A plain-language account of each week on the record — what happened, why it matters, and the throughlines that connect it. Every digest links to that week’s evidence in the archive.
Week 19 · May 24, 2025
The administration widened pressure on universities and migrants, while judges repeatedly stepped in on tariffs, deportations, and retaliation against independent institutions.
This week was defined by two overlapping patterns: the administration expanded its use of federal power against disfavored institutions and populations, and the courts kept
Read the week →Week 18 · May 17, 2025
From immigration courts to universities to independent agencies, the week turned on whether institutions could still slow, block, or absorb presidential pressure.
This week was defined by expansion and resistance at the same time.
Read the week →Week 17 · May 10, 2025
From immigration crackdowns and due-process fights to the Qatar jet controversy and pressure on media and institutions, the week showed both escalation and resistance.
The week opened with unusually blunt tests of constitutional limits: talk of suspending habeas corpus, a plan to accept a luxury jet from Qatar, and the arrest of Newark’s mayor
Read the week →Week 16 · May 3, 2025
From the shutdown fight over Voice of America to new pressure on universities, regulators, and local officials, the week showed executive power pushing deeper into public institutions.
The week unfolded as a broad campaign to tighten control over institutions that shape information, expertise, and dissent.
Read the week →Week 15 · April 26, 2025
A week of immigration escalation, pressure on universities and media, and widening fights over executive power.
This week, several strands of power converged at once.
Read the week →Week 14 · April 19, 2025
A week of escalating fights over deportations, universities, executive power, and government transparency
This week was defined by two simultaneous movements: the administration widened its use of federal power against universities, immigrants, media, and internal dissenters, while
Read the week →Week 13 · April 12, 2025
A wrongful deportation case became a test of executive compliance as pressure spread across universities, immigration, voting rules, and federal institutions.
The week was defined by a widening confrontation between executive power and the institutions meant to check it.
Read the week →Week 12 · April 5, 2025
A week of market shock, immigration escalation, and widening federal pressure on universities, law firms, and public institutions
The week opened with mass protests and a market slide after Trump’s tariff rollout, then moved into a series of escalating fights over executive power.
Read the week →Week 11 · March 29, 2025
A week of emergency trade powers, immigration crackdowns, and widening federal pressure on universities, media, and states
The week opened with the administration using federal money and executive power to pressure universities, cultural institutions, and Washington, DC, then moved into a broader
Read the week →Week 10 · March 22, 2025
The administration widened pressure on law firms, universities, immigrants, federal workers, and election rules while courts scrambled to keep up.
This week was defined by expansion and escalation.
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