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Molly Redden

@mtredden.bsky.social

12K followers 340 following 23 posts

Reporter covering legal affairs for ProPublica. Have a tip? [email protected] or find me on Signal at mollyredden.14

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Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · Aug 6

Do you have information about Big Law spurning clients who might incur Trump's anger? Get in touch: [email protected] or on Signal at mollyredden.14

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · Aug 6

New from me: Big Law is fearful of representing anyone Trump sees as his enemies, and it's thwarting challenges to his agenda.

“There are cases that aren’t being brought at a time when civil rights abuses are maybe at the highest they’ve been.” www.propublica.org/article/trum...

Trump’s War on Big Law Means It’s Harder to Challenge the Administration

Some of America’s largest law firms are refusing to take pro bono and paid legal work from groups that seek to hold the government to account on issues like environmental protection, LGBTQ+ rights and...

www.propublica.org

Reposted by Molly Redden

Joel Jacobs @joeljacobs.bsky.social · Aug 6

NEW from me: The CFPB's consumer complaint system is more popular than ever, fielding over 2.7M complaints last year.

But Republican lawmakers still voted to slash the CFPB's budget, even after referring thousands of their own constituents' issues to the agency.

www.propublica.org/article/cfpb...

These GOP Lawmakers Referred Constituents to the CFPB for Help. Then They Voted to Gut the Agency.

Many of the same Republican lawmakers who have targeted the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for cuts have collectively directed thousands of constituents’ complaints about banks, credit cards, lo...

www.propublica.org

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · Aug 6

Do you have information about Big Law spurning clients who might incur Trump's anger? Get in touch: [email protected] or on Signal at mollyredden.14

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · Aug 6

New from me: Big Law is fearful of representing anyone Trump sees as his enemies, and it's thwarting challenges to his agenda.

“There are cases that aren’t being brought at a time when civil rights abuses are maybe at the highest they’ve been.” www.propublica.org/article/trum...

Trump’s War on Big Law Means It’s Harder to Challenge the Administration

Some of America’s largest law firms are refusing to take pro bono and paid legal work from groups that seek to hold the government to account on issues like environmental protection, LGBTQ+ rights and...

www.propublica.org

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · Aug 6

…“People don’t want to stand up, and because of that, people are suffering.”

Read my story here: www.propublica.org/article/trum...

Trump’s War on Big Law Means It’s Harder to Challenge the Administration

Some of America’s largest law firms are refusing to take pro bono and paid legal work from groups that seek to hold the government to account on issues like environmental protection, LGBTQ+ rights and...

www.propublica.org

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · Aug 6

…with Trump ghosted a police accountability nonprofit in the middle of preparations for a major lawsuit
⚖️Wachtell and Kirkland — two of corporate law's biggest moneymakers — are conspicuously absent from pro bono matters they championed in the past

“It’s been a nightmare…

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · Aug 6

Some key examples:

⚖️Winston & Strawn turned down FBI agents trying to stop the DOJ from building a list of employees who worked on Jan 6
⚖️A firm that sounds a lot like Sidley Austin is refusing to represent the ABA against the Trump admin
⚖️One of the 9 firms that cut a deal…

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · Aug 6

New from me: Big Law is fearful of representing anyone Trump sees as his enemies, and it's thwarting challenges to his agenda.

“There are cases that aren’t being brought at a time when civil rights abuses are maybe at the highest they’ve been.” www.propublica.org/article/trum...

Trump’s War on Big Law Means It’s Harder to Challenge the Administration

Some of America’s largest law firms are refusing to take pro bono and paid legal work from groups that seek to hold the government to account on issues like environmental protection, LGBTQ+ rights and...

www.propublica.org

Reposted by Molly Redden

Akbar Shahid Ahmed @akbarshahidahmed.huffpost.com · Jul 28

NEW— "A lot of children have passed the point of no return...The gut lining has started to auto-digest & will no longer [absorb] water or nutrition. Death is imminent for 1000s"

An American doctor who just returned from Gaza on where US-Israeli policy is taking us:
www.huffpost.com/entry/gaza-s...

