Please click here to opt in to receive the Executive Functions Roundup via email and to subscribe to Executive Functions.
Judge Ana C. Reyes (D.D.C.) on Monday stayed the Department of Homeland Security’s termination of Haiti’s Temporary Protected Status. (Memorandum Opinion.) (WSJ.)
Judge Jia M. Cobb (D.D.C.) on Monday issued a temporary restraining order blocking enforcement of a DHS policy that required members of Congress to provide a week’s notice before visiting ICE facilities. (Order.) (NYT.)
Judge Eric C. Tostrud (D. Minn.) on Monday dissolved his Jan. 24 temporary restraining order which had enjoined federal officials “from destroying or altering any and all evidence related to [Alex Pretti’s] shooting.” (Opinion and Order.) (Politico.) See a previous Roundup for background.
Speaking on former FBI director Dan Bongino’s podcast on Monday, President Trump stated that “the Republicans ought to nationalize the voting” and “take over the voting… in at least 15 places.” (WaPo.)
Anonymous sources told the New York Times that the Trump administration is no longer pushing for a monetary payment in its settlement negotiations with Harvard University. Six hours after the Times story ran, President Trump claimed it was inaccurate and wrote on Truth Social that he was now seeking $1 billion “in damages” from the university. (Truth Social.) (NYT.)
An unsealed affidavit has revealed that the Justice Department failed to mention the 1980 Privacy Protection Act, which provides protections for journalistic work product and documentary materials, in its application for a warrant to search the home of a Washington Post reporter. (NYT.)
Anonymous sources told the Wall Street Journal that U.S. Pardon Attorney Ed Martin is no longer leading the Justice Department’s Weaponization Working Group. (WSJ.)
Adam Liptak discussed a proposal from a 1987 law review paper by Akhil Reed Amar that state legislatures can authorize lawsuits against federal officials for violating the Constitution. (NYT.)
Stevan Bunnell, Gus Coldebella, Ivan Fong, Kara Lynum, Jonathan Meyer, and John Mitnick—all former general counsels or acting general counsels of the Department of Homeland Security—criticized an ICE memo authorizing agents to forcibly enter into a private residence without a judicial warrant, consent, or exigent circumstances. (NYT.)
The Washington Post Editorial Board argued that President Trump is legally entitled to seek remedy for the leak of his tax returns by an IRS contractor in 2019 but criticized Trump for seeking $10 billion in damages. (WaPo.)
Jack Goldsmith and Sam Moyn argued that although President Trump’s second-term executive power grabs may echo tactics used by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Trump lacks the congressional and national support that enabled FDR to translate executive action into lasting change. (NYT.)
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.