Thank goodness for state governments. One of the most underappreciated stories in 2025 was the role states played in checking federal overreach. As the Trump administration barreled through norms, rules and laws, state officials — sometimes from both parties — supplied the friction to slow the administration’s power grab.

Trump swept into power with Republican control over both chambers of Congress, but he avoided working with Congress as much as possible. He spent the first year of his second term pushing the bounds of executive power. As his Chief of Staff Susie Wiles told a Vanity Fair journalist: Trump “operates (with) a view that there’s nothing he can’t do. Nothing, zero, nothing.”

Congress may have rolled over, but at the state level, things played out pretty much the way America’s founders intended. As James Madison wrote in Federalist No. 45: “The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State governments are numerous and indefinite.”

Madison and his fellow visionaries settled upon a system that enshrined in the U.S. Constitution the legal authority for states to protect the freedoms of their residents and uphold the rule of law when the federal government abused its power.

President Donald Trump gave them ample opportunity to do that right out of the gate. Between Jan. 20, 2025, and Dec. 18, 2025, he signed 221 executive orders — more than he signed in the four years of his first term.

But that approach infringed on many fundamental rights held by states. Many of those executive orders intruded upon state authority over administering elections and enforcing crime. Twenty-two states sided with the District of Columbia to successfully stop the Trump administration from federalizing the National Guard to be deployed to Washington, although the decision has been paused to allow for appeal. Twenty-three states joined with Illinois and Chicago to oppose the administration’s federalizing of Illinois National Guard troops. And 12 states joined Oregon to challenge the use of the president’s emergency powers to impose import tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China.

An analysis from States United, a nonpartisan organization that supports state officials and law enforcement leaders, found that at least 33 of Trump’s orders are facing federal court challenges and 10 of the most controversial dictates have either been blocked or paused while a court reviews them — from Trump ending the constitutional right to birthright citizenship, to his order to reject absentee ballots that arrive after Election Day, to the massive deployment of National Guard troops in Democrat-run cities. Many of the lower court orders are still pending rulings in the appellate courts, but they have served to slow the speed with which Trump can dismantle state protections.

State pushback is important, not only to preserve state constitutional authority, but also because the American people don’t approve of Trump’s approach on many of these issues. A Reuters/Ipsos poll in September, for example, found that 7 in 10 Democrats and half of Republicans didn’t want the president to send armed troops into American cities unless those cities face an external threat.

Remarkably, Alexander Hamilton predicted this 238 years ago this month when he wrote, in Federalist No. 17, that because states “will generally possess the confidence and good-will of the people,” they can use that popular support to “oppose all encroachments of the national government.”

The conservative majority on the Supreme Court has demonstrated that it will continue to expand the president’s power despite the limits intended by the nation’s founders. Joanna Lydgate, CEO of States United, thinks the ultimate test of Trump’s executive overreach won’t be in the courts. “We’re going to win or lose it in the court of public opinion,” she told me. “At the end of the day, the power here is in the hands of the American people.”

The next challenge will be for states to make sure the Trump administration doesn’t attempt to tip the scales in November 2026, when voters will decide every seat in the U.S. House and 33 seats in the U.S. Senate. Trump signed a sweeping executive order earlier this year to take critical election power away from states. That brought challenges from more Republican states than any other Trump executive order this year. (That order has also been paused.) And there is bipartisan opposition to the Department of Justice’s attempts to seek access to voter data, with the likely intent of trying to undermine trust in elections.

In the last year, the balance between state and federal power faced an historic test. But upholding the rule of law also means making sure there are consequences for those who undermine it. States also should launch investigations, file bar complaints against administration lawyers who violate ethics codes by lying to judges and advocate for Congress to tighten the legal loopholes the administration has exploited.

It’s been heartening to watch states step up and become a bulwark against federal overreach. But next year, there is much more to do.

Mary Ellen Klas is a politics and policy columnist for Bloomberg Opinion. A former capital bureau chief for the Miami Herald, she has covered politics and government for more than three decades.

