Firthermor
@firthermor.bsky.social
Mid-Atlantic nature. Natural world. Photography. Plays with words. Grovers Mill Martian invasion survivor 😉. Popular sovereignty, voting rights, democracy, and good governance stan.
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Firthermor
@firthermor.bsky.social
· Nov 13
Hi! I am new around here.
Sometime doomscroller. Sometime hopescroller. Sometime serendipitous learnscroller. First time BlueSky poster.
It may look dark now, but with our work & what we build can reconstruct our democracy for the better. Succession happens, sometimes with a bit of engineering.
Sometime doomscroller. Sometime hopescroller. Sometime serendipitous learnscroller. First time BlueSky poster.
It may look dark now, but with our work & what we build can reconstruct our democracy for the better. Succession happens, sometimes with a bit of engineering.
Reposted by Firthermor
Rep. Thanedar has filed two articles of impeachment against Hegseth, one for "murder and conspiracy to murder" and the other for "reckless and unlawful mishandling of classified information." 🧵
(Full disclosure: I was happy to consult a bit on drafting this.)
(Full disclosure: I was happy to consult a bit on drafting this.)
December 9, 2025 at 9:30 PM
Rep. Thanedar has filed two articles of impeachment against Hegseth, one for "murder and conspiracy to murder" and the other for "reckless and unlawful mishandling of classified information." 🧵
(Full disclosure: I was happy to consult a bit on drafting this.)
(Full disclosure: I was happy to consult a bit on drafting this.)
Reposted by Firthermor
history of unitary executive theory, in one tweet
Step 1 - Formal logic requires you, a principled legal movement, to override centuries of tradition. Functionalism is irrelevant.
Step 2 - Functionalism requires you, a sensible legal movement, to create exceptions to the formal logic of Step 1.
Step 1 - Formal logic requires you, a principled legal movement, to override centuries of tradition. Functionalism is irrelevant.
Step 2 - Functionalism requires you, a sensible legal movement, to create exceptions to the formal logic of Step 1.
December 9, 2025 at 5:00 PM
history of unitary executive theory, in one tweet
Step 1 - Formal logic requires you, a principled legal movement, to override centuries of tradition. Functionalism is irrelevant.
Step 2 - Functionalism requires you, a sensible legal movement, to create exceptions to the formal logic of Step 1.
Step 1 - Formal logic requires you, a principled legal movement, to override centuries of tradition. Functionalism is irrelevant.
Step 2 - Functionalism requires you, a sensible legal movement, to create exceptions to the formal logic of Step 1.
Reposted by Firthermor
4. Why would a U.S. private equity firm (Affinity Partners) owned by a U.S. citizen (Jared Kushner) need to waive governance rights to avoid review by the Committee on FOREIGN INVESTMENT in the U.S.?
Because Paramount knows that Kushner's company is simply a vehicle for foreign influence.
Because Paramount knows that Kushner's company is simply a vehicle for foreign influence.
Kushner and Saudis back hostile takeover of Hollywood giant
Jared Kushner is funneling $24 billion from Middle Eastern governments to back a hostile bid for Warner Bros. Discovery—all while advising President Trump on foreign policy.
popular.info
December 9, 2025 at 2:13 PM
4. Why would a U.S. private equity firm (Affinity Partners) owned by a U.S. citizen (Jared Kushner) need to waive governance rights to avoid review by the Committee on FOREIGN INVESTMENT in the U.S.?
Because Paramount knows that Kushner's company is simply a vehicle for foreign influence.
Because Paramount knows that Kushner's company is simply a vehicle for foreign influence.
Reposted by Firthermor
1. Paramount's hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros. Discovery exposes Jared Kushner's game
Kushner is not running a private equity fund. He's running an influence peddling operation.
It's spelled out on page 42 of Paramount's new SEC filing
Kushner is not running a private equity fund. He's running an influence peddling operation.
