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The Justice Department on Thursday sued the state of Maryland and its attorney general over the state’s Community Trust Act, which would limit local law enforcement’s cooperation with ICE. The complaint alleges the law obstructs federal immigration enforcement in violation of the Supremacy Clause and intergovernmental immunity. The suit is the latest of 21 Civil Division actions against sanctuary jurisdictions. (Complaint.) (WaPo.)
U.S. Magistrate Judge Laura K. McNally (N.D. Ill.) admonished Chicago U.S. Attorney Andrew S. Boutros on Thursday for discussing a sealed case at a Justice Department news conference. She called it “a clear violation of the sealing order” but imposed no sanction. (NYT.)
President Trump on Thursday ousted all three remaining members of the Election Assistance Commission. Two Democratic commissioners were fired, while the third commissioner, a Republican, resigned. (NYT.) Aaron Blacksberg discussed the implications of the dismissals. (Just Security.)
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security said that a Mexican man fatally shot by federal immigration agents on Tuesday was not the target of their search. (NYT.)
Bob Bauer and Jack Goldsmith discussed the aims, tools, and limits of the administration’s efforts to influence federal elections. (Executive Functions.)
Eric Columbus argued that acting Attorney General Todd Blanche can run the Justice Department indefinitely under the Attorney General Succession Act, whether or not the Senate confirms him. That, he wrote, renders Blanche’s July 15 confirmation fight largely symbolic. (Lawfare.)