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Letitia James filed a motion on Thursday asking the court (E.D. Va.) to order the government to follow federal, local, departmental, and ethical rules “in order to prevent future disclosures of investigative and case materials, as well as to prevent further extrajudicial statements to the media and public concerning this case and any parties or witnesses.” (Motion.) (Lawfare.) See a previous Roundup for background on the Signal exchanges between acting U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan and Lawfare Editor Anna Bower.
Sources reportedly told CNN and MSNBC that prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland have been hesitant to proceed with charges against California Senator Adam Schiff, while Ed Martin, head of the Justice Department’s Weaponization Working Group, continues pressing for the case to move forward. (CNBC, CNN). Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche denied the MSNBC story, stating that a reported meeting “never happened.” (Todd Blanche, X.)
President Trump on Wednesday pardoned Changpeng Zhao, founder of the cryptocurrency exchange Binance, following months of lobbying and reported business dealings between the exchange and the Trump family’s crypto firm. (WSJ.)
According to the Wall Street Journal, citing a U.S. official and flight tracking data, the U.S. flew two B-1 Bombers near Venezuela on Thursday. (WSJ.) When asked if this was true, President Trump said, “No, it’s not accurate.” (Aaron Rupar, X.)
President Trump said that he likely wouldn’t seek a formal declaration of war from Congress as the administration continues striking boats in the Caribbean and Pacific allegedly carrying drug traffickers. (NYT.)
President Trump announced on Truth Social on Thursday that he is no longer sending a “surge” of federal officials to San Francisco. (WaPo.) See a previous Roundup for background.
John Dehn argued that Martin v. Mott applies narrowly to presidential determinations in the context of military orders and discipline. (Volokh Conspiracy).
Jameel Jaffer argued that the Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel should publicly release any memos that the Trump administration is relying on to carry out its strikes on boats allegedly carrying drug traffickers in the Caribbean and Pacific. (NYT.)
Sarah Harrison and Mark Nevitt discussed the sidelining of Defense Department legal counsel and called on Congress to take action against the strikes in the Caribbean, including by passing a joint resolution under the War Powers Act barring President Trump from using military force against boats in the Caribbean Sea. (Just Security.)
Pending Interim Order Applications Involving the U.S. Government in the Supreme Court
Trump v. Illinois: The government filed an emergency application on October 17 requesting the Supreme Court stay a district court order barring the deployment of the National Guard to Illinois. Justice Barrett formally set a deadline of October 20 for a response to the application. Illinois and the City of Chicago submitted a response on October 20. President Trump filed a reply on October 21.
Trump v. Orr: The government filed an emergency application on September 19 requesting the Supreme Court to stay an injunction issued by a district court that requires the State Department to allow transgender and nonbinary people to choose the sex designation on their passports. Justice Jackson formally set a deadline of October 4 for a response to the application. Orr submitted a response on October 6, and President Trump filed a reply on October 7.