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Molly Redden

I cover legal affairs, including big law, judicial appointments and White House legal strategy.

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Send me tips and documents about big law firms’ pro bono work for Trump, the administration’s legal strategy, the White House’s judicial appointments, and clashes between the legal world and Trump.

What I Cover

I’m covering legal affairs and how the second Trump administration is attempting to reshape the legal system. I plan to cover Trump’s battle with big law, his defiance of the courts, his judicial nominations and the administration’s novel legal arguments in defense of Trump’s sweeping agenda.

My Background

Since joining ProPublica in 2024, I’ve reported on senior Trump advisers’ plans to put civil servants “in trauma” and consolidate unchecked executive power over the federal budget and core civil liberties.

Previously, I was a senior reporter on the national team at HuffPost, where I uncovered a series of all-expenses-paid luxury trips funded by right-wing billionaires for judges appointed by President Donald Trump. I scrutinized Vice President Kamala Harris’ record as a “progressive prosecutor” and helped reveal how Sen. Amy Klobuchar had abused her staff throughout her political career.

In 2024, I was a finalist for a Deadline Club award from the New York City chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists for my investigation into the political ties of the expert witnesses working to validate anti-trans laws across the country.

Before joining HuffPost, I was a senior reporter at Mother Jones and the Guardian US covering gender issues and reproductive rights.

The “Invasion” Invention: The Far Right’s Long Legal Battle to Make Immigrants the Enemy

The Trump administration is using the claim that immigrants have “invaded” the country to justify possibly suspending habeas corpus, part of the constitutional right to due process. A faction of the far right has been building this case for years.

by Molly Redden,

How Trump Plans to Seize the Power of the Purse From Congress

The second-term president likely will seek to cut off spending that lawmakers have already appropriated, setting off a constitutional struggle within the branches. If successful, he could wield the power to punish perceived foes.

by Molly Redden,

“Put Them in Trauma”: Inside a Key MAGA Leader’s Plans for a New Trump Agenda

Private videos reveal Trump adviser Russ Vought’s “shadow” plans for using the military on protesters, defunding the EPA and villainizing civil servants.

by Molly Redden and Andy Kroll, ProPublica, and Nick Surgey, Documented,