Memorandum in Support re [38] Motion to Dismiss Count I of the Complaint Filed by Massachusetts Institute of Technology. (Bhabha, Ishan)

DeGraff Lacks Standing. .................................................................................................. 16 C.

DeGraff Fails to State a Claim Under Vullo. .................................................................... 21 D. If the Congressional Defendants Are Dismissed on Speech-or-Debate Grounds,

DeGraff’s First Amendment Claim Cannot Proceed Against MIT Alone. ...................... 23 II.

Leave to Amend Should Be Denied. ..................................................................................... 25

Abordo v. Mobi PCS, 684 F. App’x 631 (9th Cir. 2017) ...............................................................14 Acton Co. of Massachusetts v. Bachman Foods, Inc., 668 F.2d 76 (1st Cir. 1982) ......................24 Allen v. Wright, 468 U.S. 737 (1984) ............................................................................................20 Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662 (2009) ................................................................................9, 13, 16 Bantam Books, Inc. v. Sullivan, 372 U.S. 58 (1963) ......................................................................21 Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544 (2007) .....................................................................9 Benavidez v. Gunnell, 722 F.2d 615 (10th Cir. 1983) ...................................................................16 Blum v. Yaretsky, 457 U.S. 991 (1982) ....................................................................................10, 11 Budowich v. Pelosi, 610 F. Supp. 3d 1 (D.D.C. 2022) ..................................................................14 Butler v. Goldblatt Bros., Inc., 589 F.2d 323 (7th Cir. 1978) ........................................................16 Children’s Health Defense v. Meta Platforms, Inc., 112 F.4th 742 (9th Cir. 2024),

cert. denied, 145 S. Ct. 2846 (2025) ........................................................................................22 Clapper v. Amnesty International USA, 568 U.S. 398 (2013) ...........................................17, 19, 20 Clorox Co. Puerto Rico v. Proctor & Gamble Commercial Co., 228 F.3d 24 (1st

Cir. 2000) ...................................................................................................................................2 Downing v. Globe Direct LLC, 806 F. Supp. 2d 461 (D. Mass. 2011), aff’d, 682

F.3d 18 (1st Cir. 2012) .............................................................................................................23 Estiverne v. Esernio-Jenssen, 910 F. Supp. 2d 434 (E.D.N.Y. 2012) ...........................................16 Fakhreddine v. University of Pennsylvania, No. 24-cv-1034, 2025 WL 345089

(E.D. Pa. Jan. 30, 2025), aff’d, 2026 WL 74593 (3d Cir. Jan. 9, 2026) ............................12, 19 FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, 602 U.S. 367 (2024) .................................................20 Flagg Bros., Inc. v. Brooks, 436 U.S. 149 (1978) .........................................................................11 Fluent v. Salamanca Indian Lease Authority, 928 F.2d 542 (2d Cir. 1991) ..................................23 Haley v. City of Boston, 657 F.3d 39 (1st Cir. 2011) .......................................................................2

iii

Hatch v. Department for Children, Youth and Their Families, 274 F.3d 12 (1st Cir.

2001) ........................................................................................................................................25 Khalil v. Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York, No. 25-cv-2079,

2026 WL 775813 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 19, 2026) ...................................................12, 14, 15, 21, 22 Kowalski v. Gagne, 914 F.2d 299 (1st Cir. 1990)............................................................................4 Laird v. Tatum, 408 U.S. 1 (1972) .....................................................................................17, 18, 19 Lombard v. Louisiana, 373 U.S. 267 (1963) .....................................................................11, 13, 15 Lugar v. Edmondson Oil Co., 457 U.S. 922 (1982)................................................................. 15-16 Lyman v. Baker, 954 F.3d 351 (1st Cir. 2020) .................................................................................2 Manhattan Community Access Corp. v. Halleck, 587 U.S. 802 (2019) ................10, 11, 12, 14, 15 National Rifle Association of America v. Vullo, 602 U.S. 175 (2024) ..........................2, 10, 21, 22 Osediacz v. City of Cranston, 414 F.3d 136 (1st Cir. 2005) ..........................................................18 Ozonoff v. Berzak, 744 F.2d 224 (1st Cir. 1984) ...........................................................................18 Peterson v. City of Greenville, 373 U.S. 244 (1963) .........................................................11, 12, 13 Raytheon Co. v. Continental Casualty Co., 123 F. Supp. 2d 22 (D. Mass. 2000) ...........................9 Reddy v. Foster, 845 F.3d 493 (1st Cir. 2017) .................................................................................9 Republic of Philippines v. Pimentel, 553 U.S. 851 (2008) ............................................................24 Republican National Committee v. Pelosi, 602 F. Supp. 3d 1 (D.D.C. 2022),

vacated, 2022 WL 4349778 (D.C. Cir. Sept. 16, 2022) ..........................................................14 Scotto v. Almenas, 143 F.3d 105 (2d Cir. 1998) ............................................................................16 Sullivan v. Carrick, 888 F.2d 1 (1st Cir. 1989) ..................................................................17, 18, 19 Susan B. Anthony List v. Driehaus, 573 U.S. 149 (2014) ........................................................16, 17 Text Order Granting Motions to Dismiss, Sussman v. MIT, No. 25-cv-11826

(D. Mass. Jan. 5, 2026), ECF No. 75 .........................................................................................4 Sutton v. Providence St. Joseph Medical Center, 192 F.3d 826 (9th Cir. 1999) ...........................22 United States v. Mumme, 985 F.3d 25 (1st Cir. 2021) ...................................................................14 United States v. Perez-Montanez, 202 F.3d 434 (1st Cir. 2000) ...................................................14

iv

Wiener v. MIB Group, Inc., 86 F.4th 76 (1st Cir. 2023) ................................................................16

U.S. Const. art. I, § 6, cl. 1 .............................................................................................................23 20 U.S.C. § 1232g(a)(4)(B)(i)........................................................................................................21

Amended Complaint, Sussman v. MIT, No. 25-cv-11826 (D. Mass. Sept. 17, 2025),

ECF No. 17 ................................................................................................................................4 DeGraff Motion to Dismiss, Sussman v. MIT, No. 25-cv-11826 (D. Mass. Oct. 8,

2025), ECF No. 48 .....................................................................................................................7 Fed. R. Civ. P. 19(a)(1)(B) ............................................................................................................24 Fed. R. Civ. P. 19(a)(1)(B)(i) ...................................................................................................23, 24 Fed. R. Civ. P. 19(b) ................................................................................................................23, 24 Michel DeGraff (@MichelDeGraff), X, x.com/MichelDeGraff .....................................................8 Isabelle Zhang & Elizabeth Mehler, ‘Congress is Trying to Repress My Teaching’:

MIT Professor Sues Congress for Antisemitic Label (The Bay State Banner, May 13, 2026), https://baystatebanner.com/2026/05/13/congress-is-trying-to- repress-my-teaching-mit-professor-sues-congress-for-antisemitic-label/ .................................8