There is a brewing controversy at Fordham University where students were thrown out of a coffee shop called Rodrigue’s Coffee House simply because they were wearing pro-Trump “Make America Great Again” hats. The manager of the shop insisted that the hats violated its “safe space” policy as if being conservative is now a de facto threat to other students. We recently discussed an increase in such conflicts in coffee shops targeting conservatives and Trump supporters. In this case, the encounter was captured on tape (below) and raises serious questions about the function of some “safe spaces” and whether it is code for an area protected from conservative views or voices.
The GW Hatchet, our award-winning student newspaper, has another interesting article this week on the establishment of a new group on campus, 
Below is my column in the Hill Newspaper on a little known case involving Trump attorney John Dowd and the broader issue of conflicts among key players in the Russian investigation.
Conservative commentator Lucian Wintrich was arrested recently after he grabbed a protester who stole his speech notes during an event at the University of Connecticut. The video however shows Wintrich trying to stop a woman who acted to prevent him from speaking and grabbed his notes. That led to many asking why the woman was not arrested. Now she has been identified and it is worse than thought. Her name is 
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We often joke about the “evil twin defense” and have seen a few actual cases (
I have been critical of the representation afforded by Gloria Allred and her daughter Lisa Bloom in past cases, including the rapid calling of press conferences at the height of news cycles. 
Actress Lena Dunham has gone public with an allegation that she warned Hillary Clinton’s campaign that Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein was a known rapist and saying that it was wrong to use him as a core fundraiser for Clinton. Dunham accused Clinton campaign deputy communications manager Kristina Schake and Clinton campaign member spokeswoman Adrienne Elrod of being expressly warned about Weinstein. 
Davenport (FL.) Mayor Darlene Bradley, 60, faces an allegation this week that is politically and legally devastating. Police allege that she has been using the placards of dead people to park in handicapped spots at city hall. This is the type of allegation that would be radioactive before either jurors or voters. Unless there is a serious misunderstanding (and police have videotapes), a plea would seem a wise move.
Below is my column in USA Today on the ethical and practical implications of the controversial tweet sent out by Trump counsel John Dowd. In my view, Dowd should now remove himself from the litigation. Notably, the failure to remove or fail Dowd will likely fuel theories that he is covering for Trump. If Trump did not know that Flynn had lied to the FBI before speaking with Comey, the Dowd tweet would usually result in a quick and rather angry response to a lawyer compromising his client in this fashion. However, various media sources are reporting that White House Counsel Don McGahn did inform Trump that Flynn likely misled the FBI in his interview before Trump spoke with Comey. Whatever the truth of the matter, the Dowd tweet could not be worse in its timing and content.
We recently discussed the bizarre defense of Roy Moore