Federalist Society Conference Hears Directly from Activists

The conservative Federalist Society held its Thirteenth Executive Branch Review Conference EBRXIII here in Washington at the venerable Mayflower Hotel where activists from Our Revolution, a progressive political movement launched by Bernie Sanders in 2016, protested and picketed.

Our Revolution described the conference saying that it is “not just a gathering of conservative legal minds—it’s part of a calculated effort to dismantle democratic checks and balances and prepare the ground for the oligarchs to take over our democracy with fewer restraints. We cannot allow radical, authoritarian legal theories to be normalized behind closed doors.” The Federalist Society advocates the promotion of “…legal theories that would hand sweeping power to the presidency—paving the way for Trump to consolidate power and allow for the rise of the American Oligarchy.”

For their part, the Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Study founded in 1982 describes itself as “…a group of conservatives and libertarians dedicated to reforming the current legal order.” They buttress their concerns in their own words by saying that “Law schools and the legal profession are currently strongly dominated by a form of orthodox liberal ideology which advocates a centralized and uniform society.”

Conference topics included discussions on DOGE and the Future of the Federal Workforce; The Constitutionality of Nationwide Injunctions and TROs Against Executive Action; The Constitutionality and Economics of Presidential Tariffs and Impoundment; and The Art of Deregulation: Executive Orders and Limited Government.

After holding a gathering at Farragut Square, Our Revolution activists marched to the hotel where activists entered the building from a side door and began blowing a whistle in drawing attention to their presence, while chanting “Elon Musk, people bleed, no more cuts, to feed their greed; DOGE is theft, nothing left; Billionaires schemes kill our dreams; and Musk gets more, we get poorer.”

As predicted, the activists were told to leave the property but not before one of the attendees asked the by now ad nauseum question of who was paying them to disrupt the gathering. For some, nothing happens without a monetary inducement. It is unfathomable for them to understand that there are people who resist through their own convictions and dedication and in having principals to work for change freely and on their own time to guard against the abject abuse of power.

Making their way to the main entrance of the hotel under the watchful eyes of two security guards, they set up a picket line chanting loudly while carrying signs and copies of shredded Constitutions in calling attention to the proceedings that were taking place inside bent on eroding our federal government further while amplifying presidential powers.

The creative chants called attention to Musk, DOGE and the rise of the oligarchs over the plight of the working class saying, “They get jets, we get debt; Elon Musk, people bleed, no more cuts, to feed their greed; DOGES theft, nothing left; Billionaires’ schemes, kill our dreams; and Musk gets more, we get poorer.”

Afterward, the group held a short debriefing promising more actions for as long as it takes to see real and profound change that makes our democracy and economy work for all Americans.

Report and photos by Phil Pasquini

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