Opening Arguments
by Opening Arguments Media LLC
Latest episode
Missing Democrats Aren't Why Hegseth Wasn't Impeached. Republicans…
Missing Democrats Aren't Why Hegseth Wasn't Impeached. Republicans…
About this podcast
Opening Arguments is a law show that helps you make sense of the news! Comedian Thomas Smith and lawyer Matt Cameron help you understand not only current events, but also deeper legal concepts and areas! The schedule is M-W-F, with the main show on Monday and Friday and Vapid Response on Wednesday!
Episodes
The newest 50 of 1,310 episodes
- Missing Democrats Aren't Why Hegseth Wasn't Impeached. Republicans Set the Vote. · 55 min · Episode 1313OA1313 - Why the Republican attempt to impeach Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth was more legally defensible than the articles of impeachment filed by House Democrats in April…
- Biggest Democratic House Since Nixon Resigned, and Red States Moved the Most · 51 min · Episode 1312OA1312 - Just how big was this blue wave? Jenessa has some exclusive homemade analysis for you to illustrate how the tides are flowing and where the biggest shifts happened. Plus…
- Voters Said No to MAGA. Grand Juries Have Been Saying No to DOJ for Months. · 45 min · Episode 1311OA1311 - Matt runs through a string of DOJ losses this week: researcher Kseniia Petrova's smuggled frog embryos case, a grand jury's decision on Cassidy Hutchinson, and Trump's…
- Election Night: We Streamed Until We Got Tired of Winning · 1 h 3 min · Episode 2049VR49 - Live midterms watch party! Thomas, Matt, and Jenessa parked in front of three screens on election night and just let the good vibes happen. We've got Mike Johnson saying…
- Here's Why Voter Fraud Is Virtually Nonexistent, and What Experts Actually Fear · 56 min · Episode 1310OA1310 - We all know by now that election fraud is rare, but do you know why? What mechanisms are in place that make us so sure it's rare, and not just rarely reported? Jenessa…
- "You Gotta Spend Voter Fraud to Make Voter Fraud" - James O'Keefe · 53 min · Episode 1309OA1309 - With Matt out sick, we're doing a GG crossover, with a hot off the presses new story suitable for Rapid Response Friday. Back in August, James O'Keefe's rebranded…
- The Christian Reboot of the Scopes Monkey Trial Nobody Asked For · 44 minWE WATCHED A MOVIE SO CHRISTIAN WE HAD TO DOSE IT OUT IN TWO SITTINGS. Thomas and Matt are joined by Lydia for Alleged, a 2010 Christian retelling of the Scopes Monkey Trial that…
- They Wouldn't Be Flailing This Hard If They Thought They Were Winning · 52 min · Episode 1308OA1308 - The election is coming up fast, with early voting already underway in many states. With an administration that is, let's say "do we really need elections?" curious, how…
- The More We Learn About the Ilhan Omar Raid, the Worse It Looks · 47 min · Episode 1307OA1307 - Matt's got an update on the Ilhan Omar search warrant saga. We get into the genuinely bizarre citizenship limbo they're trying to put her in. In other news, FEMA told…
- Tommy Teepell Gets Publicly Owned, and the Worst Cornell 7 Take Yet · 1 h 15 min · Episode 2048VR48 - Today on Vapid Response Wednesday: the extremely believable backstory of some guy named Tommy who got publicly owned by Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul…
- Can You Sue a Drug Company When You Don't Know Which One Made the Pill? · 52 min · Episode 1306OA1306 - We're on a winning streak! ...because we picked the winners. This week we cover two cases where the little guy comes out on top against the big corporation, and learn…
- NY Defense Attorney Calls the Tompkins County DA's Cornell Decision "Truly Stunning" · 57 min · Episode 1305OA1305 - Matt's under the weather, so no normal Friday show this week. But don't panic, because we've got a treat instead: a crossover from Gavel Gavel where criminal defense…
- What the Media Are Getting Wrong About the Ilhan Omar Raid · 1 h 2 min · Episode 2047VR47 - Federal agents raided Ilhan Omar's house this week, possibly over a decades-old conspiracy theory. Matt Explains what the media are getting wrong about the incident. Along…
- This Guy Beat Qualified Immunity Twice, in Two Different Circuits · 58 min · Episode 1304OA1304 - Qualified immunity does not strike again! In a case out of the 10th circuit, with the same plaintiff from last week's Rosales v. Lewis/Terrell, the court once again…
- Florida Judge Says Congress Can't Make Noncitizen Voting a Federal Crime · 47 min · Episode 1303OA1303 - Rapid Response Friday kicks off with two major under-the-radar stories that you may not hear anywhere else about major federal decisions out of Florida and Massachusetts…
