Jeffrey Toobin
Jeffrey Toobin, the chief legal analyst for CNN, was a staff writer at The New Yorker from 1993 to 2020. Previously, he worked for ABC News, and, in 2000, received an Emmy Award for his coverage of the Elián González case. For the magazine, he wrote Profiles of the Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Anthony Kennedy, Clarence Thomas, and Chief Justice John G. Roberts, as well as articles on major legal controversies and trials. Before joining the magazine, he served as an Assistant United States Attorney in Brooklyn and an associate counsel in the Office of Independent Counsel Lawrence E. Walsh. He is the author of several books, including “The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court” and “True Crimes and Misdemeanors: The Investigation of Donald Trump.”
Harry Reid on the Senate, the Supreme Court, and a Time for Major Change
“I think the time has come for the filibuster to go,” the former Democratic leader in the Senate said. “It’s not a question of whether but when.”
Ending Trump’s Assault on the Rule of Law
Protecting voting rights is an essential step that Biden must take to repair our democracy. But it is only the first one.
There Should Be No Doubt Why Trump Nominated Amy Coney Barrett
The judge’s confirmation would fulfill former Justice Lewis Powell’s plan to transform the Supreme Court into a forum friendly to business interests.
The Legal Fight Awaiting Us After the Election
The aftermath of November’s vote has the potential to make 2000 look like a mere skirmish.
Can Trump and McConnell Push Through a Successor to Ruth Bader Ginsburg?
If the Republicans succeed in confirming a Justice, the Democrats should pursue radical action if they take control of the Senate this fall.
It Really Is Time to Get Rid of the Filibuster
It is true that the Framers intended the Senate to be a slower-moving institution than the House, but there is no evidence that they wanted legislative paralysis.
New York’s Primary-Vote-Count Chaos Signals Trouble for November
A month after the state’s Democratic primary, officials are still tallying mail-in ballots for the Twelfth Congressional District. How will they cope with the general election?
The Halted Progress of Criminal-Justice Reform
Prosecutors are charging protesters with federal crimes, exposing them to long prison sentences, in another example of the Justice Department’s grotesque overreach under Attorney General William Barr.
The Roger Stone Case Shows Why Trump Is Worse Than Nixon
The commuting of the prison sentence of an ally who kept his mouth shut during the Trump-Russia investigation is a consummate act of corruption and cronyism.
John Roberts Distances Himself from the Trump-McConnell Legal Project
The idea that the Chief Justice is dedicated to overturning Roe v. Wade seems fanciful in light of his latest opinion on abortion rights.
Why the Mueller Investigation Failed
President Trump’s obstructions of justice were broader than those of Richard Nixon or Bill Clinton, and the special counsel’s investigation proved it. How come the report didn’t say so?
The Georgia Primary and the State of Voting Rights
A Supreme Court decision from 2013 has hastened perhaps the most sinister aspect of the Republican Party’s contemporary political agenda—to limit the ability of Democrats, especially people of color and lower-income people, to vote.
Can President Trump Really Order Troops Into Cities?
The Insurrection Act gives the President ambiguous powers to deploy U.S. troops on domestic soil.
A Case From a Judge’s Past May Offer a Clue About How the Michael Flynn Inquiry Will Proceed
Judge Emmet G. Sullivan’s appointment of an independent attorney suggests that the former national-security adviser is not out of the woods yet.
Can Trump Lose the Cases Against Him in the Supreme Court and Still Win?
The President has lost at every level of the judicial system in a pair of cases about his tax returns and financial documents, and he may well lose again—but a delay could be all he needs.
The Michael Flynn Dismissal Is Another Shot in Trump’s War on the Mueller Investigation
The President always had the right to pardon his former national-security adviser, but the Justice Department has done his dirty work for him.
Did John Bolton Outfox Himself on His Own Tell-All Book?
A prepublication-review agreement may help the White House keep the former national-security adviser’s book off the market—or cost Bolton any earnings from it if he decides to publish in defiance of the agreement.
Despite the Coronavirus Pandemic, the Government Is Still Targeting L.G.B.T.Q. Rights
“Religious freedom,” in its current incarnation, has little to do with religion or freedom. Rather, it’s a payoff to a privileged political constituency, usually at the expense of others.