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One year ago, businesses — especially CEOs — were optimistic about the U.S. economy in 2025, expecting lower taxes and more market-friendly policies from incoming President Donald Trump.

Then came April 2, Liberation Day. The market fell, uncertainty rose, and affordability became a more acute concern. Meanwhile, the labor market continued to weaken, as immigration restrictions led to a slower-growing workforce and labor shortages in some sectors.

Nonetheless, the U.S. economy persisted. As the end of the year approaches, the market is up more than 15%, and GDP growth in the third quarter was an unexpectedly robust 4.3%. What will 2026 be like?

There are reasons to be optimistic, as many were a year ago. Here are five of them:

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he expects Americans to receive up to $150 billion in tax refunds early next year as a result of the budget law the president signed last summer.

Higher earners who spend a smaller share of their income will feel a bigger impact, with the notable exception of people who earn tipped income. Nonetheless, the Congressional Budget Office expects the tax cuts to boost demand and labor supply in the next year.

Trump also says he will send $2,000 checks to most households next year to assuage affordability concerns. That should probably be taken with a grain of salt, but the overall direction of tax policy is more spending and confidence for consumers.

Another provision of that budget law is that corporations can deduct 100% of equipment purchases in the year they spend the money. There is evidence that a similar rule, as well as corporate tax cuts, boosted investment by 11% and GDP by almost 1% after the passage of the 2017 tax law.

But the share of spending that corporations were allowed to deduct has been declining since the original law passed, and there was uncertainty about what it would be in the future. The new provision is expected to increase capital spending and growth next year and beyond.

Whether Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will make further cuts is uncertain, but the new Fed chair who takes over in May almost certainly will. It’s also likely that the bank will increase its purchases of Treasury debt, further easing credit concerns.

The CBO predicts the tax provisions that encourage more production of oil and gas will also have a positive impact on GDP next year. It estimates the impact will be larger in the next few years because some of the regulations are temporary, but it’s not inconceivable that a greater supply of energy will reduce the cost of energy.

Maybe this is the triumph of hope over experience. Then again, it will be hard to have less policy stability than there was this year. The high level of tariffs announced on Liberation Day not only shocked markets, but the constant uncertainty over what they’d be and what they apply to caused economic damage and probably contributed to higher inflation. Now deals are going into effect and the question of legality will be resolved one way or the other.

Add it all up, and there are reasons to be bullish about 2026. The impact of the budget law alone is expected to boost GDP next year by 0.9%.

Beyond 2026, there are reasons to be worried: All this stimulus may result in a sugar high, and America relearned during the pandemic how dangerous those can be. Rebate checks, a tax cut and lower interest rates risk bringing back high inflation, which would hit U.S. households hard and could further entrench inflation by destabilizing expectations.

It could take years for the Fed to rebuild its credibility and ability to influence the inflation rate. There is also the matter of the growing national debt, which this law will contribute to. This will increase longer-term interest rates, which could weigh down consumer spending eventually.

But those are problems for another year — and another column.

Allison Schrager is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering economics. A senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, she is author of “An Economist Walks Into a Brothel: And Other Unexpected Places to Understand Risk.”

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U.S. Rep. Tom Emmer is calling for the deportation of Somalis linked to fraud cases in Minnesota, while FBI Director Kash Patel has threatened suspects with “denaturalization and deportation proceedings where eligible.”

Emmer, a Republican representing Minnesota’s Sixth District, said in a post on the social platform X that even naturalized citizens should have their citizenship revoked and then they should be deported. He said he would be willing to pass legislation making it legal.

“I have three words regarding Somalis who have committed fraud against American taxpayers: Send them home. If they’re here illegally, deport them immediately; if they’re naturalized citizens, revoke their citizenship and deport them quickly thereafter,” Emmer’s post read.

A University of Minnesota law professor says deportation and denaturalization are matters for the courts, lengthy processes and typically draw legal challenges. He notes it isn’t the first time America has considered such measures.

