Sometimes it only takes a moment to break an autocrat—an instance that history looks back upon as a pivot point. Friday was one of those moments, with two of the largest and most storied law firms in the country, Wilmer Hale and Jenner & Block, winning TRO’s against Trump’s EO’s targeting them. They join a swelling movement of law firms and lawyers defending the constitution and defying Trump.
We’ve been here before—exactly 71 years ago.
In 1954, Senator Joseph McCarthy was powerful, with broad populist support. He, too, cried “Communist,” as the current President sometimes does. Tailgunner Joe claimed to have lists of Communist sympathizers buried in the ranks of government employees. He attacked institutions across government, backed by his lawyer Roy Cohn–the very same one who mentored Donald Trump to disregard the rule of law, conjure conspiracies, and aim a wrecking ball (or in Trump’s case, a Sharpie) at his perceived enemies. McCarthy’s wild disinformation upended lives and livelihoods–actual evidence not required; Constitution be damned.
Sound familiar?
A lawyer stopped McCarthy—one who, incredibly, has a direct connection to Friday’s events.
When McCarthy turned his sights to the US Army to claim it had been infiltrated by Communists, Boston attorney Joseph Welch stepped into the breach. Welch had no illusions about the case. The hearings would be a free-for-all, with no rules to contain McCarthy’s outrageous claims or fabricated evidence. The Senator would respond to any defense by launching personal attacks against any target, attorneys included. Knowing all of this, Joseph Welch’s partners voted unanimously to take the case. Pro bono.
The televised hearings began seventy one years ago, in April 1954. After weeks of Welch’s steadfast defense, McCarthy decided to target one of Welch’s young associates by name for purported Communist associations. Welch’s visceral response: “Have you no sense of decency sir, at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?” broke the nation’s fever. McCarthy’s standing plummeted. By the end of the year, The Senate censured him. Joe Welch went on to the cover of Life Magazine, and became a hero.
Oh, and Welch’s firm that took the case? Hale & Dorr, the predecessor firm of Wilmer Hale.
After Friday, that firm is still standing strong. So is former Bush administration Solicitor General Paul Clement & his firm, who won the court order for Wilmer stopping Trump. So is Jenner & Block and their counsel Cooley. Ditto Perkins Coie and their counsel, Williams & Connolly, who won a separate court order. And so are almost two dozen state AG’s and the hundreds of law firms, lawyers and legal organizations who have signed letters refusing to bow down and kiss the ring.
The two firms who have done so, Paul Weiss and Skadden, are vastly outnumbered—but so is Donald Trump.
He is outnumbered by hundreds of thousands of you, dear Contrarians—because when you join us as a paid subscriber, your subscription helps support dozens of legal battles we are waging to defend the Constitution. And we are winning! We just had an especially moving success on Friday—I was in court in NYC to help secure a TRO to stop Trump’s shutting down Voice of America (another target of Joe McCarthy!).
If you haven’t taken out a paid subscription for just $7 a month, we would to have you join the patriotic opposition.
And of course, the biggest part of subscribing is that you get all of our great content, which helps amplify the pro-democracy coalition that has been building nationwide.
Jen Rubin and Rachel Cohen discuss the Existential Threat Against Big Law. Jen interviewed attorney Rachel Cohen on her recent decision to publicly resign from her position in corporate law—citing the lack of action being taken by big law firms to resist Trump—and the open letter signed by 1000+ big law attorneys inspiring others to act.
Undaunted: Tammy Duckworth fights for America. Each week, The Contrarian selects an "Undaunted" individual working to defend democracy. This week's spotlight: Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth. We honor her for denouncing MAGA bullying & incompetence—while exhibiting unceasing resilience & integrity.
Cowardice and Capitulation Stain the Legacy of Once-Esteemed Mega Law Firm. Jen Rubin offered a head-on look at the alarming pattern of capitulation by institutions and individuals with the power and resources to stand against MAGA—but, apparently, not the necessary courage. Paul, Weiss joins the list of cowards.
Capitulation Nation. This week’s Talking Feds examined similar ground: Trump’s expanding shakedowns of prominent sectors of civil society—Paul Weiss, Columbia U, and more of the most prominent institutions in the country–and asked: where does the capitulation stop?
Ann Telnaes: How autocracies take over the news media. We were thrilled to welcome editorial cartoonist Ann Telnaes as a contributor! Please delight in her brilliantly concise, clarifying diagram of how Trump has moved, in classic autocrat fashion, to capture the fourth estate.
Rep. Jake Auchincloss and Jen Rubin discussed Trump tariffs and the right to free speech.
On the Shutdown of VOA and the USGM
Voice of America was created to counter Nazi propaganda in WWII. Kari Lake called it "a giant rot" as its doors shuttered—a gift to those peddling disinformation, chaos & control, a disaster for everyone else. Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman explains.
