Videos

Lectures, interviews, and educational content.

The Lectern Guy

The photograph of Adam Johnson carrying a lectern through the U.S. Capitol became one of the most recognizable images of January 6, 2021. A father of five who had traveled to Washington to attend President Trump's rally, Johnson had no political connections or involvement with any organized group. He walked into the Capitol, posed for a photograph, and left, unaware that his life was about to be turned upside down. Within hours, he was being vilified by the media. Within two days, he was in jail. Charged with felony theft for a lectern he never stole, Johnson faced enormous legal expenses, a coerced plea deal, and ultimately federal imprisonment. His family endured death threats, public harassment, and years of upheaval. In this Counterlawfare Institute interview, Johnson recounts his ordeal and provides a firsthand account of how the machinery of lawfare, from prosecutors and judges to the media, can devastate ordinary Americans and their families.

Douglass Mackey: A Case Study in Lawfare

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The Counterlawfare Institute recently sat down with Douglass Mackey to document, in depth, the extraordinary prosecution that turned a political meme into a federal criminal case. Mackey’s case offers a particularly revealing study of how lawfare works in practice. Prosecutors pursued him over a meme posted on Twitter, secured a conviction and a sentence of federal imprisonment, and relied on a novel application of federal law that was ultimately rejected on appeal. The ordeal came at enormous personal cost. The case also brings together many of the recurring features the Counterlawfare Institute has identified across lawfare operations: the selection of a politically disfavored target, the use of government authority against that target, the search for an expansive or novel legal theory, strategic choices of forum, and a surrounding media environment that helps validate the operation. Our purpose in documenting cases such as Mackey’s is larger than any single prosecution. We are building a record of how lawfare operates, identifying the methods and actors that recur across different cases, and developing the intellectual and institutional capacity necessary to recognize and counter these tactics.

A Conversation with Lee Smith on Lawfare

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Counterlawfare sits down with author and journalist Lee Smith for a wide-ranging conversation about lawfare, Russiagate, the media, institutional corruption, and the failure of accountability. Smith, author of The Plot Against the President, was one of the earliest writers to document how the Trump-Russia operation actually unfolded. Seven years later, he discusses what Russiagate revealed about the machinery of modern lawfare, the recurring role of political actors, government institutions, and the media, and why so many of its lessons remain unlearned. They also discuss the need to preserve the documentary record and build the institutional memory necessary to identify and understand future lawfare operations.

DOJ Weaponization Goes Private | Michael Caputo

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Michael Caputo, a former Trump campaign adviser and former Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at the Department of Health and Human Services, joins the Counterlawfare Institute to explain how he is being targeted by a former DOJ official now operating as a private lawyer. This seems to be a disturbing new form of lawfare: the privatization of tactics previously associated with government weaponization. Caputo walks us through exactly what happened and what his case may reveal about the next phase of lawfare.

The Michael Flynn Interview | Weight of the State

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General Michael Flynn spent a lifetime serving his country, rising to become a three-star general, Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, and ultimately National Security Advisor to the President. Then the machinery of lawfare was turned against him. In this extraordinary interview, General Flynn takes us behind the scenes of what followed. He recounts Peter Strzok’s fateful visit to the White House, the evidence that was withheld from him, the lawyers he says were working against his interests, the millions in legal bills, and the unbearable moment when he was told they would go after his son if he refused to plead guilty. Above all, Flynn describes what years of relentless legal persecution did to him and his family, and why he now regards lawfare as a form of warfare, complete with its own weapons, institutions, financing, and strategy. This is precisely why we founded the Counterlawfare Institute. These stories must be documented, understood, and fought back against. As General Flynn says in the interview, we will never outspend the lawfare machine. We have to outsmart it. Help us keep doing this work by sharing the interview and supporting the Counterlawfare Institute.

The Andrii Telizhenko Interview | Weight of the State

Andrii Telizhenko is the most important firsthand witness to the Ukraine story. A former Ukrainian diplomat, he served at Ukraine's embassy in Washington, D.C., where he witnessed Ukrainian interference in the 2016 election, as well as events that later shaped the Hunter Biden investigation, President Trump's first impeachment, and the effort to dismiss those issues as "Russian disinformation." In this exclusive Counterlawfare Institute interview, recorded at an undisclosed location, Andrii Telizhenko tells his story in full. He discusses his role within Ukraine's diplomatic establishment, his interactions with senior American and Ukrainian officials, and the personal consequences of being sanctioned by both the United States and Ukraine without ever being charged with a crime. Whatever your views, this is firsthand testimony from a central figure in one of the most consequential political sagas in modern American history, presented in his own words. If you value long-form interviews that preserve important firsthand testimony, please consider supporting the Counterlawfare Institute. Your donation helps us document stories that might otherwise be lost and continue our work exposing and countering lawfare.

The Lawfare Crisis: A Conversation with Ed Martin

In this exclusive interview, U.S. Pardon Attorney Ed Martin joins the Counterlawfare Institute to discuss the rise of lawfare and the growing weaponization of legal institutions for political ends. The conversation explores how prosecutorial power, government institutions, and the justice system can be used to achieve political objectives, the consequences for the rule of law, and what reforms may be necessary to restore public confidence in equal justice under the law. The Counterlawfare Institute documents lawfare, preserves the historical record, educates the public, supports its victims, and develops the intellectual framework needed to confront and defeat the weaponization of law. If you value our work, please consider making a donation to the Counterlawfare Institute. Your support helps us document lawfare, educate the public, and defend the rule of law.