Leah Litman — Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conservative Grievance, Fringe Theories, and Bad Vibes - with Representative Jamie Raskin

With the gravitas of Joan Biskupic and the irreverence of Elie Mystal, Leah Litman brings her signature wit to the question of what's gone wrong at One First Street. In Lawless, she argues that the Supreme Court is no longer practicing law; it's running on vibes. By "vibes," Litman means legal-ish claims that repackage the politics of conservative grievance and dress them up in robes. Major decisions adopt the language and posture of the law, while in fact displaying a commitment to protecting a single minority: the religious conservatives and Republican officials whose views are no longer shared by a majority of the country.Dahlia Lithwick's Lady Justice meets Rebecca Traister's Good and Mad as Litman employs pop culture references and the latest decisions to deliver a funny, zeitgeisty, pulls-no-punches cri de coeur undergirded by impeccable scholarship. She gives us the tools we need to understand the law, the dynamics of courts, and the stakes of this current moment--even as she makes us chuckle on every page and emerge empowered to fight for a better future.PURCHASE BOOK HERE: https://politics-prose.com/book/9781668054628?ic_referral=UzuWCEi5ZFDi9iSokhXIz_bgOr4w5HcXesTcqfPVG98wM9cd2lQIA06yM5eEjSkE3lswh1poDIzDsbgv4cU22ABBty-GxU0yAMM1xhVxdJKFZD0y2DDvm0rUogAgSJZgtL-n_wLeah Litman is a professor of law at the University of Michigan and a former Supreme Court clerk. In addition to cohosting Strict Scrutiny, she writes frequently about the Court for media outlets including The Washington Post, Slate, and The Atlantic, among others, and has appeared as a commentator on NPR and MSNBC, in addition to other venues. She has received the Ruth Bader Ginsburg award for her "scholarly excellence" from the American Constitution Society and published in top law reviews. Follow her on X @LeahLitman and Instagram @ProfLeahLitman.*recorded 5/16/2025