still an idiot. And SO bad at business. Just... so, so bad. For full show notes including links, click here!

Liz Dye joins us to break down the J6 bombshell news that Cassidy Hutchinson's own lawyer was apparently... not her lawyer. It's some extremely unethical stuff. Possibly criminal? Listen in! For full links and show notes, click here!

So much more from the Jan. 6th committee is out, and that means our esteemed Andrew Torrez stole away from holiday cheer to read hundreds and hundreds of pages of documents. What do they reveal? If Trump is indicted, who will actually make a good witness against him? The answers MAY surprise you. For full links and show notes, click here!

Calling all Uncles Frank for a frank but respectful breakdown of how your right wing media sources are simply not telling you the truth. A laughably terrible "Supreme Court Petition" is going to "Rewrite the History of American Politics." Except... it will do no such thing. So if you've got an Uncle Frank in your life who you are seeing over this holiday break, point them to this episode and maybe we can start finding a tiny bit of common ground! For full show notes and links, click here.

Andrew gives us that signature OA approach, having read every case relevant to the law Trump has potentially violated. What does the case law tell us about how to convict him? For full links and detailed show notes, go here.

Alright look we forgot it was episode 666. But Trump has sued the Pulitzer committee and it is HILARIOUS. And... satanic? Ok no but we can pretend. Liz Dye is here with the breakdown!

Andrew breaks down several lawsuits that threaten Democracy, albeit incredibly ineptly and feebly. They are hilariously terrible. Links: Kari Lake's Lawyers Lose Election Suit, Win Sanctions, Lake v Hobbs, Lake v Hobbs.... again, Christina Bobb, Trump Lawyer Christina Bobb Promises Kari Lake Lawsuit Is First Step Back To White House For Trump - Wonkette, This Pro-Trump Lawyer Was a Rising 'Stop the Steal' Star, His Firm Erased Him, New Documents Show Trump Repeatedly Pressed DOJ to Overturn Election, Kurt Olsen complaint, ARS 16-672, Rupert Murdoch to be deposed in $1.6 billion Dominion defamation case, nutjobs v dominion

Andrew untangles the vast web of Alex Jones's bankruptcy and uses it as an opportunity to educate us on bankruptcy law! Chapter 7 vs 11 vs... 5? Find out what it all means and why no one is buying Alex Jones's maneuvering. Links: The Small Business Reorganization Act: Big Changes for Small Businesses, Understanding the Purpose of the Subchapter V Trustee – NCBarBlog, Jones arguments, US Trustee, subchapter V trustee, Alex Jones personal bankruptcy and motion

and does other totally normal things that indicate everything is completely awesome with him. Why is he offloading so much stock? And he isn't the only one. What does it say about Tesla? (btw we recorded this before he started banning journalists on Twitter for... sharing publicly available info about his flights.) Also, Trump replies to the Tish James injunction in Florida, and NBC files its answer to the Devin Nunes v Rachel Maddow suit! Links: Trump reply in Tish James suit, NBC Answer in Nunes/Maddow defamation case, SEC Form 4s - November 4, 2022, November 7, November 8, December 12-14, original CMO Dearie

It's another Lizisode! Liz Dye takes us through the very insidious lying nonsense that is the Twitter files. It's infuriating.

Once upon a time, there was a company that sold incredibly overpriced cables... When that well went dry, they moved onto patent trolling. This is the story of when they attempted to patent troll the wrong guy... Links: Monster Cable - Wikipedia, Monster Cables, Monster Ripoff: 80% Markups – Consumerist, Do Coat Hangers Sound As Good Monster Cables? – Consumerist, HDMI cable scam used to fool in-store customers? | Engadget, Monster "HDMI Difference" scam still kickin' in Fry's Electronics | Engadget, Monster patent C&D, exhibits, Blue Jeans Cable response, Blue Jeans Cable Strikes Back - Response to Monster Cable | Audioholics

We here at Opening Arguments enjoy documenting just how many different ways Alex Jones is financially f@cked. He added another bankruptcy to his collection, and like the previous ones, this one is likely part of a devious plan to get out of paying people stuff. Will it work? Links: Derkach Charged with Fraud and Money Laundering, Jones Bankruptcy, personal bankruptcy and motion

So many good news episodes lately! The Trump Org found guilty on like a lot of counts, No 11th circuit appeal on the special master bullsh, more classified docs found, Jack Smith issues subpoenas... so much! in the first segment we talk about the likely disaster that is Moore v. Harper, but Andrew thinks oral arguments suggested a less bad outcome. Get the breakdown! Links: Matt Taibbi Twitter thread, Moore v. Harper, Trump org convicted, New York Consolidated Laws, Penal Law - PEN § 155.40, PEN § 175.35, PEN § 175.10, Trump Org Guilty Of Criminal Tax Fraud, Trump lawyers found items with classified markings in his storage unit, Bobb certification

Hey folks, The auto ad tehcnology is what makes the 4 episode a week schedule possible. However, it's also something that I have no control over. There seems to be some issue on the server side. The episode was cut off at the place where the second ad slot was supposed to go. There is absolutely nothing I can do beyond submitting a support ticket, which I have. Apologies for this. As always, the patron feed has no ads and therefore this episode was obviously fine over there. In the meantime, I'm just releasing it without ads so that people can still listen. We'll give up ad revenue for this one, no big deal! Thanks for your understanding and sorry for the inconvenience! Thomas.