‘Past The Point Of No Return’: Doctor Describes How Starvation In Gaza Is Driving Mass Death

"In August and September, there are probably still going to be ... large numbers of deaths because children have already passed the tipping point," Mark Brauner, who volunteered in Gaza last month, to...

www.huffpost.com

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · Jun 18

Tips are *very* welcome.

Are you in Big Law or a Trump-aligned firm? Struggling to recruit pro bono partners to sue the administration? Former or current DOJ/OCR? Leonard Leo? Get in my DMs!

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · Jun 18

I'm launching a new @propublica.org beat! Legal affairs under Trump: his assault on Big Law, his judicial nominees, his defiance of the courts, the politicization of executive branch legal offices, favor-trading for dropped investigations, White House legal strategy—you name it.

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · Jun 18

I'm launching a new @propublica.org beat! Legal affairs under Trump: his assault on Big Law, his judicial nominees, his defiance of the courts, the politicization of executive branch legal offices, favor-trading for dropped investigations, White House legal strategy—you name it.

Reposted by Molly Redden

Chris Morran @themorrancave.bsky.social · May 30

“I struggle for adjectives to adequately describe the horror that this administration has visited on the world,” said a former State Dept official about the damage done by Trump and Musk abandoning America's humanitarian aid commitments.

Death, Sexual Violence and Human Trafficking: Fallout From U.S. Aid Withdrawal Hits the World’s Most Fragile Locations

Exclusive State Department records show: As the Trump administration abandons its humanitarian commitments, diplomats are reporting that the cuts have led to violence and instability while undermining...

www.propublica.org

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · May 23

“One of the reasons why we were very, so insistent about coming up with the whole notion of the border being an ‘invasion’ [is] there were Constitutional authorities that were a part of being able to call it an invasion.”

Read about how we got to this precipice:

www.propublica.org/article/trum...

The “Invasion” Invention: The Far Right’s Long Legal Battle to Make Immigrants the Enemy

The Trump administration is using the claim that immigrants have “invaded” the country to justify possibly suspending habeas corpus, part of the constitutional right to due process. A faction of the f...

www.propublica.org

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · May 23

Vought, Trump's budget chief and Project 2025 architect, said he was championing this theory specifically because it would “unlock” immense executive power.

In a private speech first revealed by @documented.net, ProPublica's @andykroll.bsky.social and me last year, Vought said…

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · May 23

Courts have never bought that unauthorized immigration truly equals an "invasion"—the threshold for using the Alien Enemies Act and suspending habeas.

But between Trump administrations, MAGA intellectuals Russ Vought and Ken Cuccinelli worked behind-the-scenes to legitimize this once-fringe theory.

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · May 23

Mothers, hide your Overton Windows! A secretive effort is at work to convince courts the US is legally under "invasion."

MAGA loyalists have pushed this fringe legal theory for years. Now, it's the linchpin of Trump's mass deportation campaign and his extraordinary threats to suspend habeas corpus.

ProPublica @propublica.org · May 23

NEW: The Trump administration is using the claim that immigrants have “invaded” the country to justify possibly suspending habeas corpus, part of the constitutional right to due process.

A faction of the far right has been building this case for years.

By @mtredden.bsky.social

The “Invasion” Invention: The Far Right’s Long Legal Battle to Make Immigrants the Enemy

The Trump administration is using the claim that immigrants have “invaded” the country to justify possibly suspending habeas corpus, part of the constitutional right to due process. A faction of the f...

www.propublica.org

Reposted by Molly Redden

ProPublica @propublica.org · Apr 11

THREAD: Under a new law, thousands of prisoners in Louisiana have been cut off from ever getting a chance at parole.

Why?

Because an algorithm said so. 1/

Reposted by Molly Redden

ProPublica @propublica.org · Mar 23

An October 2024 story about Russell Vought captured the breadth and ferocity of the coming attack on the federal government.

So why didn’t this story drive more of a national conversation when it appeared?

The October Story That Outlined Exactly What the Trump Administration Would Do to the Federal Bureaucracy

Historians have hindsight when they look into the past; journalists have the facts on the ground and context to help them look ahead. That means we can sometimes be surprised by how prescient a story…

Reposted by Molly Redden

Cassandra Jaramillo @cassandrajaramillo.bsky.social · Feb 20

New and devastating reporting from my colleagues showing just how dangerous it has become to be pregnant and in Texas after the state banned abortion.

