A Blood Test for Dumb Headline Writing

Now that would be a breakthrough

Good Morning:

Of course not. You might get hit by a car tomorrow. Can a blood test predict if you’ll die of a flesh-eating bacteria before you’re old enough to know what Alzheimer’s is? Stupid question. The most a blood test can possible do is predict whether you’re likely to get Alzheimer’s if something else doesn’t kill you first.

Come on, guys: Be precise.

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Yesterday on #DogShirtTV, the estimable Anastasiia Lapatina asked the estimable Mike Feinberg and me for an Iraq War retrospective, and we did our best to deliver:

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On Sunday evening, the estimable Andrew Steele led a Greek Chorus discussion of various plays titled Antigone. Video and audio are available for paid subscribers here:

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Yesterday On Lawfare

Compiled by the estimable Marissa Wang

The Trump Administration Comes for State Voter Rolls

Eric Columbus argues that the Department of Justice’s sweeping demand for state voter rolls lacks legal footing and is unlikely to succeed under judicial scrutiny. Columbus explains that the effort is likely less about enforcing election law than about casting doubt on election integrity—regardless of the results in court.

Since last May, the Department of Justice has been trying to acquire the voter rolls of every state and the District of Columbia. Forty-eight states have received requests—all but North Dakota (which does not require voter registration) and North Carolina (whose voter registration list the department obtained access to via separate litigation). The Justice Department has sued 29 of those states and D.C. when they refused to hand over the records. The department claims it needs and is entitled to the data to ensure that states are properly maintaining their rolls. Courts, so far, aren’t buying it. And there really isn’t much precedent for this.

So why is the Trump administration doing this?

AI and Privilege After United States v. Heppner

Justin Curl and Mihir Kshirsagar unpacks how the decision in United States v. Heppner will affect access to legal resources driven by artificial intelligence (AI). The duo examines how the court’s reasoning risks undermining attorney-client privilege, limits access to legal protections depending on a user’s resources, and discourages beneficial uses of AI in legal preparation.

Does a defendant who used an AI translator retain attorney-client privilege?

Not according to a recent decision from a judge in the Southern District of New York. On Feb. 17, Judge Jed Rakoff issued a written opinion in United States v. Heppner. This first-of-its-kind ruling found that documents created by a criminal defendant using Claude are not protected by attorney-client privilege or the work product doctrine.

While the ruling is correct in its conclusion, Judge Rakoff’s reasoning is problematic and goes beyond what was needed to resolve the case. Because he rested his analysis of a defendant’s right to prepare a defense on a company’s terms of service, Rakoff’s ruling has implications for how AI tools influence the accessibility of legal services.

Podcasts

On Lawfare Daily, I sit down with Anna Bower, Molly Roberts, and Roger Parloff to discuss Judge Rita Lin’s order granting a preliminary injunction in Anthropic’s suit challenging its supply chain designation, a hearing in Fulton County’s suit over the FBI seizure of 2020 presidential election ballots from an election office in Georgia, a new push from the Trump administration to investigate New York Attorney General Letitia James, and more.

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Request for subscriber feedback on the Rule O’ Law Roundup, my new weekend feature. How useful is it? How should I make it more useful?

Today’s #BeastOfTheDay is the camel, specifically 20 dirty cheater camels in Oman. Vice News reports:

At the 2026 Camel Beauty Show Festival in Al Musanaa, Oman, officials disqualified 20 camels after veterinary inspections flagged cosmetic enhancements. Reports said the list included Botox, fillers, silicone reshaping, and hump inflation…

Camel beauty contests in the Gulf aren’t a silly novelty event. They’re a serious status arena with real money attached, plus bragging rights that travel fast in tight-knit breeding circles. Winning can raise an animal’s value, and it can raise the owner’s reputation right along with it. That’s why people keep trying to game the system, even when the system has inspectors.

The Oman disqualifications also fit a long-running storyline. Saudi Arabia’s King Abdulaziz Camel Festival has dealt with similar scandals, including camels barred for alleged enhancements to lips, noses, heads, and body features…

In honor of today’s Beast, only cheat if you can get away with it. In further honor of today’s Beast, read this.