On Thursday last week, campus leadership dismissed UC Berkeley lecturer Peyrin Kao — the latest casualty in the administration’s war on Berkeley’s free speech foundations. Kao’s censuring proves yet again that free speech at UC Berkeley is no more than administrative marketing. It’s a principle invoked when convenient and easily discarded when costly. This semester, […]
Tag: Trump
How Judicial Philosophy Is Reshaping America
The Supreme Court’s recent decisions in favor of Trump’s policies have set off a wave of public anger and frustration. Many Democrats see a blatantly biased, Republican Court that has, and will continue to, bend the knee to Trump. While their outrage is justified, it is misdirected. Rather than being affected by personal political affiliation, […]
No Kings Day Demonstrates that the Modern Era of Protest Culture Needs to be Revamped
On October 18, 2025, cheers and shouts echoed across the United States as a collective movement ensued among Americans nationwide. The news of more than 2,700 planned protests made headlines, all brandishing the same unifying slogan: “No Kings.” To criticize the Trump Administration for its already controversial policies in just less than a quarter of […]
Living in Fear: The Human Cost of Trump’s Deportation Agenda
“My biggest fear is seeing her one morning and not knowing if she’ll come back.” This fear and daily uncertainty is a sentiment shared by the 5.8 million households in the United States that are home to at least one undocumented immigrant, amidst the second term of President Donald Trump. As of 2023, California had […]
Supreme Court Rulings Favoring Trump Provide Little Explanation
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) has taken on a more influential and significant role in legislation and policy making, as seen in the number of pivotal rulings and overturned precedents in recent years. SCOTUS, with its 6-3 ratio of conservative to liberal justices, continues this role by halting cases and decisions brought […]
The Dystopian Spiral of Third-Country Deportations
Shuttled out of countries under mysterious circumstances, dropped off in foreign states, and left with little legal recompense, the story of modern third-country deportees sounds like something out of a political fiction. But third-country deportations are intensely real, and they are only increasing. Third-country deportations occur when a non-citizen is deported from their current nation […]
Turning Point USA, November 10th, 2025
On Monday November 10, Turning Point USA had its final stop of a 2025 tour on campus at UC Berkeley. Whilst attendees sat inside Zellerbach Hall, furious students, staff, and community members protested outside, declaring that conservative and instigative media were not welcome on campus. Outraged that the progressive campus would host TPUSA’s “American Comeback […]
David Oppenheimer on the Importance of Diversity & the War on DEI
With the recent suppression of DEI initiatives by the Trump administration and a war on diversity, Berkeley Law professor David Oppenheimer sits down with BPR to detail how his new book, “The Diversity Principle,” traces the long, often-overlooked history of diversity efforts, and reminds us why inclusion remains essential to learning, growth, and democracy itself.
The New “Clear and Present Danger” to the United States is Trumpist Aggression
On Sep. 1, 2025, a U.S. Navy combat aircraft illegally sunk a ship in international waters off the coast of Venezuela in an airstrike. All 11 people on board were killed. The unlucky vessel was allegedly carrying drugs to Trinidad and Tobago, presumed to be for ultimate export to U.S. consumers. This missile strike was […]
Diplomacy as Performance in Trump’s Saudi Strategy
Unlike most U.S. presidents who traditionally make their first foreign trip to Canada or Mexico, Donald Trump broke precedent in 2017 by choosing Saudi Arabia and returning again in 2019. These visits signaled a dramatic recentering of U.S. foreign policy around Riyadh, reflecting Trump’s fascination with Saudi wealth, spectacle, and geopolitical leverage. Yet, as Saudi […]