Tag: Supreme Court

The GOP traded democracy for a Supreme Court seat and tax cuts. It wasn’t worth it.

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Was it worth it?

Republican lawmakers must ask themselves this question at the end of Donald Trump’s presidency, whenever that is. Perhaps then they will finally inventory every misdeed they ignored or encouraged, every scar they seared into our republic and its institutions, in pursuit of their holy grail: another Supreme Court seat.

Two Republican senators, Susan Collins (Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), have said they oppose a vote on a Supreme Court nominee so close to the election. This principle, of course, was widely endorsed by Republicans four years ago, when the GOP-controlled Senate refused to even hold hearings for the nominee President Barack Obama had put forward in March. Continue reading.

Supreme Court denies Democrats’ bid to fast-track ongoing fight for Trump financial records

The Hill logoThe Supreme Court on Monday denied a request by House Democrats to accelerate the timeline of remaining court battles over congressional subpoenas for President Trump’s tax returns.

The bid by lawmakers came in response to the court’s landmark 7-2 ruling earlier this month to shield a trove of Trump’s financial records from several Democratic-led House committees and return the dispute to lower courts for further litigation.

Under regular Supreme Court procedure, the ruling would reach the lower courts no earlier than Aug. 3, a delay Democrats sought to avoid by asking the justices to expedite the process. Continue reading.

First federal prisoner in 17 years executed hours after Supreme Court decision

The Hill logoDaniel Lewis Lee on Tuesday became the first federal prisoner executed in more than 17 years, just hours after the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 against a last-minute attempt to halt the execution.

Lee, 47, a white supremacist convicted of killing a family of three in 1996, was executed by lethal injection at the federal prison in Terre Haute, Ind., and pronounced dead at 8:07 a.m., according to the Bureau of Prisons.

“You’re killing an innocent man,” Lee said with his final words, according to a reporter with the Indianapolis Star who witnessed the execution. Continue reading.

Supreme Court blocks House Democrats from access to Trump’s financial records for now

WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court temporarily blocked congressional investigators Thursday from gaining access to President Donald Trump’s personal financial records.

The 7-2 decision was written by Chief Justice John Roberts and joined by Trump’s two nominees, Associate Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh. It sends the separation of powers dispute back to lower courts for further determination.

“Courts must perform a careful analysis that takes adequate account of the separation of powers principles at stake, including both the significant legislative interests of Congress and the ‘unique position’ of the president,” Roberts wrote. Continue reading.

Supreme Court to hear dispute over Democrats’ access to Mueller materials

The Hill logoThe Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to take up the dispute over House Democrats’ access to redacted grand jury materials from former special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe.

The court is expected to hear the case in its next term, which begins in October, meaning any newly redacted material would likely not be made public until after the November elections.

The decision to grant the appeal means at least four of the court’s nine justices agreed to hear the dispute, with a decision due by the end of the court’s term in June 2021. Continue reading.

Supreme Court hands win to religious schools

The Hill logoThe Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that a Montana program that excluded religious schools from a student aid initiative violates religious freedoms protected under the U.S. Constitution.

The 5-4 majority decision, which fell along ideological lines, said that by making state-backed private school scholarships off-limits to parochial schools, the program ran afoul of First Amendment protections for the free exercise of religion, which prohibits the government from treating religious and secular groups differently.

“A state need not subsidize private education,” Chief Justice John Robertswrote for the majority. “But once a state decides to do so, it cannot disqualify some private schools solely because they are religious.” Continue reading.

Supreme Court won’t hear challenge to new federal death penalty procedure

Washington Post logoThe Supreme Court on Monday turned down a challenge to new federal death penalty protocols, potentially clearing the way for the government to resume executions as soon as next month for the first time since 2003.

The court, without comment, declined to take up the lawsuit filed by four death row inmates. As is customary, it gave no reason. Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor indicated they would have accepted the case.

Although this removes a significant barrier to restarting federal executions, it does not mean they will automatically proceed as scheduled. The individual inmates facing execution could file additional challenges, which could affect whether and when these sentences are carried out. Continue reading.

Trump administration calls for Supreme Court to strike down ObamaCare

The Hill logoThe Trump administration on Thursday night argued in a legal brief filed to the Supreme Court that the entire Affordable Care Act (ACA) should be invalidated.

The legal filing, while expected, makes official the Trump administration’s position in the Supreme Court against the health care law months ahead of the election, at a time when Democrats are hammering President Trump over his position on health care.  

Overturning the ACA would take away health insurance coverage for about 20 million people, and the stakes are even higher given the effects of the current pandemic. Continue reading.

Supreme Court ruling on Dreamers sends a clear message to the White House: You have to tell the truth

When it came down to it, the fate of 700,000 immigrants brought to U.S. as children hung on a simple question: Does the White House have to tell the whole truth in justifying its move to deport them?

On June 18, the Supreme Court said “yes.”

In a 5-to-4 decision that came as a major blow to President Trump, the justices ruled that the administration could not proceed with plans to dismantle Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. The Obama-era provision halted the deportation of undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. at an early age, often referred to as Dreamers. Its provisions allow for those young people to live and work in the U.S. although doesn’t provide a path to citizenship.

DACA will now stay in place…for the time being. Continue reading.

Supreme Court allows Trump’s full “Remain in Mexico” program to continue

Axios logoThe Supreme Court gave the Trump administration another immigration win on Wednesday, blocking a federal injunction that would have halted the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) — or “Remain in Mexico” policy — in California and Arizona.

Why it matters: The Trump administration sent military troops to parts of the border ahead of the decision in order to prepare for any surges of migrants crossing the border if MPP was halted, per the New York Times.

The big picture: The policy has kept tens of thousands of asylum-seekers on Mexican soil to wait out their immigration court hearings. The program has been credited for helping lower the border crossing numbers from crisis levels. Continue reading.