Yikes... We're once again joined by the great Liz Dye! This time, she's here to breakdown the absolute shellacking Dershowitz and co. recieved for being horrible lying pieces of sh!t and terrible lawyers. They're not sending their best!

Everyone's favorite 1st Amendment understander Devin Nunes has sued cow after twitter cow and it obviously has all gone nowhere. BUT, his defamation lawsuit against Rachel Maddow has survived a motion to dismiss... So... HOW?!?! Is this a big deal? What happened? Did Maddow f up? Andrew T's got the full breakdown! Links: Nunes complaint, Devin Nunes’ Cow Account Won’t Quit, Andrii Derkach Wikipedia

Wow it's almost like there really was an armed coup on January 6th on our nation's Capital. Stewart Rhodes and Kelly Megs have been found guilty of sedition. But when it comes to their sentencing... it's actually not very clear how much time they will do. That's because there really isn't much precedent for this. Andrew has the breakdown! Before that, though, we have a follow-up on the music episode. We share further thoughts inspired by some of the response we got. And we got a lot... Links: 18 U.S. Code § 2384 - Seditious conspiracy, 18 U.S. Code § 3553 - Imposition of a sentence, Sentencing_Table.pdf, trump-lawyers-sanctioned.pdf, Trump sanctions stayed?

It's a bit of a good news show! The Respect for Marriage Act has passed the Senate! Justice Alito was ratted out by a Rev. Schenck. And, the 11th Circuit delivered a whopper of a decision putting an end to the Judge Cannon Naro Lago nonsense. Links: Respect for Marriage Act (HR 8404) passes, 42 U.S. Code § 416 - Determination of Family Status, NY Times Schenck-Alito story, Former Anti-Abortion Leader Alleges Another Supreme Court Breach, response from Supreme Court Legal Office, Gift Regulations (Guide to Judiciary Policy, Vol. 2C, Ch. 6), Trump motion for disclosure, Media motion for access

We're once again joined by the incredible Liz Dye to update us (and remind us of the backstory...) on the E. Jean Carroll suit. Or now, SUITS! She has been able to file another suit against Trump due to a new law that has been passed. It's good news for justice, bad news for Trump!

What happens when Thomas preps a music law episode but Andrew also preps a music law episode? You get basically 2 episodes in 1! Given that we just moved to our more frequent schedule, we definitely did not intend to create such a behemoth, but there was just too much to cover! In the first half, Andrew sketches out the legal landscape in music copyright law and it's pretty severe limitations. We analyze the Blurred Lines/Got To Give It Up lawsuit, and the Sam Smith/Tom Petty case, complete with clips! Then in the second half, we FINALLY get to the actual case at hand, which is Grigson v Lopez. Thomas takes Andrew on a bit of a musical tour discussing different elements of the songs with even more clips!

... and his terrible f*cking attorneys. You love to see it.

The fact that Garland has appointed a Special Counsel means an indictment is not coming in the very immediate future. HOWEVER, everything we know about Jack Smith tells us that this is a very serious step that is not good for Trump. Listen in and find out why! Also, the 11th Circuit AGAIN slapped down Judge Cannon's horrendous ruling. The oral arguments could have been a Law'd Great Media. Andrew brought some quotes and they are great. This is the first episode of our new format, so there is no T3BE! There will be 4 episodes next week, the two smaller ones will have the T3BE question and answer. Exciting! Links: 28 U.S. Code § 510 - Delegation of authority, 28 CFR Part 600 - GENERAL POWERS OF SPECIAL COUNSEL, 28 CFR § 600.7 - Conduct and accountability, Smith Appointment order, 28 CFR § 600.8 - Notification and reports by the Special Counsel, 11th-circuit-grants-stay.pdf, 11th-circuit-grants-stay.pdf, Trump still filing to Cannon, Another Eastman Loss, SCOTUS declines to intervene for Trump taxes

