Civil Discourse with Joyce Vance

On Monday, twelve state attorneys general filed motions for a temporary restraining order (TRO) and a preliminary injunction to stop the merger of Warner Bros. and Paramount from going ahead until the courts can evaluate a request to block the merger, filed in the Northern District of California. You can find the complaint in the case here. The proposed $110 billion merger between Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. would be the largest in Hollywood history.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta is leading a coalition of twelve state attorneys general with a lawsuit designed to block the $110 billion acquisition of Warner Brothers by Paramount Skydance Corporation, a deal they say would likely lead to higher prices for audiences, lower quality, and less content for film and television. And that’s before you even get to the serious First Amendment concerns the deal raises.

The news from Maine yesterday, where ICE shot and killed a young father for no reason, is deeply disturbing. Again. Many of you watched my conversation with LULAC’s Juan Proaño yesterday. In her piece last night, Heather Cox Richardson shared the facts that were beginning to emerge, and I’d encourage you to read her piece, if you haven’t already. She points out, importantly, that ICE kept a low profile while it was waiting for a vote on funding.

Tonight: Long, but worth it. Judge Williams wrote an opinion where every word is precise and important, as she builds an airtight argument for reopening U.S. v. Trump for just long enough to undo Trump’s slush fund deal with himself and make it stick, hopefully, on appeal.

LULAC’s CEO, Juan Proaño, joins us to share his experiences with the family of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, who was shot and killed by ICE in Houston last week. The details are horrific, down to the inhumane way ICE handled Mr. Araujo’s hospital transfer, stripping him of identification so that it took the family hours to first find and then more time to obtain access to his body.

I joined Norm Eisen this morning for early morning news coverage and Coffee with the Contrarians. If you missed us live, watch above for a great preview of key legal developments, including the state AG’s efforts to protect the free press with a new lawsuit and DOJ subpoenas sent to NYT reporters—it looks like it may be First Amendment week around here, even as we prepare for Todd Blanche’s confirmation hearing beginning on Wednesday.

Juan Proaño is the CEO of LULAC, the nation’s oldest and largest Latino civil rights coalition. That means he plays an integral role in exposing the constitutional deficiencies in this administration’s mass deportation policy. He’s been involved in the case we’ve been following, where an ICE agent shot and killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston last Tuesday, and joins us tonight, Monday at 5:00 pm ET, to discuss the most recent developments.

GIVEN THAT TRUMP THOUGHT NOTHING OF LEANING ON THE PRESIDENT OF FIFA TO CHANGE THEIR DECISION, HOW MANY CALLS DID HE MAKE TO HIS PUPPETS ON THE SUPREME COURT TO INFLUENCE THEIR DECISIONS? Trump admitted that he personally called the President of FIFA and asked him to “take another look at it” and to “review “ FIFA’s decision to suspend an American soccer player’s participation in the next game. One would have to be an idiot not to read between the lines.

Here’s the highlight reel of last week’s posts and events. Grab a cup of coffee and get ready to catch up on anything you missed—links to everything below. The Week Ahead: Coming out of a Semiquincentennial full of blunders and bad karma for Donald Trump, we prepped for developments in the E. Jean Carroll case, Katie Phang’s Epstein files case, and the prosecution of Olympian David Hearn over alleged Reflecting Pool vandalism.

I spent a long and very satisfying day on the water, kayaking, so I'm going to turn in early. My plans for writing to you tonight will have to wait. I cannot remember the last time we took a night off, so we’re overdue. I’ll be back tomorrow! We’re in this together, Joyce Share