“They need to have these cases go to trial,” said Richard Painter, a who previously worked as an ethics lawyer for President George W. Bush. “You don’t just get deported, you should be incarcerated, that needs to be the priority.”

University of Minnesota Law School Professor Richard Painter. (Dave Orrick / Pioneer Press)

A number of those charged in various fraud cases in Minnesota — from Feeding Our Future to others involving child care and Medicaid funds — are from the state’s Somali population. That has prompted attacks from President Donald Trump including his statement “they contribute nothing.”

Among those running schemes to get funds for child nutrition, housing services and autism programs, 82 of the 92 defendants are Somali Americans, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Minnesota.

An estimated 260,000 people of Somali descent were living in the U.S. in 2024, according to the Census Bureau’s annual American Community Survey. The largest population is in the Twin Cities, home to about 84,000 residents, most of whom are citizens.

Almost 58% of the Somalis in Minnesota were born in the U.S. Of the foreign-born Somalis in Minnesota, an overwhelming majority –- 87% — are naturalized U.S. citizens. Of the foreign-born population, almost half entered the U.S. in 2010 or later, according to the Census Bureau.

Painter said singling out an entire community isn’t right, though it has historical precedent.

“I do not like to see this become an excuse for racist attacks on the Somali community,” he said. “The answer to finishing the mafia was not to deport all the Italians. We always have people who do fraud.”

Painter noted that during the Red Scare following World War I there were calls for deportations of suspected radicals, often foreign-born labor leaders, using laws such as the Sedition Act. The Russian Revolution of 1917, labor strife and acts such as a bombing on Wall Street that claimed dozens of lives fueled calls for deportations. Among those targeted were Italians or Eastern European Jews.

From November of 1919 to January of 1920 U.S. Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer launched what came to be known as “the Palmer Raids,” to apprehend those suspected of being socialists, anarchists and communists, and subject them to deportation.

“We’ve been through this before,” Painter said. “It’s an undemocratic and dangerous approach to fraud.”

Painter said blame needs to be focused on the Minnesota’s governor and his administration as well as those suspected of fraud.

“I think what needs to be discussed is the failure of the Walz administration and the DFL being too long in power,” he said. One-party control of state governments can often lead to scandals and fraud, Painter said. “It’s happened down in Texas with the Republicans, it’s happened in Illinois with (the Democrats),” he said.

Walz and his administration have maintained they have worked for years to address fraud and proposed a series of anti-fraud measures ahead of the last legislative session. Recently Walz appointed the former head of the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension to focus on fraud prevention.

Critics have not been silenced, though. A number of GOP state lawmakers have called on Walz to resign over the matter.

This story contains information from the Associated Press. 

It’s a funny time of year to be writing to you about fast and simple cooking. Is this not the moment for luxury, pageantry and scale, for projects like tamales or lumpia that require a gathering of home cooks and many hands; or Caribbean black cake, with its jeweled dried and candied fruit soaked for up to a year; or a perfect prime rib roast, a grand and true statement piece?

In that spirit, I’ve picked five recipes for you that are fancy but still weeknight-easy, ideal for this week and anytime you want to take dinner up a notch.

1. Chile Crisp and Honey Roasted Salmon

Chile crisp and honey roasted salmon. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne. (David Malosh/The New York Times)

Roasting a large salmon fillet that’s been covered with a sweet and spicy paste of chile crisp, mayonnaise and honey makes for a dish that’s worthy of a celebration, but also can make a weeknight feel like a special occasion. Use your favorite jar of chile crisp or make your own. Using one large piece of salmon (rather than several smaller fillets) makes it easier to spread the paste over the fish, helps it bake more evenly, and makes for a dramatic presentation. For a lighter meal, serve with a simple arugula salad; or round it out with a side of roasted potatoes or rice.

By Naz Deravian

Yield: 6 servings

Total time: 30 minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 (2-pound) salmon fillet (skin on or off), preferably center cut
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons chile crisp
2 tablespoons honey
Grated zest from 1 medium lemon

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees with the rack set in the center position.

