Author: condor

There Will Be A Status Conference, Monday Morning, In Boston — To Discuss The Govt. Agents’ Preservation And Delivery Of Title VI Records, And Deliberations — And Set Depo. Dates…

~ condor ~ Leave a comment

The entire premise of this witch-hunt is utterly preposterous. It is highly likely that it all flowed from the say-so, of two of Tangerine’s mega donors, Elon Musk — and Bill Ackman (a hedgie). There is almost certainly no concrete basis for the government to discriminate against Harvard (a free expression / free association / private educational institution) — and single out Harvard alone, in this way. [On “viewpoints-discrimination”, even if you accept that the below is Harvard’s viewpoint. The view alone, would never be unlawful.]

But now Sean Keveney (the guy who wrote the main BS letter!), along with many others, will have to “show his/their cards” — what concrete documents and stats did they/he rely on — to come to these preposterously mistaken conclusions? We will soon see — and I expect the answer will mostly be. . . “well, we just made it up (i.e., assumed it was happening), but Elon Musk, and Bill Ackman say it is happening”. Ugh. And in these cases, a lack of a rational documentary basis for the actions, PRIOR to taking them. . . is almost always fatal.

Here’s what’s teed up, for Monday, next (from Harvard’s very capable counsel):

…I represent Harvard University in the above-titled case. As you are aware, Harvard has filed suit against the government to challenge the unlawful “freeze” of over $2.2 billion in federal funding to the University.

With the filing of the Complaint, the government is required to preserve all evidence relevant to this matter, including the documents that would be produced in any administrative record. To avoid potential spoliation concerns, and to limit disputes over the scope of the record, I write to outline Harvard’s understanding of what documents the administrative record should contain. We expect the government to begin preparing the record expeditiously.

The record, as you know, should include any and all documents or other information that the government directly or indirectly considered in arriving at its decision to freeze over $2.2 billion in grants to and contracts with Harvard University. In the period leading to the announcement of its decision, the government provided two bases for its action: (1) to enforce the anti-discrimination provisions of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000d et seq., and (2) to correct “ideological capture” at Harvard.

The first basis for decision, Harvard’s purported violation of Title VI, requires the government to compile the documents it relied upon to reach its decision to allege a statutory violation and halt funding on that ground. This naturally would include materials considered to conclude there was a Title VI violation, and materials considered in concluding that the government action taken—a funding “freeze”—was the appropriate, legally-justified action in response. Harvard expects to see all such documents in the certified administrative record.

The government’s second basis for its action, Harvard’s supposed “ideological capture,” likewise requires the government to compile for the record the materials considered in concluding there was such “capture,” and materials considered in determining, again, that a “freeze” was the appropriate and lawful response.

It should be noted that while the government has cited alleged Title VI violations and “ideological capture” as its grounds for action, there is an additional, closely-related ground: Harvard’s rejection of the government’s offer to continue the funding if Harvard agreed to certain conditions. Naturally the materials considered in presenting the demands and conditions the government did, and in proceeding with the freeze when Harvard declined the conditions, are part of the record. [Ed. Note: all that sounded like… blackmail, by the Trump controlled govt.]

Finally, and as noted, since the government’s announcement of its “freeze,” it has begun issuing grant and contract-specific notices to Harvard. All materials considered in arriving at those notices are also part of the record….

Well, this will be… a hoot! Tangerine is dead in the water, on these grounds — Harvard will walk away with far more money than it started with, the day before Tangerine was inaugurated for a second time. All from our taxpayer pockets. Charming.

नमस्ते

Power Alley: Merck Q1 ’25 Solidly Beats — But Tangerine’s Tariff Threats Cause $200 Million In Reduced EPS Guidance; Gardasil Still Sluggish In China.

~ condor ~ Leave a comment

While Rahway is chugging along solidly, on an organic basis with Keytruda still expanding its sales, globally — the uncertainty around Trump’s flip-flops on tariffs against China — and President Xi’s counter-moves… make it impossible to guess exactly where Merck will end in Q4 2025, on the EPS line. [But $200 million is immaterial to Merck, on a full year basis, to be clear. And all pharma will see similar charges — across the board. Ugh.]

