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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 10h

When my mom got engaged, she told my great-grandfather that she was thinking of taking a honeymoon in Europe. “Why?” He said. “I’ve been there. It was bad. That’s why I left.”

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 10h

It is seriously not ok for the executive branch to use federal law enforcement to target and harass officeholders who are its political opponents. (Not a complete statement of things that are not ok.)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

TIL that Marietta, Ohio was named for...Marie Antoinette. In 1790. Quite a statement, really.

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

In *Master of the Senate,* Robert Caro described the 19th-century Credit Mobilier scandal as an episode in corruption never equaled in the annals of American government, either before or since. I suppose Caro’s book was a document of its time.

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Delighted to say that the American Society of Legal Writers has named *The Oldest Constitutional Question* one of the best works of legal scholarship published in 2025. I’ll talk about writing the book & accept an award today at noon in Hutchins Hall 120 (lunch provided!). @umichlaw.bsky.social

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George Conway ⚖️🇺🇸 @gtconway.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

imagine if Joe Biden had posted this

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

We will not soon forget him; I will consider it a privilege to carry his name in my signature block. May his memory be a blessing. (7/7)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

In his retirement, Ted would walk the streets of our neighborhood every day. We could set our clocks by his passage outside our house, as if he were Kant patrolling Konigsberg. My kids accordingly knew him by sight. When he approached, they’d call out “Dad, your friend Ted is coming.” (6/7)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

(Yes, I know there are economists’ responses to that point. So did Ted.) (5/7)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

He gave me my first Michigan football ticket, and he treated me to a meal. The latter, he explained, because he had limited patience for law and economics and therefore liked falsifying the proposition that there’s no such thing as a free lunch. (4/7)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

When I first arrived at Michigan as a junior professor, Ted—already emeritus—did two things for me. (3/7)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Ted was a professor here for half a century, a beloved dean emeritus, and a mensch—or, in parlance more suited to his dialect than mine, a gentleman’s gentleman. He was a legendary labor lawyer whose teaching generations of students remember fondly. (2/7)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Since 2014, it has been my honor to be the inaugural Theodore J. St. Antoine Collegiate Professor here at the University of Michigan Law School. Today it is my sad duty to relay news of Ted St. Antoine's passing, at the age of 97. (1/7)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Ann Arbor voters: Our public schools need to do better. Please take the time to inform yourselves about the candidates in the local school board election before you vote. (FWIW, I'm voting Dibble/Ellis/Siebers/Spencer for the full term and Hudson for the partial term.)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

I don’t mind listening to people telling me about their fantasy football leagues, as long as they’re happy to listen when I talk about my fantasy fantasy football league. (I’m doing great, by the way.)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

About to discuss my book The Oldest Constitution Question with the students in Randy Barnett’s class at Georgetown. He sent me their criticisms in advance: good stuff. Glad to be here doing this. @georgetownlaw.bsky.social

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Going soon to spend a wet afternoon at Michigan Stadium. Not going to boo the visitors when they take the field. They’re supposed to take the field. #GoBlue #MightAsWellBeAMensch

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Spending the day at the University of Georgia as the Constitution Day speaker. My first time here. Everyone has been super-nice. My God it’s hot. @universityofga.bsky.com

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

The Kennedy Center: Kulturkampf and Fit of Spite.

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MDefenders at Michigan Law @mdefenders.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

An incredible Public Defender Training Institute Retreat this weekend preparing students for careers in indigent defense. Thanks to amazing cofacilitators Rick Barinbaum Saeeda Joseph-Charles Blase Kearney & Anna Yaldo for your time wisdom & thoughtful feedback michigan.law.umich.edu/public-defen...

michigan.law.umich.edu

Public Defender Training Institute | University of Michigan Law School

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

5) I’ve gotta admit, rushing the field is fun. #GoBlue (6/6) (end)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

4) Re both (2) and (3), above: Athletics is a forum for the development—and display—of character. For good and for ill. For participants and also for fans. No getting around that. (5/6)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

3) Different, but not unrelated: The student chant when the opposing team fails to get a first down on a third-down play has always been juvenile. The new version is dishonorable and should not be used. (If you were there, you know.) (4/6)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

2, cont.) Really? A bunch of 19-year-olds rode a bus halfway across the state, expecting to get pummeled, so you could have a fun night out. And for showing up, you give them the finger? (3/6)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

2) Yesterday I posted, as I always do before home games, that it’s not right to boo the opposition for coming out of the tunnel. At game time, when the opposing players came onto the field, the man in front of me didn’t just boo. He gave them the finger. And I think: Really? (2/6)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Some thoughts about last night at Michigan Stadium, and not about the clock. 1) We, the Michigan Wolverines, do not look so good. (1/6)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

First day of football season. Town filling up. Looking forward to going to the stadium. Not going to boo the visitors when they come on the field. They aren't doing anything wrong by coming on the field. In fact, they'd be doing something wrong by *not* coming on the field. Give a gracious welcome.

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

DJT has publicly threatened a journalist (Welker) w/ FCC retaliation for making accurate, unflattering statements about DJT. We're no longer surprised. But it's entirely unacceptable. Should be per se disqualifying for office in the USA. Nobody who cares about free speech gets to pretend otherwise.

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

I've just finished a new article by David Schwartz (Wisconsin), called *The Birth of Compact Theory,* in the most recent issue of the Journal of American Constitutional History. It's the most important piece of new legal scholarship I've read all summer. jach.law.wisc.edu/the-birth-of...

jach.law.wisc.edu

The Birth of Compact Theory

For claims about constitutional interpretation that hinge on the Constitution’s “original meaning,” it matters whether members of the Philadelphia Convention, or the state ratifying conventions, or th...

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Benjamin Wittes @benjaminwittes.lawfaremedia.org · 25/08/2026

It is not up to the president what the Kennedy Center is called. It is not up to the president what the Department of Defense is called. It is not up to the president what the Gulf of Mexico is called. It is not up to the president what Lake Ontario is called.

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Eve Brensike Primus @primuseve.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

Attention @umichlaw.bsky.social students: if you are interested in public defense or criminal legal system reform, please check out the MDefenders calendar of events below and join us!

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 17/08/2026

The new issue of the Journal of American Constitutional History is out today. Articles by Emily Rieger about pragmatism and the legal process school, Zachary Brown about Madisonian nationalism, and David Schwartz about compact theory. jach.law.wisc.edu

jach.law.wisc.edu

Journal of American Constitutional History

The Journal of American Constitutional History is a peer-reviewed web-based journal publishing high-quality scholarship on U.S. constitutional history. Our editorial board includes over 60 leading sch...

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Sam Bagenstos @sbagen.bsky.social · 17/08/2026

As someone who's been working in both "democratic backsliding" and "state capacity" camps, I found today's @donmoyn.bsky.social piece very useful. I've been meaning to write something myself about the tension, particularly w/r/t unitary executive theory. donmoynihan.substack.com/p/what-could...

donmoynihan.substack.com

What could a post-Trump governance coalition look like?

It should be being built now

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

I’ve just finished “The Bootlegger,” in Amor Towles’s new *Table for Two.* Gorgeous.

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

It’s really unacceptable. (11/11) (End) @bcbsmichigan.bsky.social Oh, here’s the check:

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

But if I were a poor person with a non-flexible job, what is it that I’d be supposed to do? (10/11)

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Richard Primus @richardprimus.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

I have a flexible job. I can sit on hold and work at my desk. And I make enough money that if there are delays in getting reimbursements, I’m not jeopardized. (9/11)

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