It's spelled out on page 42 of Paramount's new SEC filing
Kushner and Saudis back hostile takeover of Hollywood giant
Jared Kushner is funneling $24 billion from Middle Eastern governments to back a hostile bid for Warner Bros. Discovery—all while advising President Trump on foreign policy.
popular.info
December 9, 2025 at 2:13 PM
1. Paramount's hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros. Discovery exposes Jared Kushner's game
Kushner is not running a private equity fund. He's running an influence peddling operation.
It's spelled out on page 42 of Paramount's new SEC filing
Kushner is not running a private equity fund. He's running an influence peddling operation.
It's spelled out on page 42 of Paramount's new SEC filing
Reposted by Firthermor
EXCLUSIVE: For years Donald Trump has evaded responsibility for the Jan. 6 insurrection.
And for years, he has tried to kill a lawsuit that could hold him liable.
He has failed. Again and again.
This is it. This is the last chance to see Trump held to account:
www.huffpost.com/entry/lawmak...
And for years, he has tried to kill a lawsuit that could hold him liable.
He has failed. Again and again.
This is it. This is the last chance to see Trump held to account:
www.huffpost.com/entry/lawmak...
This Could Be The Very Last Chance To Hold Trump Accountable For Jan. 6
Several lawmakers told HuffPost they want to make sure no one forgets the most shameful day in U.S. history — and they’re playing the long game.
www.huffpost.com
December 9, 2025 at 5:19 PM
EXCLUSIVE: For years Donald Trump has evaded responsibility for the Jan. 6 insurrection.
And for years, he has tried to kill a lawsuit that could hold him liable.
He has failed. Again and again.
This is it. This is the last chance to see Trump held to account:
www.huffpost.com/entry/lawmak...
And for years, he has tried to kill a lawsuit that could hold him liable.
He has failed. Again and again.
This is it. This is the last chance to see Trump held to account:
www.huffpost.com/entry/lawmak...
Reposted by Firthermor
#ICYMI: ProPublica obtained records from the Department of Agriculture that detailed the millions of pounds of food, down to the number of eggs, that never reached food banks because of the Trump administration’s cuts to an aid program.
(Published Oct. 2025)
(Published Oct. 2025)
Trump Canceled 94 Million Pounds of Food Aid. Here’s What Never Arrived.
ProPublica obtained records from the Department of Agriculture that detail the millions of pounds of food, down to the number of eggs, that never reached food banks because of the administration’s cut...
projects.propublica.org
December 9, 2025 at 4:00 AM
#ICYMI: ProPublica obtained records from the Department of Agriculture that detailed the millions of pounds of food, down to the number of eggs, that never reached food banks because of the Trump administration’s cuts to an aid program.
(Published Oct. 2025)
(Published Oct. 2025)
Reposted by Firthermor
We asked activists from authoritarian regimes what they wish they’d known sooner. Here’s what they said www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
We asked activists from authoritarian regimes what they wish they’d known sooner. Here’s what they said
Activists from Hungary, El Salvador and Turkey offer advice to the US about what they’ve learned about authoritarians
www.theguardian.com
December 9, 2025 at 12:16 PM
We asked activists from authoritarian regimes what they wish they’d known sooner. Here’s what they said www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Reposted by Firthermor
I was going to just share an excerpt of this great @donmoyn.bsky.social piece, but there are too many excerpts worth sharing. Just read the whole thing. If you care about governance, democracy, and the rule of law, these issues are crucial. open.substack.com/pub/donmoyni...
At will? Whose will?
Removing independent agency heads is part of a broader assault on a nonpartisan government
open.substack.com
December 9, 2025 at 12:43 PM
I was going to just share an excerpt of this great @donmoyn.bsky.social piece, but there are too many excerpts worth sharing. Just read the whole thing. If you care about governance, democracy, and the rule of law, these issues are crucial. open.substack.com/pub/donmoyni...
Reposted by Firthermor
“the judiciary will kill key parts of the working model of American governance, built up over time to adapt to the needs of the country, with no functional alternative beyond handing unprecedented power to an eager authoritarian.”— @donmoyn.bsky.social open.substack.com/pub/donmoyni... Good mourning
At will? Whose will?