For Democracy Activists Around the World, VOA Represented Hope. By broadcasting to the world’s most censored populations for 80+ years, former VOA supporter Liam Scott explained, Voice Of America offers a window to the rest of the world. In trying to shut it down Trump will insure that millions under authoritarian rule lose access to a free & fair press.
When America goes silent. Former U.S. Ambassador to Yemen Stephen Seche reminded us that the Trump regime has also shuttered of MBN—a vital source of information in the Middle East—and how the looming information vacuum is welcome news to our adversaries.
GOP voters have been gaslit and hoodwinked. Yet they still believe Trump. Jeff Nesbit analyzed a new postmortem and found a sobering truth: Democratic credibility with GOP voters is at a historic low, even as their president and party continues to sell nothing but snake oil.
‘Red’ America needs the truth on Trump’s fentanyl failures. With some voters seeing the light, it's time to focus on an issue that hits home. Trump pushes myths about "open borders” leading to spikes in fentanyl use. In reality, 80% of fentanyl traffickers at the border are U.S. citizens. Fighting the crisis means tackling demand—treatment, mental health, education. Facts matter. Read the latest fact-check from Josh Levs.
Words & Phrases We Could do Without. Jen Rubin wrote on how “Academic Freedom” has unfortunately become an anachronism under this regime, thanks in no small part to Columbia’s recent profile in cowardice.
A History of American Cults, from the Pilgrims to MAGA. The Contrarian’s resident Culture Writer, Meredith Blake, sat down with Cults Like Us author Jane Borden to tackle a question that has lingered for centuries: Is America just one big cult?
How to beat back Trump’s divide & conquer strategy. Rachel Cohen, the young lawyer who organized a letter of protest against Trump’s attacks on law firms, identified a major problem for the pro-democracy movement—a hesitancy for collective action. But, as Jen Rubin explains, just because there’s a problem doesn't mean there’s no solution.
What it really looks like when a Justice System Gets "Weaponized". MAGA cries “weaponization” to deflect scrutiny, yet a political appointee just tried to freeze a climate fund without clear legal grounds. Such efforts continue elsewhere. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse discusses the abundance of red flags to identify actual weaponization.
Congressman Don Beyer and Jen Rubin on Institute of Peace raid, Republican loyalty to Trump, and DOGE’s recent raid against the U.S.
A beacon of hope as Trump’s dark age descends If you listen, you can hear a signal through the Trump noise showing that the Democratic Party still has a pulse. A movement is brewing in deep-red Florida. In two Trump districts, Democratic candidates have out-raised their GOP opponents by millions. Jeff Nesbit discusses these beacons of unexpected hope.
Rep. Mikie Sherrill and Jen Rubin on Signalgate, Trump’s economic incompetence, and her recently-announced run for New Jersey Governor.
When Signal Met the House. Five days into the crisis, the Trump administration is pressing hard to reach the final phase in what has become a recognizable playbook.
When Signal met the Senate. Brian O’Neill continued our coverage of the unprecedented national security breach with a look at the administration’s inability to stand up to Senate questioning. Every attempt Tulsi Gabbard and John Ratcliffe made at spinning the Signal calamity was less convincing than their prior one.
Tom Malinowski and Jen Rubin on the Signal slip and the future of free media. “Never in my wildest dreams would I have used an unclassified platform to send out battle plans.”
The alarming reckless disregard for national security. Our friend and Contrarian Barb McQuade writes that the national security risks should be obvious to anyone who cares—and what we can do about them.
Where in the World is Tim Mak? Tim sent an update from Kyiv—discussing the tenuous Russia-Ukraine ceasefire agreement & the ongoing mineral resource discussions between the U.S. and Ukraine.
Split Screen: Kamala Harris at the Munich Security Conference, The New Yorker. Filmmaker Azza Cohen’s latest installment of “Split Screen” informs us how seemingly neutral choices add up to a larger narrative about powerful women.
The Real Harm in DOD’s Revisionist History Lt. Col. Amy McGrath condemned the DOD’s revisionist history, in which stories of non-male, non-white service members are disappearing from all narratives of what our military is and should be. This is not only an affront to our best and bravest—but also a strategic liability that could impact our military readiness for decades.
When OPSEC is just a word. Brian O’Neill wrote on how The Atlantic shows that national security is no exception to the modus operandi of the rest of the Trump machine: exchanging strategy for spectacle, substance for theater.
War plans. A cartoon by Nick Anderson on falling victim to one of the classic blunders, the most famous of which is ‘Never get involved in a land war in Asia,’ but only slightly less well-known is: DON’T BROADCAST YOUR ATTACK PLANS ON SIGNAL.