Moreover, because Trump has threatened separate tariffs on inbound pharma products (like those Merck makes in Ireland), but hasn’t given even a whiff of what that might look like [if he ever even does any version of it — as you may recall that he tucked tail (in 2017-18) on this issue, first time around — after he was “angry” at Ken Frazier, for calling out racism by its name(!)], Merck will not set a reserve for a charge (yet) on that score.

Businesses… need to be able to see a stable path to what their government-imposed / regulatory costs are going to be. They hate uncertainty. And that is all Trump ever is — the only certainty… is he will be wildly all-over-the-map, and chaotic. So, yes — Trump is ruining a good Q1 for many a large public company. Charming. Here’s the latest, from CNBC:

…Merck on Thursday lowered its full-year profit guidance, citing $200 million in estimated costs for tariffs and a charge tied to a recent deal.

The company now expects its 2025 adjusted earnings to come in between $8.82 and $8.97, down slightly from a previous outlook of $8.88 to $9.03 per share.

The company said the expected tariff charge primarily reflects levies between the U.S. and China, and Canada and Mexico to a lesser degree. Merck has built a robust presence in China, which is considered one of the company’s most important markets and is home to some of its partners and manufacturing and research and development sites.

Merck noted that the new outlook does not account for President Donald Trump’s planned tariffs on pharmaceuticals imported into the U.S., which is prompting some drugmakers to bolster their U.S. manufacturing footprints.

That includes Merck, which has invested $12 billion in U.S. manufacturing and research and development and expects to put more than $9 billion more into the country by the end of 2028….

Sure thing, what a “very stable genius”. Who voted for this BS?! Oh — and Halozyme’s patent suit on injectible Keytruda will be… immaterial to Merck, as well (it will settle, or perhaps even exonerate Merck). Out.

नमस्ते

Yes. Kristi Noem — And Her Crew(s) — Have Always (Even In The Dakotas) Been Incompetent. But This Seems Purposefully… Evil; Not A[nother] “Screw Up.”

~ condor ~ Leave a comment

There are federal civ. pro. rules, about redacting home addresses of non-public figures in court filings.

DHS not only didn’t bother with that — but posted the underlying 2021 document directly to X, as a pdf file — making it available to every MAGA nut out there — and every whyte supremacist. [But I repeat myself.] Here’s the press coverage tonight:

…Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s wife, Jennifer Vasquez Sura said she began fearing for her safety and the safety of her three children after the Department of Homeland Security shared a protective order from 2021 that prominently featured her address to the department’s 2.4 million followers on X.

“I don’t feel safe when the government posts my address, the house where my family lives, for everyone to see, especially when this case has gone viral and people have all sorts of opinions,” she told The Washington Post. “So, this is definitely a bit terrifying. I’m scared for my kids.”

“Look, Kilmar is not perfect — nobody is,” [his esposa told] The Washington Post. “Day by day, you grow. Every day, you learn. And he was trying his best for me, for our kids, for our future….”

Honestly, now I am rooting for the kind and gentle Irish, or Canadians to offer them sanctuary, and passage — and a new life. This America is just a too-hateful place, at the moment — under Noem, Rubio and Tangerine 2.0. Who are these deplorable a-holes?! They have toddlers — and now they are forced by Noem into… hiding?! Damn. Out.

नमस्ते

[U: Settled?!] Rubio / Noem / Trump Have Moved To Stay Judge Xinis’ Orders In Maryland, Related To Discovery.

~ condor ~ Leave a comment

Updated @ 8:15 PM EDT: It is all under seal at the moment, but stay tuned, because I expect she will rule later tonight — denying all stays. and although the actual pleadings are sealed, it seems a fair inference now, given an agreed by all parties stay… to guess that either the government is in the process of returning Mr. Abrego Garcia to the Maryland area, or the United States (at least), or has negotiated a settlement with him — that allows for him to be safely transported to some other nation that will host him (France, Canada, Mexico or… Ireland?!). We shall see.