Removing independent agency heads is part of a broader assault on a nonpartisan government
open.substack.com
December 9, 2025 at 1:52 PM
“the judiciary will kill key parts of the working model of American governance, built up over time to adapt to the needs of the country, with no functional alternative beyond handing unprecedented power to an eager authoritarian.”— @donmoyn.bsky.social open.substack.com/pub/donmoyni... Good mourning
Reposted by Firthermor
New, from me: by embracing unitary executive theory, the Supreme Court is moving towards making all public employees fireable at the will of the President.
This will not just hurt government competence, it will aid democratic backsliding. 🧵
donmoynihan.substack.com/p/at-will-wh...
This will not just hurt government competence, it will aid democratic backsliding. 🧵
donmoynihan.substack.com/p/at-will-wh...
At will? Whose will?
Removing independent agency heads is part of a broader assault on a nonpartisan government
donmoynihan.substack.com
December 9, 2025 at 1:06 PM
New, from me: by embracing unitary executive theory, the Supreme Court is moving towards making all public employees fireable at the will of the President.
This will not just hurt government competence, it will aid democratic backsliding. 🧵
donmoynihan.substack.com/p/at-will-wh...
This will not just hurt government competence, it will aid democratic backsliding. 🧵
donmoynihan.substack.com/p/at-will-wh...
Reposted by Firthermor
@billscher.bsky.social on our "half-kleptocracy, half-kakistocracy govt": "President Donald Trump is a convicted white-collar criminal who likes to let other white-collar criminals off the hook. That statement is not a columnist’s vitriol but factually correct." washingtonmonthly.com/2025/12/09/t...
The Main Beneficiaries of Trump’s Pardons? White-Collar Criminals Like Him
Trump’s pardons overwhelmingly favor white-collar criminals and dovetail with a deregulatory agenda that risks global financial stability.
washingtonmonthly.com
December 9, 2025 at 6:23 PM
@billscher.bsky.social on our "half-kleptocracy, half-kakistocracy govt": "President Donald Trump is a convicted white-collar criminal who likes to let other white-collar criminals off the hook. That statement is not a columnist’s vitriol but factually correct." washingtonmonthly.com/2025/12/09/t...
Reposted by Firthermor
Dunes No. 47 - Death Valley National Park (2022)
#deathvalley #dunes #nationalparks #monochrome #landscapephotography #photography #california
#deathvalley #dunes #nationalparks #monochrome #landscapephotography #photography #california
December 9, 2025 at 3:24 PM
Dunes No. 47 - Death Valley National Park (2022)
#deathvalley #dunes #nationalparks #monochrome #landscapephotography #photography #california
#deathvalley #dunes #nationalparks #monochrome #landscapephotography #photography #california
Reposted by Firthermor
“There’s just been video after video of excessive force — tackling people immediately, raids on apartment buildings. There’s just rampant violations of constitutional rights.” -@krhawkins.bsky.social
Federal agents have repeatedly detained or used force against people who seem to be protesting peacefully, videos show | CNN Politics
In several cities, federal agents deployed by the president have detained, chased, shoved, sprayed or shot with projectiles people protesting peacefully.
www.cnn.com
December 9, 2025 at 4:07 PM
“There’s just been video after video of excessive force — tackling people immediately, raids on apartment buildings. There’s just rampant violations of constitutional rights.” -@krhawkins.bsky.social
Reposted by Firthermor
Looking back on my awesome Arctic fox encounter from last month. These little guys are high-energy, fast-moving foragers. This one was sniffing for snacks among the frozen kelp on the shore. They will follow polar bears onto the ice to eat leftovers from their kills. #mammals 🌿
December 9, 2025 at 4:45 PM
Looking back on my awesome Arctic fox encounter from last month. These little guys are high-energy, fast-moving foragers. This one was sniffing for snacks among the frozen kelp on the shore. They will follow polar bears onto the ice to eat leftovers from their kills. #mammals 🌿
Reposted by Firthermor
JUST IN: Trump personally asserts executive privilege to protect 4K+ documents/messages from discovery in J6 civil suit. Court given very bare bones list. Doc: www.documentcloud.org/documents/26... As first reported by POLITICO last week w/ @kyledcheney.bsky.social
www.politico.com/news/2025/12...
www.politico.com/news/2025/12...