- Samuel Alito's Victory Lap and Douglas Murray's Deportation Jetpack Fantasy · 1 h 5 min · Episode 2046VR46 - This week on Vapid Response Wednesday: A Bari Weiss double feature! We kick off with an amuse douche from CBS News's chill hang with a cool guy from Trenton. Samuel Alito…
- The 5th Circuit Denied a Cop Qualified Immunity, So We Might Be in the Afterlife · 50 min · Episode 1302OA1302 - Qualified immunity can be overcome! In the fifth circuit?! Come hear the good news, and learn some fourth amendment traffic stop rules along the way. CHECK YOUR VOTER…
- DOJ Wants Every Federal Judge in Minnesota Recused (Good Luck With That) · 50 min · Episode 1301OA1301 - IT'S FASCISM RESPONSE FRIDAY, and it's a lot. DOJ just filed a complaint trying to get every single active federal judge in Minnesota booted off immigration cases, and…
- John Yoo Wrote the Torture Memos and Never Paid for It. At All. · 1 h 15 min · Episode 2045VR45 - Today on Vapid Response: 25 years after the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, we look back on the Forrest Gump of monstrously bad legal takes: former DOJ lawyer and…
- From Toga Guy to John Hinckley: A History of Pleading Insanity · 53 min · Episode 1300OA1300 - The “insanity defense” might sound like a relic of a time when mental illness was viewed through the lens of demons and witches, and it turns out it is… but also maybe…
- He Went to Prison for Bribing Susan Collins. She's... Totally Fine Somehow? · 1 h 2 min · Episode 1299OA1299 - This week on Rapid Response Friday: what crimes might Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) have been complicit in, and why won't she ever be prosecuted for any of them? We go…
- The Real Reason Coyote v. Acme Was Buried (It's So Much Worse Than a Tax Write-Off) · 1 h 4 min · Episode 1017Coyote vs. Acme is such a fun movie. Thomas and Lydia saw it with the kids, Matt tried to borrow some kids to see it with, and has some fun legal observations for us. BUT! Before…
- The USPS Ballot Scheme Was Even Worse Than You Thought · 59 min · Episode 1298OA1298 - Voting rights attorney Jenessa is back with a sprawling tour of election chaos, starting with the Supreme Court's unsigned order in USPS v. California: nobody knows the…
- Kash Patel Screws the Pooch · 51 min · Episode 1297OA1297 - This week on Rapid Response Friday: SCOTUS once again confirms the color of the sky, the latest failures in DOJ’s attempts to prosecute Trump’s political opponents, why…
- Manosphere's Favorite Juror Had Active Restraining Order During Clancy Trial · 1 h 1 min · Episode 2044VR44 - This week on Vapid Response: we survey some of MAGA’s worst takes on the recent mistrial of Lindsay Clancy, all the way from “women are too woke and emotional to be on…
- A Blizzard of Lies - Dave Wedge on the Karen Read Trial · 50 min · Episode 1296OA1296 - Dave Wedge is a veteran Boston reporter and New York Times bestselling author who covered (among many other things) hundreds of murder trials as a reporter for the…
- The 5th Circuit Says You Have No Right to Clean Water · 46 min · Episode 1295OA1295 - Today on Rapid Response Friday: your questions about the Lindsay Clancy mistrial, actual justice for the Tate brothers, Trump’s mystery meat, and the Fifth Circuit’s…
- Milo Yiannopoulos Lied About His Immigration Status (And We Can Prove It) · 1 h 21 min · Episode 2043VR43 - Today on this special edition of Vapid Response: ICE boot enthusiast Milo Yiannopolous is not a particularly interesting person, but his recent unexpected removal to the…
- The First Openly Autistic Lawyer in Florida on What Law Firms Get Wrong · 1 h 6 min · Episode 1294OA1294 - Haley Moss was the first openly autistic woman to practice law in Florida, and she is now an advocate for disability, autism, and neurodiversity in the workplace. She…
- Most Lindsay Clancy Coverage Has the Law All Wrong · 1 h 0 min · Episode 1293OA1293 - In this extra-special Rapid Response Friday, Thomas visits Boston to record live in Matt’s office and talk out two very different legal stories in the news that the…
- ICE Went Undercover To Expose a Vast Antifa "Conspiracy" · 44 minHey folks, no VR this week because Lydia and I are traveling. (We're in Boston, going to record RRF live together with Matt!) But folks NEED to hear this episode of Gavel Gavel…
- Supreme Court Says Why Prevent Trump Violating the Constitution Before It Even Happens? · 1 h 0 min · Episode 1292OA1292 - Jenessa takes us through the Supreme Court's 6-3 shadow docket ruling in Trump v. California, which lifted a preliminary injunction blocking Trump's executive order…