I make this guess because there is no sworn Mazzaro status update tonight — as to his particulars (it was due at 5 PM).

That would at least arguably imply that inside the sealed motions is a discussion of the steps that are being taken either to get him home here — or on, to another friendly country.

Still, a man is being wrongly held in a foreign land, and the government well-knows it is able (and ordered by the Supremes!) to bring him back here. But it is — to this moment, defying Supreme Court orders, now. This simply will NOT do.

…The Court has reviewed Defendants’ Motion to Stay (ECF No. 101) and Plaintiffs’ Response (ECF No. 102).

With the agreement of the parties, the Court hereby ORDERS that discovery shall be stayed (ECF Nos. 61 & 79) until April 30, 2025, at 5:00 PM….

[More, as it becomes available.]

Onward — but that’s seven days’ reprieve — to get him stateside.

नमस्ते

[U: Status.] We Will Know Much More — By 4 PM EDT Tonight, On Mr. Khalil’s Status, At Down In The Private Prison In Jena Louisiana…

~ condor ~ Leave a comment

UPDATE: The 4 PM letter reads — in pertinent part — thus:

..In response to the Court’s text order from today, ECF 208, Petitioner respectfully states
the following:

a. There are no future hearings currently scheduled before the immigration judge in Louisiana and Petitioner cannot predict if or when the immigration judge will schedule any future hearings. In an ordinary case, Petitioner’s counsel would expect one or two additional hearings to be scheduled regarding the government’s alleged second ground of removability and, subsequently, regarding Petitioner’s applications for immigration relief.

b. Petitioner is unable to hazard a guess as to the timing of the immigration judge’s decision on the government’s alleged second ground of removability. At the April 11 hearing, the immigration judge granted the government additional time, until today, April 23, to submit any additional evidence in support of its alleged second ground of removability and for Petitioner to submit any evidence related to the second charge and any applications for relief he may be seeking. Immigration Hearing (Apr. 11, 2025), audio at 01:38:20. When the immigration judge acts on that evidence, and whether or when she might order any additional hearings, is within the immigration judge’s discretion….

End update.

Overall, this is good news — the admin. law judge is not rushing any additional removability hearings — down in Jena. But Mr. Khalil remains in custody without being granted any real, on the merits hearing — on any detention-eligible charges.

Check back here after 5 PM Central [I’m off-grid for a bit, now] as we will post the update (due at 4 PM Eastern), here.

…TEXT ORDER:

The Petitioner [Counsel for Mr. Khalil] shall file a succinct letter before 4:00pm today.

It shall provide the Court with an update as to

(a) when the Petitioner has his next appearance before the immigration judge and

(b) the earliest moment when, in the Petitioner’s judgment, the immigration judge may make a decision as to the second ground of removability.

Tomorrow, before noon, the parties shall file a joint letter that attaches all immigration court filings that have not previously been conveyed to the Court.

So Ordered by Judge Michael E. Farbiarz on 4/23/2025….

Now you know. This is what effective judicial oversight of executive overreaching looks like. Thank you, judiciary branch!

नमस्ते

GAVI, And Ireland, Have Each Made Vaccine Donations, To Sierra Leone — For Mpox Clade 1b Arrest / Abatement…

~ condor ~ Leave a comment

This is all very good mpox relief news — as front line health workers are among those most at risk, in any viral outbreak.

And. . . yet and still — it reminds us that — with USAID still sidelined, the outbreak will last longer, and be more lethal… as a direct consequence, than if we were there, shoulder to shoulder with the people in Freetown. Here’s the story:

…In late March, 61,300 eagerly-awaited mpox vaccines began to roll out in Sierra Leone in a vaccine drive that would prioritise health workers and contacts of mpox patients, and offer a dose of protection to the country’s most exposed.

