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The Office of Legal Counsel concluded in an opinion dated May 12 that section 303 of the Civil Rights Act of 1960 authorizes the Department of Justice to compel states to produce unredacted voter registration lists and that no other provision of law bars DOJ from sharing those lists with the Department of Homeland Security. (Memorandum Opinion.) A DOJ lawyer on Tuesday submitted the OLC opinion to the Sixth Circuit ahead of today’s oral argument in United States v. Benson, which concerns Michigan’s refusal to turn over voter registration data. (Additional Citation.)
The Eleventh Circuit on Tuesday denied rehearing in President Trump’s appeal from the dismissal of his civil RICO suit against Hillary Clinton, the Democratic National Committee, and others over alleged efforts to tie him to Russia during the 2016 election. (Order.) For background, see a previous Roundup.
According to the New York Times, DOJ officials are considering settling President Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service over leaked tax returns. Terms under discussion reportedly include dropping IRS audits of Trump, his family members, and businesses. (NYT.) For background on the suit, see a previous Roundup.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Dan Caine, and Pentagon Comptroller Jay Hurst appeared before the House and Senate subcommittees that oversee defense spending on Tuesday. Hurst told lawmakers the cost of the war with Iran has risen to roughly $29 billion. (CBS.)
The Department of Homeland Security said Tuesday that David Venturella, a former career ICE official, would serve as the next acting director of ICE. Before rejoining the agency last year, Venturella worked as an executive at a private prison company. (NYT.) (WSJ.)
Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary resigned on Tuesday, reportedly following months of clashes over policy with senior administration officials. President Trump announced that Kyle Diamantas, the deputy commissioner for food, will step in as acting FDA commissioner. (Truth Social.) (WSJ.)
President Trump late on Monday night shared a post on Truth Social calling for the arrest of former President Barack Obama, in addition to dozens of other posts attacking his political opponents and relitigating the 2020 election. (Truth Social.) (WaPo.)
PayPal agreed to waive roughly $30 million in transaction fees for certain small businesses to settle a DOJ probe into funding initiatives for minority-owned businesses. The fee waivers will apply to businesses owned by veterans or involved in farming, manufacturing, or technology. (WSJ.)
Jonathan Shaub, who previously served as attorney-adviser in OLC, argued that OLC’s recent opinion declaring the Presidential Records Act unconstitutional is “embarrassing” and inconsistent with decades of executive branch practice and Supreme Court precedent. (Lawfare.)
Pending Interim Order Applications Involving the U.S. Government in the Supreme Court
Blanche v. Perlmutter: The government filed an emergency application on October 27 requesting the Supreme Court to stay a district court interlocutory injunction that temporarily reinstated Shira Perlmutter to her role as Register of Copyrights while litigation over her removal continues. Chief Justice Roberts formally set a deadline of November 10 for a response to the application. Perlmutter submitted a response on November 10. Blanche submitted a reply on November 12. The Court deferred the application for stay on November 28 pending the Court’s decisions in Trump v. Slaughter and Trump v. Cook.
Trump v. Cook: The government filed an emergency application on September 18 requesting the Supreme Court to stay a preliminary injunction issued by a district court that blocked President Trump from removing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. Cook filed an opposition to the request on the same day. The Chief Justice formally set a deadline of September 25 for a response to the application. Cook filed a response on September 25. On October 1, the Court deferred action on the stay application pending oral argument in January 2026 and established a supplemental briefing schedule. Additional amicus briefs were filed on October 29. Both sides filed supplemental briefs on November 19 and the Court heard oral argument on Jan. 21, 2026.
Mullin v. Doe: The government filed an application on February 26 requesting the Supreme Court stay pending appeal of a preliminary injunction issued by a district court preliminarily enjoining then-Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem from terminating temporary protected status designation for Syria. The government asked the Court to construe the application as a petition for a writ of certiorari before judgment and grant the petition. On March 16, the Court consolidated the case with a challenge to the Department of Homeland Security’s termination of Temporary Protected Status designations for Haiti and granted certiorari before judgment of the consolidated cases while deferring action on the government’s request for a stay.
Trump v. Miot: The government filed an application on March 11 requesting the Supreme Court to stay a lower court order postponing then-Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem’s decision to terminate temporary protected status designation for Haiti. The government also asked the Court to treat the application as a petition for a writ of certiorari before judgment and grant the petition. On March 16, the Court consolidated the case with Mullin v. Doe.