The Trouble with Donald Trump’s Clemencies and Pardons
The President’s absolution of white-collar criminals who were his personal friends and associates is an exercise in authoritarianism.
How Donald Trump’s Unlikely Legal Team Will Try to Defend Him
At some level, the President’s defenders, including Kenneth Starr and Alan Dershowitz, must know that Trump’s conduct is impeachable. That’s why the agenda is to block the facts from coming out.
Harry Reid on the Senate, the Supreme Court, and a Time for Major Change
“I think the time has come for the filibuster to go,” the former Democratic leader in the Senate said. “It’s not a question of whether but when.”
Ending Trump’s Assault on the Rule of Law
Protecting voting rights is an essential step that Biden must take to repair our democracy. But it is only the first one.
There Should Be No Doubt Why Trump Nominated Amy Coney Barrett
The judge’s confirmation would fulfill former Justice Lewis Powell’s plan to transform the Supreme Court into a forum friendly to business interests.
The Legal Fight Awaiting Us After the Election
The aftermath of November’s vote has the potential to make 2000 look like a mere skirmish.
Can Trump and McConnell Push Through a Successor to Ruth Bader Ginsburg?
If the Republicans succeed in confirming a Justice, the Democrats should pursue radical action if they take control of the Senate this fall.
It Really Is Time to Get Rid of the Filibuster
It is true that the Framers intended the Senate to be a slower-moving institution than the House, but there is no evidence that they wanted legislative paralysis.
New York’s Primary-Vote-Count Chaos Signals Trouble for November
A month after the state’s Democratic primary, officials are still tallying mail-in ballots for the Twelfth Congressional District. How will they cope with the general election?
The Halted Progress of Criminal-Justice Reform
Prosecutors are charging protesters with federal crimes, exposing them to long prison sentences, in another example of the Justice Department’s grotesque overreach under Attorney General William Barr.
The Roger Stone Case Shows Why Trump Is Worse Than Nixon
The commuting of the prison sentence of an ally who kept his mouth shut during the Trump-Russia investigation is a consummate act of corruption and cronyism.
John Roberts Distances Himself from the Trump-McConnell Legal Project
The idea that the Chief Justice is dedicated to overturning Roe v. Wade seems fanciful in light of his latest opinion on abortion rights.
Why the Mueller Investigation Failed
President Trump’s obstructions of justice were broader than those of Richard Nixon or Bill Clinton, and the special counsel’s investigation proved it. How come the report didn’t say so?
The Georgia Primary and the State of Voting Rights
A Supreme Court decision from 2013 has hastened perhaps the most sinister aspect of the Republican Party’s contemporary political agenda—to limit the ability of Democrats, especially people of color and lower-income people, to vote.
Can President Trump Really Order Troops Into Cities?
The Insurrection Act gives the President ambiguous powers to deploy U.S. troops on domestic soil.
A Case From a Judge’s Past May Offer a Clue About How the Michael Flynn Inquiry Will Proceed
Judge Emmet G. Sullivan’s appointment of an independent attorney suggests that the former national-security adviser is not out of the woods yet.
Can Trump Lose the Cases Against Him in the Supreme Court and Still Win?
The President has lost at every level of the judicial system in a pair of cases about his tax returns and financial documents, and he may well lose again—but a delay could be all he needs.
The Michael Flynn Dismissal Is Another Shot in Trump’s War on the Mueller Investigation
The President always had the right to pardon his former national-security adviser, but the Justice Department has done his dirty work for him.
Did John Bolton Outfox Himself on His Own Tell-All Book?
A prepublication-review agreement may help the White House keep the former national-security adviser’s book off the market—or cost Bolton any earnings from it if he decides to publish in defiance of the agreement.
Despite the Coronavirus Pandemic, the Government Is Still Targeting L.G.B.T.Q. Rights
“Religious freedom,” in its current incarnation, has little to do with religion or freedom. Rather, it’s a payoff to a privileged political constituency, usually at the expense of others.
The Trouble with Donald Trump’s Clemencies and Pardons
The President’s absolution of white-collar criminals who were his personal friends and associates is an exercise in authoritarianism.
How Donald Trump’s Unlikely Legal Team Will Try to Defend Him
At some level, the President’s defenders, including Kenneth Starr and Alan Dershowitz, must know that Trump’s conduct is impeachable. That’s why the agenda is to block the facts from coming out.