The Democracy Moment—and Movement
Elon Musk Is Drowning Out the Voices of Wisconsinites. That Should Worry Every American. Adav Noti explains how Musk poured $15M into WI’s Supreme Court race; one out-of-state billionaire is responsible for 20% of funds raised. This election is now Musk & his millions vs everyday Wisconsinites and their readiness to prove what we truly stand for.
The Contrarian covers the Democracy Movement. This week we saw the spread of the #Teslatakedown movement; support for the U.S. Postal Service and the National Park System; overflowing town halls–despite no-shows from Republican legislators; and more protests and local resistance across the nation (and Greenland) against the broligarchy and its many terrible ideas.
Trump’s executive order on voting seems to ignore a lot of law. Former Maricopa County election recorder Stephen Richer, a Republican, explained the undemocratic blitz of Trump’s new EO on voting rules, which would mandate proof of citizenship, penalize states for late mail-in ballots & centralize voter list maintenance. In election administration, confusion is a killer.
AG Ellison and AG Platkin on Trump's attacks on state independence. Jen was joined by AG Keith Ellison and AG Matthew Platkin to discuss Trump’s attacks on state independence & what Democratic AGs are doing to fight back. “This is the time for people who care about this country to get busy and move out.”
29 states have a not-so-secret weapon to fight for democracy. Jennifer Weiss wrote on the quiet, fortifying power of state-level equal rights amendments, which protect people where the federal government can't—or won't—and which should be deployed to combat the Trump admin’s attacks on women’s rights.
Dr. Cynthia Miller-Idriss and Bill Braniff on the prevention of violent extremism. “There's no explanation for why a crisis of boys and men should have resulted in a crisis of misogyny or violent extremism mobilization, but that is a pattern we're seeing.” Dr. Cythia Miller-Idriss & Bill Braniff discussed their efforts to combat radicalization & far-right extremism.
Mallory McMorrow and Jen Rubin on why hate won't win. Jen Rubin was joined by Senator Mallory McMorrow to discuss leadership, civic engagement & why hate won’t win. “For every hour you spend doomscrolling or fighting with your uncle on social media, knocking on doors in your neighborhood is actually really lovely.”
In America’s Second “Redemption” Michael Podhorzer brought us a must-read excerpt of his piece on the painful echoes between the failure of Reconstruction in the decades after the Civil War and our own moment of fragile democracy. Break the centuries-old cycle of Reconstruction and Redemption, he writes, “demands vigilant resistance and sustained popular mobilization.”
The Democracy Index. This week’s Democracy Index comes to you securely over Substack—if you were inadvertently added by the team, please remove yourself from the chat.
Friday Fun
The MLB teams that took the lead on integration. Years before significant civil rights milestones, teams like my beloved Dodgers were ahead of society in employing African Americans. In celebration of Opening Day, Frederic Frommer honored the baseball teams who pushed to advance racial equality in and beyond the diamond.
Frommer also celebrated MLB’s Opening week with a look back to when baseball’s top newspaper called Jackie Robinson unqualified DEI hire (in the segregationist terms of the time) and predicted little from him–only to be proven spectacularly wrong by one of the great athletic legacies of all time. (Pete Hegseth & co., take note.)
Editorial cartoonist Michael de Adder offered “Pants on fire.”
Contrarian Culture Club Recommendations. Looking for something to amuse, inspire, enlighten, or maybe just distract you from everything? Each week, The Contrarian shares a few culture picks—the best things to watch, read, listen to, follow, or go see. This week's picks: The Residence and Eyes on the Prize III.
The Subtle Resistance of Dictionary.com Can you use “context” in a sentence? D is for Democracy. The Contrarian’s own Meghan Houser explores the subtle resistance of Dictionary.com
Friday’s comic of Tom the Dancing Bug was back, complimented by another cartoon by Michael de Adder’s Question of the day.
Victory food: A look back at wartime cooking. Jamie Schler offers us another wonderful recipe for Chard, Zucchini, Potato Gratin and Fruit Crumble…seasoned with a sprinkle of a history lesson.
Meet Pumpkin! This Bernese Mountain Dog is a staunch defender of democracy hosting FOUR Pet Out The Vote event. Her latest efforts? Helping to elect Susan Crawford to the WI Supreme Court. Special thanks to our friend Ben Wikler for his POTW submission!
Well dear Contrarians, there you have it. This was a week in which, with your help, our Substack crossed the milestone of 500 published pieces. That’s a lot! So too was an abundance of good news for Democracy.
And even if it was not all good news, the echoes of history can always be counted on, as they were this week, to loudly remind us that a single voice can make all the difference. How much more so the voices of us collectively—including all you Contrarians—joining together in one great chorus.
Thanks for being a part of our history.
Warmly, Norm
Holly Clarke is a Contrarian subscriber and Boston attorney who wrote in with the reminder of the McCarthy anniversary and analogy, and collaborated on that piece of my Roundup.