2. Place the salmon in a baking dish that fits the salmon snugly (about 8 by 12 inches or 9 by 13 inches) and season the salmon on both sides with salt and pepper. Place the salmon skin-side down (if it has a skin) and set aside.

3. In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, chile crisp, honey and lemon zest. Taste the mixture and add more chile crisp to taste, or honey to balance the heat. Spread the mayonnaise mixture evenly on top of the salmon.

4. Place the salmon in the oven and bake until the thickest part of the salmon flakes easily when tested with a paring knife and the topping is bubbling a little along the edges, 15 to 25 minutes, depending on the thickness of the salmon. Spoon any glaze that has run off back onto the salmon and serve.

2. Garlicky Beef Tenderloin With Orange Horseradish Sauce

The allure of beef tenderloin pulls hard. When properly cooked until the surface is seared to a glistening mahogany and the center is tender and running with beefy juices, it is one of the most regal, festive and delectable things a cook can serve. As a finishing touch, serve the meat with a pungent, creamy horseradish sauce that is shockingly easy to prepare.

By Melissa Clark

Yield: 8 to 10 servings

Total time: 40 minutes

INGREDIENTS

(4-pound) beef tenderloin
1 tablespoon kosher salt, more to taste
1 teaspoon black pepper, more to taste
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 fat garlic clove, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups crème fraîche
1/4 cup white horseradish
Grated zest of half an orange

DIRECTIONS

1. Season the tenderloin all over with the salt, pepper, rosemary and garlic. Cover the meat and refrigerate for at least two hours and preferably overnight. Let it come to room temperature for 1 hour before roasting.

2. Heat oven to 450 degrees. Wipe off as much garlic as possible. (It tends to burn.)

3. In a large, ovenproof skillet over high heat, heat the oil. Add the meat and thoroughly brown all over, 4 to 5 minutes per side. (If your skillet isn’t large enough, cut the meat in half.)

4. Place the skillet on the oven’s middle rack and roast until an instant-read thermometer shows 120 degrees (for rare), 10 to 20 minutes. Let the meat rest for 10 minutes before carving.

5. In a small bowl, whisk the crème fraîche, horseradish and orange zest. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve alongside the tenderloin.

3. Shrimp Pasta

Shrimp pasta. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. (Christopher Testani/The New York Times)

Consider this the shrimp version of vongole rosso, the classic Italian dish of clams tossed with pasta, tomatoes, garlic and white wine. Swapping the shellfish makes for an easy weeknight dinner. The shrimp’s briny sweetness is the star here, and cherry or grape tomatoes add a burst of acidity as well as a pop of color. Any long pasta shape will work well — just be sure to cook the noodles to al dente to give the dish great texture. Serve with the rest of the white wine and a simple green salad.

By Lidey Heuck

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Total time: 45 minutes

INGREDIENTS

Kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
1 pound long pasta, such as linguine, fettuccine or spaghetti
1 pound large peeled and deveined shrimp (18 to 20 count), tails on or off
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup thinly sliced garlic (about 7 cloves)
2 pints cherry or grape tomatoes
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper, plus more to taste
1/2 cup dry white wine, such as Pinot Grigio
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley, plus more for serving
Lemon zest, for serving

DIRECTIONS

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to the package instructions until al dente. Scoop out 1/2 cup of the cooking water, then drain the pasta in a colander and return it to the pot.

2. Meanwhile, pat the shrimp dry with a paper towel and season with 1/2 teaspoon salt. In a large (12-inch) skillet, heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until lightly golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, crushed red pepper and 1 teaspoon salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the tomatoes have burst, 6 to 8 minutes.

3. Add the wine and reserved pasta water, bring to a simmer and cook for 2 minutes, until slightly reduced. Stir in the shrimp and cook until they are just starting to turn opaque, about 3 minutes. Pour the sauce and the shrimp over the pasta and toss well. Add the parsley and toss again.

