MS NOW PREMIUM

Ad-free listening + bonus content.

TSh 9,900.00/month or TSh 89,900.00/year

Main Justice

Main Justice is the next era of legal analysis from Andrew Weissmann and Mary McCord, the veteran lawyers behind the hit podcast Prosecuting Donald Trump. As the criminal cases against Trump wind down and his new administration comes to power, Andrew and Mary draw on their extensive experience working within the Department of Justice to break down what’s happening inside Trump’s DOJ. Each week, they use their platform on Main Justice to safeguard against assaults on our laws, our Constitution, and our democracy.

  1. “Horsefeathers!”

    14 HR AGO

    “Horsefeathers!”

    Last week, a grand jury refused to indict six Democratic lawmakers over a video they made addressing service members’ duty to refuse illegal orders. Mary and Andrew hold little back as they discuss the government’s attempt to chill free speech and persecute political foes. In an adjacent case, they review Judge Richard Leon’s decision to block Secretary Pete Hegseth from demoting Senator Mark Kelly over the video, saying it “trampled on Senator Kelly's First Amendment freedoms.” The co-hosts then dig into the unsealed Fulton County affidavit and what it shows about the basis of the administration's 2020 election fraud claims, before concluding with a couple due process updates: Judge Boasberg’s decision ordering the Trump administration to facilitate the return of some Venezuelan migrants unlawfully deported, and Judge Tim Kelly’s decision in a case about death row prisoners being sent to a “Supermax” prison on the government’s orders without due process, after Biden granted them clemency from the death penalty before leaving office. Further reading: Read Judge Richard J. Leon’s Memorandum Opinion on Mark Kelly v. Pete Hegseth HERE  Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    58 min
  2. Who's Bearing the Consequences?

    10 FEB

    Who's Bearing the Consequences?

    Andrew and Mary are often inundated with news out of the Justice Department, but one item that really caught their attention this week was the DOJ’s appeal to the Supreme Court to toss out Steve Bannon’s contempt conviction. They begin here, highlighting Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche’s wry comments on social media about the case. Next, they turn to a reality hitting prosecutors hard, especially in states ICE is targeting—that the push for mass detentions did not include any plan for the infrastructure needed to support the caseload in the courts or in U.S. Attorneys’ offices. And it's pushing prosecutors to the brink. Mary and Andrew talk about one of them, Julie Le, who was fired after expressing her exasperation in Minnesota. Next, they explain why Congress was given access to the (mostly) un-redacted Epstein files and Ghislaine Maxwell’s choice to plead the 5th in a congressional deposition. And last up, a beat on the Georgia ballot seizures, as Fulton County sues and a judge orders DOJ records to be unsealed in the case. Further Reading: Here is a new piece from Andrew: How Congress Can Give Epstein Survivors the Investigation They Deserve, Starting with Compelling Maxwell to Testify Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    59 min
  3. Callous and Lawless

    4 FEB

    Callous and Lawless

    Heads were turning over the weekend after Chad Mizelle, a former Justice Department official, put out a recruitment call for Trump-loyal Assistant U.S. Attorneys to hit him up on X. Mary and Andrew begin by highlighting the atypical nature of this outreach, while noting how slim the pool of applicants must be for what have long-been highly coveted and competitive positions. This piled on another DOJ fumble after a huge tranche ofEpstein files was released that unintentionally exposed the personal information of numerous victims. The co-hosts then turn to Minnesota, where a decision came in allowing Operation Metro Surge to continue, while another judge admonished DHS for ignoring over 90court orders. Mary and Andrew also call out the arrests of journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort during an anti-ICE protest in the state. Plus: a beat on a controversial federal search warrant targeting 2020 ballots in Fulton County, with more to come on that issue. Further reading: Here is the Epstein victims' letter: Emergency Request for Immediate Judicial Intervention—Epstein Transparency ActHere is the New York Times guest essay that Andrew mentioned: We Were Top Homeland Security Lawyers. You Can’t Wish Away the Fourth Amendment. Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    58 min
  4. Minnesota

    28 JAN

    Minnesota

    Mary and Andrew make Minnesota the focal point this week, after the Trump administration’s intensified immigration enforcement efforts in the state culminated in the tragic killing of Alex Pretti by federal agents on Saturday. The co-hosts detail several legal cases related to these efforts: one that challenges how ICE and CBP agents treat protestors and observers, another that aims to preserve evidence in Mr. Pretti’s death, and a state case arguing that the federal government is violating the 10th Amendment and Minnesota’s sovereignty rights by conducting “Operation Metro Surge”. Then, they turn to what Andrew calls an “extortion letter” sent by Attorney General Pam Bondi to Governor Tim Walz over the weekend, implying that compliance of three demands – including handing over Minnesota’s voter rolls – could lead to a reduction of immigration forces in the state. Before wrapping up, Mary and Andrew review a memo surfaced by a whistleblower giving DHS officers authority to forcibly enter homes during immigration enforcement operations. Further reading:  Here is a new piece Andrew and Ryan Goodman wrote for Just Security: The Top 10 Questions the Trump Administration Needs to Answer About Minnesota. What journalists and Congress should ask. Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    1h 3m
  5. Jack Smith Live

    23 JAN

    Jack Smith Live

    The former special counsel testified in front of the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee for five hours on Thursday. After the hearing was adjourned – and in between their respective hits for MS NOW’s evening shows – Mary and Andrew shared their takeaways from Smith’s time under questioning. As they note, the representatives who called Smith in often used their allotted 5 minutes to read aloud their own political statements and left him little room to say anything. In his opening statement, Smith took pains to stand up for his staff, some of whom were fired from their public service jobs, some whom have been vilified by the president's supporters, and some threatened. He said they are the best of public servants and our country owes them a debt of gratitude. Over the course of the day, Smith repeatedly told lawmakers that his team had proof that Trump knew his allegations about the election being stolen were false, that he caused the Jan. 6th insurrection and that he exploited subsequent violence. While Smith was testifying, as Mary points out, Trump posted on Truth Social: “Jack Smith is a deranged animal, who shouldn’t be allowed to practice Law. If he were a Republican, his license would be taken away from him, and far worse!” Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads. You'll also get exclusive bonus content from this and other shows. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    14 min

Shows with Subscription Benefits

MS NOW PREMIUM

Ad-free listening + bonus content.

TSh 9,900.00/month or TSh 89,900.00/year

About

Main Justice is the next era of legal analysis from Andrew Weissmann and Mary McCord, the veteran lawyers behind the hit podcast Prosecuting Donald Trump. As the criminal cases against Trump wind down and his new administration comes to power, Andrew and Mary draw on their extensive experience working within the Department of Justice to break down what’s happening inside Trump’s DOJ. Each week, they use their platform on Main Justice to safeguard against assaults on our laws, our Constitution, and our democracy.

More From MS NOW

You Might Also Like