Donald Trump Scores Two Holes-in-None

With The Contrarian Caddying--Publisher's Roundup 55

In good news for Contrarians and all Americans, the Supreme Court on Friday ruled that the tariffs Donald Trump imposed on a variety of nations grossly exceed his constitutional power. Though Trump immediately threatened to reimpose tariffs in some other way and accused the justices of being “under foreign influence,” this is the latest of hundreds of decisions by courts at every level against him.

For all our vehement disagreements with the Roberts Court, this also represents a triple bogey at SCOTUS with respect to Trump’s abuse of emergency powers. First, the court denied him authorization to use the Alien Enemies Act to target migrants based on bogus claims of alien invasion. Then, the court shut down his abuse of the National Guard because there was no emergency regular forces could not deal with. And now his attempt to deploy tariffs because of a supposed trade emergency has been blocked.

The Contrarian not only covered all of those wins for democracy and rule of law – but you Contrarians also played a key role in them. That is because your paid subscriptions power my and my colleagues’s pro-democracy litigation in these and literally hundreds of other cases and matters.

For example, in the tariffs case, you helped support brief after brief from some of our nation’s most distinguished conservatives, representing every presidential administration from Nixon to Trump I. Those conservative titans explained that these tariffs are contrary to conservative principles. Given the administration’s abdication of those values, it is powerful for Republican-appointed judges to hear from known and respected voices on what an atrocity these tariffs were.

Now the fight moves to the most important issue that was left open by the 6-3 opinion: refunds. The illegally collected $200 billion in tariffs will need to be repaid. That is important for businesses of any kind, but particularly so for small businesses. They are the backbone of the American economy but run on extremely tight margins that the tariffs hit hard. I explained why when I went live with my friends Katie Phang and Jim Acosta as soon as the decision dropped.

Through your paid subscriptions you’ve made so many landmark cases possible since we started The Contrarian. That includes one that that is quite literally about a landmark: our new lawsuit to stop Trump’s takeover of East Potomac Golf Links here in Washington, D.C. Democracy Defenders Fund is working on the case with amazing co-counsel Democracy Forward and Lowell & Associates.

In its own way, stopping Trump’s aspiration to turn a historic and affordable public course in D.C. into a “beautiful, world-class, U.S. Open-caliber course” is important, too. In fact, just like our litigation over other scandals, such as the Epstein files, border “czar” Tom Homan’s CAVA bag of cash, the Gold Card giveaway, and the Kennedy Center renaming, the takeover of this golf course is corrupt.

Corruption is the abuse of entrusted power to benefit yourself. Trump’s comments about what he wants to build make clear that this would be a monument to his ego – to the detriment of ordinary citizens who use, love, and rely on this course. As Rebecca Miller, executive director of DC Preservation League, aptly put it in an interview with the New York Times, “The East Potomac Golf Links is a unique cultural landscape that reflects the history of recreation in the nation’s capital…. Losing this golf course would significantly impact our shared history and limit public access to one of the District’s vital recreation and green spaces.”

Moreover, there are very serious rule of law issues here. As we allege in the complaint, the Trump administration violated the National Historic Preservation Act, including the duty to evaluate and consider potential effects on this historically recognized site – in many respects among the first of its kind in the country. Those effects are devastating.

This is also an environmental case because the administration is dumping 30,000 cubic yards of debris in East Potomac Park, about 2,000 truck loads. And where did he get this rubble? From the demolition of the East Wing of the White House–another outrageous offense against history. Those materials may include toxic substances that the public is now being exposed to.

This is about much more than golf. To that point, I also heard from people who golf on the course, use the adjacent park, or are just outraged. “Way to go,” they told me. I’m passing those congratulations to all of you, because your paid Contrarian subscriptions make our work possible.

Of course, you also make possible our great journalism – compiled as usual in our weekly roundup by my wonderful Contrarian colleagues. Trump may have attempted to slice rule of law into the rough, but our Contrarian coverage was, as usual, on par.

ICE Terror

Inside Trump’s ICE Concentration Camps

If you read only one of our pieces this week, make it Tim Dickinson’s essential reporting on a system “designed to punish, not protect”: the network of crowded, disease-ridden, altogether inhumane detention centers the Trump administration is using — and expanding — to warehouse the thousands of Americans taken by ICE.

Texas Lawmakers Say They’re Demanding Major ICE Reforms Because ‘Families and Children Are Terrified’

Hannah Langenfeld at The Barbed Wire wrote on the 21 Texas legislators who have signed a new letter to Congress calling ICE “an unaccountable paramilitary force that threatens the constitutional rights and safety of the communities we serve.”