4. Transfer the pasta to bowls. Top with the lemon zest and more parsley. Sprinkle on more crushed red pepper, if desired. Serve immediately.

4. Butter Paneer

Butter paneer. Food Stylist: Cyd Raftus McDowell. (Armando Rafael/The New York Times)

Paneer cubes are cooked in three types of fat here: ghee, butter and cashew butter for a luxurious vegetarian main. ​​Traditionally, roasted and crushed cashews are puréed with cooked onions and tomatoes, but this version skips the hassle and achieves the same creamy, nutty richness. Red chile and fresh Thai green chiles layer in a touch of heat.

By Zainab Shah

Yield: 4 servings

Total time: 30 minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 pounds paneer, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 tablespoons ghee or vegetable, canola or other neutral oil
1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger or ginger paste
1 teaspoon freshly grated garlic or garlic paste
1 small white onion, finely chopped
1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chile powder
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 (14-ounce) can of crushed tomatoes, or 6 plum tomatoes, chopped
2 tablespoons cashew butter
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 Thai green chiles, chopped (optional)
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro (optional)
Rice or roti, for serving

DIRECTIONS

1. If using store-bought paneer, soak the cheese in hot tap water for 10 minutes; drain.

2. In a medium pot, heat ghee on high until it melts, 30 to 90 seconds. Stir in ginger and garlic and cook until the smell of raw garlic dissipates, about 30 seconds. Add onion and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until onion is translucent, 5 to 7 minutes.

3. Add chile powder and half of the garam masala and cook until deliciously fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the tomatoes and cashew butter. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes start to break down, 5 to 7 minutes.

4. Adjust heat to medium and add the butter. Cook until butter has melted into the mixture, about 30 seconds. Stir in 1 teaspoon salt and add water if a thinner sauce is desired. Taste and add more salt if necessary. Stir in the paneer cubes. Simmer for 5 minutes on low, until the flavors have melded. Top with the rest of the garam masala and the green chiles and cilantro, if using. Serve with rice or roti.

5. Chicken au Poivre

This playful take on steak au poivre features chicken thighs that are pan-fried until golden then simmered in a peppery pan sauce until tender and juicy. The caramelized browned bits left on the bottom of the skillet from searing the chicken add deeper flavor to the sauce. Although cognac is often used in classic au poivre, there is no booze in this version. Instead, a kick of lemon juice brightens the rich, velvety sauce. Serve the chicken over egg noodles or with crusty bread to sop up all that sauce. Tuck any leftovers into sandwich rolls with lettuce and tomato, or chop and toss with pasta and grated Parmesan for a quick lunch.

By Kay Chun

Yield: 4 servings

Total time: 45 minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 2 pounds)
Salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons minced shallot
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup heavy cream
3 thyme sprigs
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley, plus more for garnishing
Crusty bread or egg noodles (optional), for serving

DIRECTIONS

1. Place peppercorns in a small resealable bag. Using a mallet or the bottom of a saucepan, gently crush the peppercorns until coarsely cracked. (Alternatively, you can use a mortar and pestle.) Set aside.

2. In a 12-inch cast-iron or other heavy skillet, heat oil over medium. Season chicken with salt. In two batches, sear chicken until light golden all over, about 5 minutes per batch. Transfer to a plate. Pour off any remaining oil in the skillet.

3. Add butter and shallot to the skillet and cook, stirring, until butter is melted and shallot is softened, 1 minute. Add broth, heavy cream, thyme sprigs and cracked peppercorns and mix well, stirring to lift up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan.

4. Add chicken (and any accumulated juices), bring to a simmer and cook, turning and basting occasionally with the sauce, until cooked through and an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the thigh registers 165 degrees, 6 to 8 minutes.

5. Divide chicken among 4 serving plates and discard thyme.

6. Add lemon juice to the skillet and stir until sauce is slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and stir in parsley.

7. Spoon the sauce over the chicken and garnish with more parsley. Serve with crusty bread or egg noodles, if desired.

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