The viral infection has killed three and sickened more than 477 since Sierra Leone’s mpox emergency was declared in January. The 26-bed mpox ward at 34 Military Hospital, a cutting-edge infectious disease facility on Freetown’s Wilberforce Military Base with a record of successfully tackling hard-hitters like Ebola, COVID-19 and Lassa Fever, has been operating at capacity for weeks.

For the nurses and doctors staffing the unit, that has meant working under the constant risk of infection. But the arrival of the vaccines – 58,300 of which were sent by Gavi, with the remainder donated by the Republic of Ireland – brought a measure of relief. On the hospital’s campus one recent morning, more than 100 health workers dressed in nurse’s scrubs and military uniforms lined up to receive the jab….

Now, the 34 Military Hospital is the focal point for testing and treating Sierra Leone’s mounting tally of mpox patients. Thirty-eight of them have so far recovered and been released, but with the epidemic still growing, and beds on the mpox ward limited in number, more and more patients have needed to be passed on to the newly-established Police and Jui treatment centres….

Now you know — with much more ahead, yet this afternoon — on the various “No human is illegal” fronts — in federal courtrooms dotting the nation.

नमस्ते

The ACLU Has Its TRO In Colorado. Trump Cannot Rely On Alien Enemies Act of 1798.

~ condor ~ Leave a comment

This was published late evening, on Earth Day — by the able USDC Judge Sweeney, in the federal district courthouse, in Denver. And it’s a peach!

Again, Team Tangerine sought to mis-apply a “war power” statute — contorting it beyond recognition — to run deportation pogroms. This gambit is now enjoined, nationwide. Here’s a bit of the powerfully-reasoned 65 pager:

…According to Petitioners, the Proclamation exceeds the President’s “statutory authority in three critical respects.” ECF No. 2 at 11. First, there is no “invasion or predatory incursion.” Id. Second, any purported invasion is not perpetuated by a “foreign government or nation.” Id. And third, there is “no process to contest whether an individual falls within the Proclamation.” Id. Skepticism of the Proclamation’s contrary findings is required, Petitioners urge, to the point of satisfying their first TRO burden. Id.; see also M.G., 117 F.4th at 1238. The Court agrees.

Petitioners’ first argument, see ECF No. 2 at 12, proceeds from a straightforward premise. The President’s authority under the Proclamation is “vested” under the Act. The Act demands, as a “statutory requirement,” an “invasion or predatory incursion.” ECF No. 12; 50 U.S.C. § 21. And because the Act’s “text and history” use these terms “to refer to military actions indicative of an actual or impending war” — not “mass illegal migration” or “criminal activities” — the Act cannot sustain the Proclamation. ECF No. 2 at 12-13. The Court agrees with Petitioners….

Excellent! And Musk will now need to step away from 1600 Penn / DOGE — since Tesla’s Q1 results reveal a company… in free-fall. That is about 75% of Elon’s remaining net worth — and he owes the independent public shareholders his full time efforts, under applicable fiduciary duty doctrines there now.

As I say… excellent, indeed.

नमस्ते

“And Texas… Needs Rain”: Hinderaker Wants To Be Relevant, Again, 25 Years Later. But His 15 Min. Are Long Gone.

~ condor ~ 2 Comments

Just a few lines on this: as it is silly, in spades — but John still wants people to see him as the guy who took down Dan Rather, and now, 60 Minutes.

The problem is that all his supposed “heroism” was… um, a quarter century ago — and trivial at that.

Still, he clout-chases / claims fame — when a guy leaves 60 Minutes… in 2025.

Hilariously… sad.

And Now, USDC Judge Paula Xinis In Maryland Just Called Noem’s (And Trump’s) Positions Out — As Having Been “Taken In Bad Faith”. That Means Contempt Lies Ahead.

~ condor ~ Leave a comment

Well — as they say in the old Spaghetti Westerns… “there will be… blood.”

