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Passing JudgmentAuthor: Jessica Levinson
Is the constitution in crisis? This podcast is for people who are curious about politics and the law and how the biggest political and legal issues of the moment affect you. Pull up a chair and join host Jessica Levinson, a professor at LMUs Loyola Law School, and a rotating cast of experts. Jessica will be joined by journalists, politicians, political scientists, lawyers, and many others. Listen to Jessica and her guests for a wry, and sometimes irreverent take on the most pressing issues of our time. What are the laws of our democracy? How are they changing? And what does that mean for your daily life? Language: en Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it Trailer: |
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Federal Court Blocks Trump Administration’s Funding Freeze Against UCLA and UC System
Episode 108
Tuesday, 18 November, 2025
In this episode of Passing Judgment, Jessica Levinson unpacks a significant federal court decision blocking the Trump administration from withholding or conditioning federal funds to UCLA in exchange for major campus policy changes. The discussion covers the court's reasoning under the Administrative Procedures Act, the First and 10th Amendments, and why the judge deemed the administration’s actions coercive. Join us for a breakdown of this breaking legal news and its broader implications for university autonomy.Here are three key takeaways from the episode:Federal Funding Leverage Challenged: A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction preventing the Trump administration from freezing, terminating, or conditioning UC research funds—pointing out that the administration’s approach may violate legal requirements, including the Administrative Procedures Act, the First Amendment, and the Tenth Amendment.Academic Freedom & Speech Protected: The court found that forcing changes to speech policies, DEI efforts, gender healthcare, protest rules, and admissions could unlawfully coerce universities and chill free speech, especially among public university faculty and students.States’ Rights and Spending Clause Limits: The judge ruled that federal conditions on funding can’t be so extreme they essentially take away states’ ability to decide their own policies—a “gun to the head” tactic that threatens economic stability and state sovereignty.Follow Our Host: @LevinsonJessica