Please read and share:

www.propublica.org/article/texa...

Texas Banned Abortion. Then Sepsis Rates Soared.

ProPublica’s first-of-its-kind analysis is the most detailed look yet into a rise in life-threatening complications for women experiencing pregnancy loss under Texas’ abortion ban.

www.propublica.org

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · Feb 15

“In response, the employees refused their requests and called sheriff's deputies.“

Tim Onion @bencollins.bsky.social · Feb 15

So you can just say you work at DOGE and pillage anything from our documents you want. The law truly doesn't exist anymore! Cool!

3 men claiming to be from DOGE show up at San Francisco City Hall, demand records

San Francisco city officials are investigating after three men who claimed to be from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) showed up at City Hall on Friday demanding records from offices bef...

www.cbsnews.com

Reposted by Molly Redden

Richard Kim @richardkimnyc.bsky.social · Feb 15

If a nakedly corrupt and anti-constitutional DoJ won't hold Eric Adams to account, here's who could.

How Other Prosecutors Could Pick Up the Case Against Eric Adams

www.thecity.nyc/2025/02/15/e...

How Other Prosecutors Could Pick Up the Case Against Eric Adams

Both Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and NY Attorney General Tish James could pursue charges, and Gov. Hochul could also remove the mayor.

www.thecity.nyc

Reposted by Molly Redden

Rachel Cohen Booth @rcobooth.bsky.social · Feb 14

I wrote about how the Trump administration's assault on the civil service draws from the same playbook used for decades against public school teachers.

A nation that devalues its public servants devalues its future

www.vox.com/donald-trump...

Elon Musk is using the anti-teacher playbook against the entire civil workforce

This didn’t start with DOGE.

Reposted by Molly Redden

Mica Rosenberg @micarosenberg.bsky.social · Feb 13

The Trump administration has flown about 100 immigrants to Guantanamo Bay. Perla Trevizo and I identified nearly a dozen of them and spoke to relatives of three of them. www.propublica.org/article/trum...

U.S. Claims Immigrants Held at Guantanamo Are “Worst of the Worst.” Their Families Say They’re Being Unfairly Targeted.

ProPublica and The Texas Tribune have identified nearly a dozen immigrants who have been flown to Guantanamo Bay. Government officials have refused to release the names of detainees or provide details...

www.propublica.org

Reposted by Molly Redden

ProPublica @propublica.org · Feb 14

NEW: Under the Trump administration, the Office for Civil Rights has shifted its focus to removing gender-neutral bathrooms, banning transgender athletes from women’s sports and prioritizing complaints alleging discrimination against white students.

“We’ve Been Essentially Muzzled”: Department of Education Halts Thousands of Civil Rights Investigations Under Trump

Since Inauguration Day, the Office for Civil Rights has only opened about 20 investigations focused on Trump’s priorities, placing more than 10,000 student complaints related to disability access and ...

Reposted by Molly Redden

David Dayen @ddayen.bsky.social · Feb 5

NEW from me: Why has Patrick Soon-Shiong touted RFK Jr repeatedly and run interference for him at his paper, the LA Times? Maybe because his biotech company has 3 applications pending at the FDA, whose parent agency Kennedy is about to be running.
prospect.org/power/2025-0...

L.A. Times Owner Has Financial Motivations for Boosting RFK Jr.

Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong’s biotech firm is preparing three applications needing approval from the Food and Drug Administration.

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · Jan 29

Buckle up

Molly Redden @mtredden.bsky.social · Nov 26

New from me: As they prepare to cut trillions in government services, Trump + team are planning to test a radical legal theory which claims the president can unilaterally choke off funding from programs he opposes. www.propublica.org/article/trum...

How Trump Plans to Seize the Power of the Purse From Congress

The second-term president likely will seek to cut off spending that lawmakers have already appropriated, setting off a constitutional struggle within the branches. If successful, he could wield the po...

www.propublica.org

Reposted by Molly Redden

Erin Reed @erininthemorning.com · Jan 28

Donald Trump has just released a national under 18 trans care ban executive order. I am working through specifically how it tries to do this, and will live tweet here section by section as I read through it.

It is not yet on the website, but has been released via press release.