And it will likely come from the stupid, gullible, and inexperienced political appointee attorneys who’ve stood up in court for Noem and Rubio and Trump — and defiled their oaths of candor and good faith advocacy, before the federal judge, here. Damn. There’s much more in this barbed eight page rebuke of an order tonight — but here’s the sharpest end of Judge Xinis’ stick:

…Defendants [Trump / Noem / Rubio] — and their counsel — well know that the falsehood lies not in any supposed “premise,” but in their continued mischaracterization of the Supreme Court’s Order. That Order made clear that this Court “properly required the Government to ‘facilitate’ Abrego Garcia’s release from custody in El Salvador and to ensure that his case is handled as it would have been had he not been improperly sent to El Salvador.” See Noem v. Abrego Garcia, 604 U.S. –– (2025), slip op. at 2; see also Abrego Garcia v. Noem, No. 25-1404, 2025 WL 1135112, at *1 (4th Cir. Apr. 17, 2025). Defendants’ objection reflects a willful and bad faith refusal to comply with discovery obligations. The objection is overruled.

Defendants are therefore ordered to supplement their answers in full compliance with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Their answers must include facts responsive to the requests, not oblique and incomplete, non-specific characterizations. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 33(b)(3) (requiring that each interrogatory be answered “fully”)….

Equally specious, Defendants’ objections on the grounds of privilege are rejected. Defendants invoke in name only a range of protections — attorney-client privilege, the work-product doctrine, the deliberative process privilege, the state secrets privilege, and an undefined “governmental privilege” — without providing any supporting information or analysis. As Defendants and their counsel know, the proponent of a privilege must demonstrate the legal and factual bases to invoke the protections that such privilege affords….

Given that this Court expressly warned Defendants and their counsel to adhere strictly to their discovery obligations, see Hr’g Tr. 11:24–12:2, Apr. 16, 2025 (“Because in fairness, Mr. Ensign, [if] you’re not going to answer the questions that the plaintiffs put within the scope of my order, then you’ll justify why. You’ll cite privilege, you’ll follow the rules, I’ll make a determination.”), their boilerplate, non-particularized objections are presumptively invalid and reflect a willful refusal to comply with this Court’s Discovery Order and governing rules. ECF No. 79. Although Defendants state now that they are willing to “meet and confer” with counsel about the production of such a log, ECF No. 98-1 at 23, their repeated refusals to meet and confer about much of anything else undermine the reliability of this assertion. ECF No. 98 at 2. The Court thus finds this offer was not made in good faith.

Nor does the Court find Defendants’ protestations regarding the abbreviated time-line persuasive. For weeks, Defendants have sought refuge behind vague and unsubstantiated assertions of privilege, using them as a shield to obstruct discovery and evade compliance with this Court’s orders….

[This all] ends now. If Defendants want to preserve their privilege claims, they must support them with the required detail. Otherwise, they will lose the protections they failed to properly invoke. Accordingly, by no later than 6:00 PM [tomorrow] on April 23, 2025, Defendants shall supplement their answers and responses to provide the specific legal and factual bases for each asserted privilege and produce a privilege log that fully complies with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and this Court’s Local Rules….

Given the context of this case, Defendants have failed to respond in good faith, and their refusal to do so can only be viewed as willful and intentional noncompliance. Defendants must supplement their answer to include all individuals involved as requested in this interrogatory….

[Garcia’s counsel is entitled to know] the complete factual bases for Defendants’ assertion that Abrego Garcia is a member of MS-13, Defendants’ relevancy and scope objections are rejected. Defendants have previously articulated in their daily updates as to Abrego Garcia’s custodial status and his potential return that DHS would eventually take Abrego Garcia into custody and either remove him to another country or terminate withholding of removal because of his purported “membership in MS-13, a designated foreign terrorist organization.” ECF No. 77 at 2. Defendants cannot invoke the moniker of MS-13 as responsive to the Court’s previous order, ECF No. 77 at 1–2, then object to follow-up interrogatories seeking the factual bases for the same. Defendants must supplement this answer….

Stay tuned — for fireworks, tomorrow at 5 PM EDT — after the second day of Mr. Mazzaro’s deposition. Today was the first one. Out, grinning.

नमस्ते