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Connections
A smiling man with short dark hair wearing a blue button-down shirt and a grey blazer. He is holding a pair of eyeglasses. The word "Connections" appears on the left side of the photo in vertical letters.
Connections

In the age of Trump, the courts are losing power

By Evan Dawson,
Elissa Orlando, Julie Williams
Published September 11, 2025 at 2:51 PM EDT
Four men wearing headphones sit at a table in a radio talk studio: a man front left has short grey hair and is wearing a blue plaid shirt, grey pants and sneakers; a man front right has short dark hair and is wearing a grey plaid blazer, black button-down shirt, jeans and brown shoes; a bald man back left is wearing a navy blazer and white button-down shirt; a man back right has short grey hair and is wearing a blue button-down shirt.
Julie Williams
/
WXXI News
(foreground) Richard Dollinger, (background) Joseph Valentino and Thomas VanStrydonck with host Evan Dawson on "Connections with Evan Dawson" on Thursday, September 11, 2025
A smiling man with short dark hair wearing a blue button-down shirt and a grey blazer. He is holding a pair of eyeglasses. The word "Connections" appears on the left side of the photo in vertical letters.
WXXI News

We condemn political violence, and we will have more to discuss on this tragic subject soon.

For now, we continue as planned with our first-hour discussion: President Trump and Vice President Vance have said that the courts should not stand in the way of their administration's priorities.

The courts are, of course, supposed to be an equal branch of government. But are they? We welcome three retired judges — Republican and Democrat — to discuss it.

In studio:

Connections
Evan Dawson
Evan Dawson is the host of "Connections with Evan Dawson." He joined WXXI in January 2014 after working at 13WHAM-TV, where he served as morning news anchor. He was hired as a reporter for 13WHAM-TV in 2003 before being promoted to anchor in 2007.
See stories by Evan Dawson
Elissa Orlando
Elissa Orlando is a producer for “Connections with Evan Dawson.” She returns part-time to WXXI News after stepping back from a long career in public media and in translational science.
See stories by Elissa Orlando
Julie Williams
Julie Williams is an associate producer for "Connections with Evan Dawson." She started at WXXI in 2019 and has been working on Connections since 2022.
See stories by Julie Williams