June 11

Press secretary dodges questions about Trump's auto-pen investigation order

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt declined to answer questions about President Trump's reported order to investigate the use of auto-pen signature devices during the Biden administration, following claims that some executive orders may have been signed without Biden's personal knowledge. Reporters pressed Leavitt on whether the investigation was being conducted by DOJ or a special counsel and what legal standard would determine whether auto-pen signatures constituted invalid executive actions.

Justice Department launches denaturalization unit aimed at 25 million citizens

The Justice Department Civil Division announced the creation of a dedicated denaturalization unit, with Acting Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate stating the unit would review the citizenship of 25 million naturalized Americans for potential revocation proceedings. The announcement marked the largest expansion of denaturalization since the post-World War II era. Immigration attorneys warned the scope far exceeded the unit's stated focus on fraud cases, encompassing citizenship granted to individuals who had never been accused of any wrongdoing.

Pentagon deploys Marines to Los Angeles under the Insurrection Act for surveillance

The Pentagon deployed Marine Corps units to Los Angeles under Insurrection Act authority, granting them powers to conduct surveillance operations alongside ICE during immigration enforcement actions. The deployment marked the first Insurrection Act invocation for domestic immigration enforcement in modern history. California Governor Gavin Newsom immediately challenged the deployment in federal court, arguing it violated the Tenth Amendment and the constitutional limits of the Insurrection Act.

EPA Administrator Zeldin repeals the Clean Power Plan and carbon limits on power plants

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin issued a final rule eliminating the Clean Power Plan and its successor regulations, removing all federal carbon dioxide emission limits on existing power plants. The rollback reversed rules that had survived multiple court challenges and represented the primary federal mechanism for reducing electricity sector greenhouse gas emissions. Environmental groups immediately filed suit arguing the rollback violated the Clean Air Act's endangerment finding, which legally compelled EPA to regulate greenhouse gases.

Leavitt refuses to clarify Laura Loomer's White House role

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt declined to answer repeated questions from reporters about Laura Loomer's official or unofficial role at the White House, following reports that Loomer had attended internal security briefings and influenced personnel decisions. Loomer, a far-right commentator who had been banned from multiple social media platforms for hate speech, had no formal government appointment. Reporters asked whether Loomer held a security clearance or had access to classified information.

Clearview AI scrapes 60 billion faces, ending anonymous public life

Clearview AI disclosed in a federal court filing that its database had grown to 60 billion facial images scraped from social media, news sites, and public web sources without consent, enabling identification of virtually any person photographed in a public setting. Legal experts testified the database effectively ended the practical anonymity that Americans had historically enjoyed in public spaces. The disclosure came during a class action lawsuit challenging the scraping as a violation of state biometric privacy laws.

Delaware jury convicts Hunter Biden on three federal gun charges

A Delaware federal jury convicted Hunter Biden on all three felony counts related to his purchase of a revolver in 2018 while allegedly addicted to crack cocaine. Biden became the first child of a sitting president convicted of a federal crime. Prosecutors argued he lied on a federal firearms form by stating he was not a drug user; the defense contended the government targeted him for political reasons.

SCOTUS upholds Ohio voter purge process in Husted v. A. Philip Randolph Institute 5-4

The Supreme Court rules 5-4 in Husted v. A. Philip Randolph Institute (584 U.S. 627, 2018) that Ohio's process for removing voters from registration rolls does not violate the NVRA. Ohio's "supplemental process" identifies potential non-residents via undeliverable confirmation notices and then removes them after four years of non-voting. Justice Alito's majority holds that the NVRA permits states to use multi-factor assessments and does not mandate indefinitely keeping inactive registrations. Dissenters, led by Justice Sotomayor, warn the process erroneous purges eligible but disengaged voters.

Sessions issues Matter of A-B-, barring asylum for domestic violence survivors

Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued Matter of A-B- on June 11, 2018, overturning a Board of Immigration Appeals precedent and ruling that domestic violence and gang violence survivors generally cannot qualify for asylum in the United States. Sessions invoked his statutory authority to certify immigration cases to himself and issue binding precedents, holding that claims based on "private violence" perpetrated by non-government actors fall outside the protected social groups recognized under asylum law. The decision reversed asylum granted to a Salvadoran domestic violence survivor, directly affecting tens of thousands of pending and future Central American asylum cases.