December 8, 2025 at 11:01 PM
JUST IN: Trump personally asserts executive privilege to protect 4K+ documents/messages from discovery in J6 civil suit. Court given very bare bones list. Doc: www.documentcloud.org/documents/26... As first reported by POLITICO last week w/ @kyledcheney.bsky.social
www.politico.com/news/2025/12...
www.politico.com/news/2025/12...
Reposted by Firthermor
it is actually kind of bananas how unitary executive theorists have taken a straightforward clause requiring the president to "faithfully execute the laws" and transformed it into a grant for the exercise of limitless unenumerated power.
The Take Care Clause was a byproduct of the lessons learned from the Glorious Revolution that the executive should not be able to dispense with the law promulgated by the legislature. It was not a constitutional provision to empower the executive branch— but to constrain it!
December 9, 2025 at 2:20 PM
it is actually kind of bananas how unitary executive theorists have taken a straightforward clause requiring the president to "faithfully execute the laws" and transformed it into a grant for the exercise of limitless unenumerated power.
Reposted by Firthermor
and i’ll use @donmoyn.bsky.social’s post here to make the point that the other piece of the unitarian view seems to be that the purpose of the executive branch is to be an extension of the president’s will, rather than a tool to execute the commands of the legislature.
At will? Whose will?
Removing independent agency heads is part of a broader assault on a nonpartisan government
donmoynihan.substack.com
December 9, 2025 at 2:00 PM
and i’ll use @donmoyn.bsky.social’s post here to make the point that the other piece of the unitarian view seems to be that the purpose of the executive branch is to be an extension of the president’s will, rather than a tool to execute the commands of the legislature.
Reposted by Firthermor
"The Supreme Court seems to be pushing back the date at which Purcell is triggered further and further from election day." It’s "one thing to prohibit 11th-hour federal court intervention in elections," but the Texas gerrymander case would count as -- what -- 5th-hour intervention? [Richard Pildes]
My Bloomberg Law Essay on the Troubling Implications of the Court's Texas Redistricting Decision for Federal Oversight of State Election Law Changes #ELB
Here’s an excerpt from this Bloomberg Law essay I published today: Texas’ US Supreme Court victory allowing its new congressional maps to be used for next year’s midterm elections has potentially broa...
electionlawblog.org
December 9, 2025 at 4:03 PM
"The Supreme Court seems to be pushing back the date at which Purcell is triggered further and further from election day." It’s "one thing to prohibit 11th-hour federal court intervention in elections," but the Texas gerrymander case would count as -- what -- 5th-hour intervention? [Richard Pildes]
Reposted by Firthermor
Voting rights coalition submits more than 300,000 signatures to force ballot referendum on gerrymandered congressional map in Missouri, blocking it once measure certified until voters can weigh in. Big victory for fair representation missouriindependent.com/2025/12/09/m...
Campaign to put gerrymandered Missouri map on the ballot turns in 300,000 signatures • Missouri Independent
Roughly 300,000 signatures demanding Missouri’s gerrymandered congressional map be placed on the 2026 ballot were submitted.
missouriindependent.com
December 9, 2025 at 3:55 PM
Voting rights coalition submits more than 300,000 signatures to force ballot referendum on gerrymandered congressional map in Missouri, blocking it once measure certified until voters can weigh in. Big victory for fair representation missouriindependent.com/2025/12/09/m...
Reposted by Firthermor
New from 404 Media: a man has been charged for allegedly wiping a Google Pixel phone before CBP could search it. Search was by a CBP Tactical Terrorism Response Team, which ACLU says "interrogate innocent travelers." Man is described as an activist online
www.404media.co/man-charged-...
www.404media.co/man-charged-...