A viral meme claims that a fake Eli Lilly tweet declaring insulin to be free tanked the stock to the tune of billions and billions. Ignoring for a moment the fact that it seems incredibly unlikely that an easily debunkable fake tweet on fake tweet day would send a bunch of investors into a frenzy, could Eli Lilly sue the tweeter? Or the Twitter? It's another Section 230 deep dive! Links: 47 U.S.C. § 230, Malwarebytes, Inc. v. Enigma Software Group, Gonzalez v. Google LLC - SCOTUSblog, Trump 9th Cir. brief

...despite Mitch McConnell voting against codifying his own marriage into law... This is good news! Is it perfect news? As usual, no! But is it still very good? Yes! Would this have happened without Democrats controlling congress even by the slimmest possible majority? NO! Also, MAJOR show announcement! And it's a good one! Then Liz Dye joins to talk about a judge slapping down the Stop Woke Act. Links: Remaining House Election Results and Race Calls - The New York Times, Bipartisan senators revive effort to pass bill codifying same-sex marriage protections, U.S. v. Windsor, 570 U.S. 744 (2013), 28 U.S. Code § 1738C - Certain acts, records, and proceedings and the effect thereof, H. R. 8404 To repeal the Defense of Marriage Act

Today we get a breakdown on a few cases in which right wing goons are seeking to shut down free speech and freedom of the press in a pretty major way. AND they are finding success in our broken courts. Dershowitz v. CNN and Trump v. CNN. It also gives Andrew a chance to fawn over the Onion Amicus Brief that so many of you requested us to go over! Links: Dersh v CNN motion for summary judgment, Novak v. City of Parma, Novak v. City of Parma, 33 F.4th 296 6th circuit opinion, Novak cert petition, Onion's amicus brief

It's a good news show! Of course you know by now that Democrats over-performed in the midterms. So it's time for Andrew to take a bit of a victory lap and discuss what happened, what races are still left to be called, how the balance of power might change, and what that will mean for Democrats and, you know, the future of our democracy!

Andrew has done exhaustive research on all the key midterm elections to deliver to you a definitive guide on what to look for on election night. How soon will we know if things are good? Or if they are terrible? Which election outcomes should we be surprised about and which should be completely not surprising? Find out! Also, patrons gain access to Andrew's entier notes on this one, which you may want because there is a lot here!

Hooooo boy. Ok, Elon Musk officially owns Twitter. Does that mean a big "Andrew was wrong?" Well.... kinda but it's complicated. We really just did not fathom how irrational Elon is. His wealth has taken a perhaps unprecedented hit as a result of this terrible deal. Listen for the details! Then, Liz Dye joins us for an update on Jan 6! Links: Shareholder vote twitter, How Elon Musk financed his $44bn Twitter takeover, SC 13D, Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, SEC form 4 Elon, SEC filing AMENDMENT NO. 12 to SCHEDULE 13D, Banks prepare to hold $12.7bn Twitter debt on books until early 2023, U.S. exploring whether it has authority to review Musk’s Twitter deal - The Washington Post, Tesla latest 10-Q, Eastman 9th cir brief, Liz Dye Trump coverage

Just wanted to clarify right off the bat in case the very sight of Seidel's name on our feed might send you into a panic that some fresh church/state separation obliterating hell was dealt to us by the court. That hasn't happened at LEAST in the last few days. No, Andrew Seidel joins us to talk about his brilliant new book, American Crusade!

Sorry things are a bit hectic with me being in Manchester for QED. Here is the t3be featuring Andrew Seidel!

This wild story has been on my radar for a while, but now that there's a lawsuit involved, I've convinced Andrew to give us a breakdown! But Andrew doesn't just take us through the lawsuit. We go through the accusations, and what it might take to try to prove a low frequency event to a jury. Along the way, there's a poker cheating accusation scandal as well!

But who will investigate the investigators? John Durham, as it turns out. And what will he find? F*ck all. Trump tried to have his own Mueller Probe to get to the bottom of all the deep state corruption that must have led to the Russia Investigation only to find that there wasn't any of that. But the whole affair was a massive corruption of justice that has not been covered enough. Get the full OA breakdown! Links: Judiciary Committee Releases Transcripts of Interviews Conducted During Oversight of Crossfire Hurricane Investigation, REPORT SELECT COMMITTEE ON INTELLIGENCE, Mueller Report, 18 U.S. Code § 371 - Conspiracy to commit offense or to defraud United States, 52 U.S. Code § 30121 - Contributions and donations by foreign nationals, FISA Warrant Application for Carter Page, Durham probe: Trump team says Americans should be 'waiting for the next shoe to drop', Durham says Steele dossier source lied. But the FBI long valued him, Review of Four FISA Applications, Igor Danchenko Indictment

Big news! The smockingest of smocking guns was revealed by a judge who was so alarmed he had to share it with us! Get the full breakdown as to why this is final nail in the case against Trump. In the first segment, we talk about Republicans efforts to undermine student loan forgiveness. Since, you know, they can just be evil and someone that's ok and they're still going to win the midterms. Then a quick wildcard on Trump being subpoenaed by the Jan 6 committee. Links: Student Loan forgiveness, SC challenge on the shadow docket, Eastman phone, Eastman emails, 18 U.S. Code § 371 - Conspiracy to commit offense or to defraud United States, Trump subpoena, OLC memo, 2 U.S. Code § 192 - Refusal of witness to testify or produce papers

Today we bring you another SCOTUS deep dive involving campaign finance. Money is speech, and people with a crapload of money just deserve to speak way more than us pleebs and that's a great thing that has fantastic results in our political system and I for one welcome our monopoly man overlords.

YASSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS Alex Jones owes Sandy Hook victims' families... so much money. So, so much. But should we be worried that it will get appealed or reduced or some legal shenanigans will happen? Find out! Then, Andrew breaks down an interesting False Advertising case making waves. Should companies have to be honest about where their products are produced? Or is it ok to engage in a little puffery? Links: Alex Jones Case: How the Jury Divided Nearly $1 Billion in Damages, Peacock v Pabst

Make sure you listened to part 1, episode 636 before you proceed! It's part 2 of the long-awaited Citizens United deep-dive. In this one, we finally get to... Citizens United... Links: McConnell v. FEC, 540 U.S. 93 (2003), Citizens United, SCOTUS decision

I mean it isn't really ok that Clarence Thomas is on the Supreme Court, and he definitely should recuse himself from any of this (he won't), HOWEVER, there is no need to freak out about this particular thing. Andrew has the breakdown. Plus, Ken Paxton avoided a deposition... until he didn't. Because he's an idiot. And finally, is Elon Musk going to buy Twitter? And therefore was Andrew wrong? Well.... no. Links: Fund Texas Choice v. Paxton, DOJ motion 11th circuit, Trump opposition, Trump asks SC for stay, why Justice Thomas has the decision, Elon Musk letter, Trump v CNN, The Onion's Amicus Brief

Look it seems impossible, but someone Andrew insists that we've never done a deep-dive on Citizens United! It's obviously one of the worst decisions in Supreme Court history, but do you know the details of just HOW terrible it was? Listener Thomas S. certainly didn't. So listen in and be dumbfounded at how tf we got here. Links: Wealth Inequality in the U.S. by Household Type, Has Wealth Inequality in America Changed over Time, Trends in U.S. income and wealth inequality, Unequal gains: American growth and inequality since 1700, founding fathers wealth inequality, United States v. Int’l Union United Automobile, Aircraft & Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW-CIO), 352 U.S. 567 (1957)

You can't quite call it f around and find out, since Judge Cannon has bent over backwards and around and through the 4th dimension and back in time for Trump. But Trump got his hand picked Special Master and quickly found out... he's just a Reagan Republican. Not a Qanon shaman. Trump has been caught it 11 different traps. OR WOULD HAVE BEEN except for the absolutely Cannon ball that dropped right after we recorded. Links: Lunn v. Commonwealth (2017), Arizona v. U.S., 567 U.S. 387 (2012), 18 U.S. Code Chapter 77 - PEONAGE, SLAVERY, AND TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS, “A-M-P” Model, Justice Manual, the appointment order, order following partial stay, case management order, motion to stay, revised filing, Trump opposition to Dearie’s CMO, Rule 53. Masters, 18 U.S. Code § 793 - Gathering, transmitting or losing defense information, DOJ;s reply, Trump opposition to extension of time

Some transphobic and racist a$$holes stole a DnD-like game from Wizards of the Coast and tried to use it for their own racist transphobic purposes with a really stupid "one weird trick." They got busted and dueling lawsuits followed. Andrew has the breakdown! Links: complaint against wizards, answer and counterclaim, TSR Online Store, Wizards of the Coast files lawsuit against TSR LLC, Schuh affidavit, Rainwater affidavit

No doubt you've heard the huge news – Adnan Syed has been released. So what happened? Is there really new evidence? New suspects? Does this mean he didn't actually kill Hae? Find out! Then, big news in the Nara-Lago case! We recorded a breakdown before the 11th Circuit granted DoJ's appeal, and then Andrew was able to record a follow up after! So, tons of stuff in today's show! Links: Other Postconviction Review, OA107: Adnan Syed Obviously Did It, State v. Syed 2019, Motion to vacate, DOJ Trump reply

Despicable a**hole Alex Jones is getting properly destroyed in court once again. You might be thinking, what is it Groundhog Day? But no, this is not the Texas trial in which he got suitably destroyed. This is yet another trial over his disgusting lies about Sandy Hook. This one is being tried in Connecticut, which you may recognize as the state where Sandy Hook happened. If you thought his lawyers botched the last one, wait until you hear some clips from this one! Presented brilliantly by Ace Associate Morgan Stringer!