Yes.

Now, the administration is claiming that this was a lawful seizure under some sort of sanction regime. I have my doubts. We will learn more in the coming days.

The difference is that piracy can, and often has, occurred in international waters. Not within any jurisdiction where a given state’s law applies. Which basically removes any protections the pirate may have under law.

It’s not exactly the same, but it’s similar. Piracy is regarded as a crime against humanity, basically, under intl. law. Terrorism is much more difficult to define. One man’s freedom fighter is another’s terrorist. Pirates do not have the protection of any “state” law. They fly their own flag.

To clarify, I don't see how this falls outside of an illegal act of war/agression by a belligerent enemy nation, under international law. If Venezuela had done this to us, trump would call it an act of war and immediately order an attack on Caracas.

The technical difference is that "pirates" belong to no nation, therefore they are not accountable to any "'state's" law, at least under international law. This is more likely to be an act of war, because it was the U.S. military taking a Venezuelan flagged ship by force.

Yes. Many republican lawyers and judges stopped arguing in good faith decades ago. Unfortunately, it seems to be frowned upon in the profession if we are honest about that and call it out. Abortion is a glaring example. Their argument is based on their religion, but they will never admit it.

Lifelong Texan here, and I can tell you right now that only Talarico could win here in '28. Unfortunately, this state is still way too racist and misogynistic to elect a black woman statewide. In fact, the misogyny may outweigh the racism here.

SCOTUS is essentially proposing to swoop in and shout "Fooled you! We're going to unwind the constraints, but not the delegation of power—even though you might not have accepted the delegation without the constraints."

Michigan’s secretary of state race is one of the most important in the country. With the seat open, extremists are already circling. We need a Democrat protecting voting rights in this battleground. Chip in what you can or just pass it along. Every bit helps.