Man Charged for Wiping Phone Before CBP Could Search It
The exact circumstances around the search are not known. But activist Samuel Tunick is charged with deleting data from a Google Pixel before CBP’s Tactical Terrorism Response Team could search it.
www.404media.co
December 9, 2025 at 3:06 PM
New from 404 Media: a man has been charged for allegedly wiping a Google Pixel phone before CBP could search it. Search was by a CBP Tactical Terrorism Response Team, which ACLU says "interrogate innocent travelers." Man is described as an activist online
www.404media.co/man-charged-...
www.404media.co/man-charged-...
Reposted by Firthermor
'how can I take care that the laws Congress passed are faithfully executed if Congress passed a law that says I can only fire people for good cause?'
you're not gonna believe this......you could follow that law
ballsandstrikes.org/scotus/trump...
you're not gonna believe this......you could follow that law
ballsandstrikes.org/scotus/trump...
The Supreme Court Wants You to Believe Congress Does Not Exist
The conservative justices aren’t concerned about unaccountable federal agency heads. They are concerned about federal agency heads who aren’t accountable to their favorite president.
ballsandstrikes.org
December 9, 2025 at 2:32 PM
'how can I take care that the laws Congress passed are faithfully executed if Congress passed a law that says I can only fire people for good cause?'
you're not gonna believe this......you could follow that law
ballsandstrikes.org/scotus/trump...
you're not gonna believe this......you could follow that law
ballsandstrikes.org/scotus/trump...
Reposted by Firthermor
Trump v Slaughter argument in bullet points: 1) Humphrey's is toast; 2) Slaughter's lawyer got caught up trying to defend the Ct's recent removal cases; 3) J. Barrett floated a questionable view of liquidation. 4) Conservatives worried about hypothetical future, ignoring Trump's current menace. 👇
What We Learned From the Trump v. Slaughter Oral Argument
Having wasted spent two and a half hours of my day listening to yesterday's oral argument in Trump v. Slaughter , I have less time than I t...
www.dorfonlaw.org
December 9, 2025 at 1:18 PM
Trump v Slaughter argument in bullet points: 1) Humphrey's is toast; 2) Slaughter's lawyer got caught up trying to defend the Ct's recent removal cases; 3) J. Barrett floated a questionable view of liquidation. 4) Conservatives worried about hypothetical future, ignoring Trump's current menace. 👇
Reposted by Firthermor
I went to the Trump Kennedy Center Honors Cursed By The Monkey’s Paw and all you got were these 1500 words of observations www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...
Trump’s Very Weird Night at the Kennedy Center Honors
The president and I both got our heart’s desire. But something felt wrong.
www.theatlantic.com
December 9, 2025 at 1:21 PM
I went to the Trump Kennedy Center Honors Cursed By The Monkey’s Paw and all you got were these 1500 words of observations www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...
Reposted by Firthermor
EXCLUSIVE: We found that Instacart is using AI algorithms to charge customers different prices for the same items.
It's not just online. It's in physical grocery stores too.
Our months-long investigation with @consumerreports.org and @groundwork.bsky.social found it could cost families $1200/year.
It's not just online. It's in physical grocery stores too.
Our months-long investigation with @consumerreports.org and @groundwork.bsky.social found it could cost families $1200/year.
We Had 400 People Shop For Groceries. What We Found Will Shock You.
YouTube video by More Perfect Union
www.youtube.com
December 9, 2025 at 1:37 PM
EXCLUSIVE: We found that Instacart is using AI algorithms to charge customers different prices for the same items.
It's not just online. It's in physical grocery stores too.
Our months-long investigation with @consumerreports.org and @groundwork.bsky.social found it could cost families $1200/year.
It's not just online. It's in physical grocery stores too.
Our months-long investigation with @consumerreports.org and @groundwork.bsky.social found it could cost families $1200/year.
Reposted by Firthermor
Rattray Head sunrise, 2019 #Aberdeenshire #Buchan #Scotland damianshields.photoshelter.com/p/2026-calendar
December 9, 2025 at 11:19 AM
Rattray Head sunrise, 2019 #Aberdeenshire #Buchan #Scotland damianshields.photoshelter.com/p/2026-calendar