- Meta Must Pay, Bannon's Judge Pushes Back, and a Dolly Parton Shoutout from the Bench · 51 min · Episode 1291OA1291 - This week on Rapid Response Friday: the single biggest consumer protection settlement ever reached with any U.S. company puts new guardrails on younger social media…
- Stephen Miller's America First Legal Has a YouTube Show (and it sucks real bad) · 1 h 7 min · Episode 3042VR42 - Today on Vapid Response Wednesday: Lydia, Thomas, and Matt check in on the official podcast of Stephen Miller's America First Legal, and Matt brings the receipts to show…
- A Mayor Declared a State of Emergency to Save Flock Cameras · 52 min · Episode 1290OA1290 - Jenessa returns with a surveillance grab bag: a New York mayor declares a bizarre "emergency" to keep her city's Flock cameras running after the city council said no…
- Trump Messed With the Mouse. Now He Gets the Ears. · 58 min · Episode 1289OA1289 - Is Disney/ABC’s bold new legal action against the Trump administration one of the most important First Amendment challenges of our lifetimes, or just another Mickey…
- Baseball Crank Asks "What Have Refugees Done for Me Lately" · 1 h 20 min · Episode 3041VR41 - What does a “moderate conservative” sound like in August 2026? Thomas and Matt take a closer look at two very different self-proclaimed “moderates” representing the best…
- Police Sued for Blatant Misuse of Facial Recognition. It's NUTS. · 60 min · Episode 1288OA1288 - What happens when a hotheaded cop who isn’t interested in putting in much effort to solve a crime meets up with another cop who thinks computers are infallible? A man…
- The Tates Seek Release, Super-Duper Promise They Won't Flee · 53 min · Episode 1287OA1287 - Today on Rapid Response Friday: Todd “Two Taints” Blanche flexes his new freedom as two Tates blanch at the loss of theirs, and a lawsuit over a cinematic heist starring…
- Ross Douthat Leaves NYT for Bari Weiss. Here Were Some of His Worst Columns. · 1 h 27 min · Episode 2040VR40 - This Vapid Response Wednesday, we note the end of Ross Douthat’s 17-year run as the resident New York Times conservative columnist with a drive-by review of some of his…
- Melissa Murray Gives the Constitution Some Strict Scrutiny · 60 min · Episode 1286OA1286 - NYU Law professor and Strict Scrutiny co-host Melissa Murray joins to discuss (among many other things) her new book, Sonia Sotomayor’s dance moves, and why actually…
- Cornyn and Tillis Negotiate Meaningless Concession from Blanche · 1 h 2 min · Episode 1285OA1285 - This week on Rapid Response Friday: regulators, mount up! We take a closer look at the actual documents provided to the Senate Judiciary Committee by Attorney General…
- Did Mamdani Wipe Little Italy Off the Map? · 1 h 8 min · Episode 2039VR39 - Vapid Response Wednesday returns with a tasteful pairing of stories about alleged anti-Italian discrimination that go together like chianti and red sauce. Today's specials…
- How a Bank Robbery Became a Fourth Amendment Landmark · 54 min · Episode 1284OA1284 - Can a modern court implement modern solutions? It really depends on your perspective. Despite some baffling misconceptions about how… anything works, the Justices seem…
- The Most Brazen and Corrupt Heist in American History (GG Crossover!) · 49 min · Episode 1283Apologies for being a little late on this one! Donald Trump sued the IRS, an agency he currently runs, for leaking his own tax returns, and asked for a cool $10 billion. Thomas…
- LAM1015: Outlaw · 49 minLAM1015 - Jimmy Smits stars as a gambling, sports-shooting Supreme Court Justice with a law clerk paid to fend off his advances, in NBC's forgotten 2010 flop Outlaw. Thomas…
- How SCOTUS Paved the Way for Flock Cameras · 57 min · Episode 1282OA1282 - Is anything private any more? Depends which Supreme Court Justice you ask. To kick off a series of episodes around data privacy and the law, first Jenessa walks us…
- Todd Blanche Can Also Lie and Dodge Questions in Writing Too! · 48 min · Episode 1281OA1281 - As we wait on the final vote tally for Attorney General nominee Todd Blanche, we take a look at written responses which he recently provided into the record to answer a…
- Law on the Spectrum, with Peter O'Neil · 58 minOA1280 - Peter O’Neil was preparing for retirement after decades of practicing law when he learned that he was autistic at the age of 65. This realization inspired his memoir My…
- What Happened to You, Todd Blanche? · 52 min · Episode 1279OA1279 - This week on Rapid Response Friday: A federal judge rips up the corrupt “settlement” Trump reached with his own IRS at the unprecedented request of a group of 35 former…