“Peace” and “Security”

Chairman of “Peace” Board Starting a War with Iran?

Steven Cook joined Jennifer Rubin to discuss the gathering of Trump’s “Board of Peace,” his new attempt to dominate the narrative of diplomacy in the Middle East — and of which he has appointed himself chairman for life — even as he warns Iran of “bad things” to come.

Last week’s Munich Security Conference Confirmed Uncertainty, Not Unity

Brian O’Neill wrote on the annual conference of allies at which, for the second year in a row, Washington’s reassurances sounded all too hollow to skeptical European leaders. “A United States that alienates its closest partners is not asserting strength. It is dismantling its own margin for error.”

Election Interference & A War with Iran?

Tom Malinowski joined Jen to speak out after his congressional run and game out the possible scenarios of war with Iran. “I would be shocked if there were a credible, coherent plan in place in this administration.”

Remembering Jesse Jackson

The Rev. Jesse Jackson’s Legacy

April Ryan gave us an essential tribute to the late civil rights icon and political visionary. “The best way to mourn the Rev. Jesse Jackson is to continue to put in the hard work — because the fight for our rights, for civil rights, for human rights is unyielding, just as Jackson was.”

Jesse Jackson’s Passing Should Stir the Democracy Movement

Jen wrote on a way we all can carry on tJackson’s legacy right now: opposing the SAVE Act and other MAGA policies that seek to destroy voting rights for millions of Americans. “The Trump regime presents the greatest attack on [Jackson’s] vision of pluralistic democracy and racial justice in the modern era.”

Jesse Jackson’s Death Highlights the Absurdity of Stephen A. Smith’s Political Aspirations

Carron J. Phillips wrote on how Jackson’s presidential campaigns paved the way for Obama — and how a Stephen A. Smith campaign would, by stark contrast, encourage more incompetence. “It’s akin to watching a toddler trying to walk in Shaquille O’Neal’s shoes.”

Trump’s Media Agenda: Censorship & Hate

They’re Echoing Nazis. It’s Not an Accident. It’s a Strategy

Ciera Stone put to rest any doubts about Trump and his government loyalists imitating extremist visuals, symbols, and slogans on purpose. “It is easier to carry out fascist policies when the public is manipulated.”

Trump’s Government Mainstreams White Supremacy

Bill Braniff of PERIL joined Jen to connect new dots between the Trump administration’s racist rhetoric, culture, & behavior — and how it’s going global. “The United States [is] an exporter of culture … and in this instance, also as an exporter of violent political culture. We are known as an exporter of white supremacy specifically.”

CBS Tries to Kill Stephen Colbert’s Interview With James Talarico; Makes it Go Viral Instead

Meredith Blake wrote on the delicious irony of CBS’ latest attempt to curry favor with the Trump administration: demanding that The Colbert Show kill its interview with James Talarico, which backfired to the tune of millions of views and a new stream of candidate donations. “Someone at the network needs to Google ‘The Streisand Effect.’”

Fighting Back

Older Women — Not Young Men — Might Save Democracy

Jennifer Weiss-Wolff shone a spotlight on some of our most tireless defenders of democracy, who she also sees as an overlooked source of electoral clout. “Midlife and older women’s fury — and therefore our collective power — may have solidified even more in the early weeks of 2026.”

Undaunted in Denouncing Religious Hypocrites

In this week’s Undaunted column, Jen celebrated Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) and others who are fearlessly calling out white Christian nationalists. “Reclaiming the language of faith…helps rebut MAGA’s offensive accusation that Democrats are not part of ‘real America.’”

The Contrarian Covers the Democracy Movement

This week, we saw protests against ICE, fascism, and the worst president in history as widespread as ever, with Texas, Ohio, Missouri, Florida, California, Pennsylvania, and more getting in on the action. Get help organizing from Indivisible, find protests in your area at mobilize.us, and send us your protest photos at submit@contrariannews.org.

Culture, Cartoons & Fun Stuff

Our cartoonists took on revisionist history (Special Collector Series: U.S. Presidents*, RJ Matson; Just Doing Research, Nick Anderson), future irony (Tom the Dancing Bug, Ruben Bolling), truth in advertising (ICE Barbie, Michael de Adder), bad leadership (Give Peace a Whack, Michael de Adder), real heroism (Leading the People, RJ Matson), and presidential power (Steamrolled, Michael de Adder).

Olympians are Human Too

In this week’s “Offsides,” Pablo Torre joined Jen for a thoughtful discussion of Ilia Malinin, integrity in sports, and insurmountable pressure. “We want sports to be better than we are.”