Greer v. U.S. is an 8–1 decision with Sotomayor dissenting in part.👇
Style nerds will note that Kavanaugh does not divide his opinion into sections, as is customary, but simply writes it like a long essay, presumably because it's short (11 pages). supremecourt.gov/opinions/20pdf…
Because Kavanaugh went first this morning, the next opinion(s) could come from any justice except Barrett, as they're issued in order of reverse seniority.
The second and FINAL opinion of the day is in Terry v. U.S., the First Step Act case. No blockbusters* today! supremecourt.gov/opinions/20pdf…
*every case is a blockbuster to someone
In a mostly unanimous opinion by Thomas, the Supreme Court holds that certain crack offenders who did not trigger a mandatory minimum sentence don't qualify for a sentence reduction under the First Step Act. supremecourt.gov/opinions/20pdf…
Sotomayor drops a long footnote criticizing Thomas' "unnecessary, incomplete, and sanitized history of the 100-to-1 ratio" for crack vs. cocaine, noting that he does not mention the "extensive record of race-based myths about crack cocaine." supremecourt.gov/opinions/20pdf…
Sotomayor: "There is ... an extensive record of race-based myths about crack cocaine that the media 'branded onto the public mind and the minds of legislators,' and that appear in the Congressional Record ... The Court barely references the ratio’s real-world impact."
Sotomayor agrees with Thomas' bottom-line textual analysis and urges Congress to fix this loophole in the First Step Act, which its congressional sponsors did not intend to create. supremecourt.gov/opinions/20pdf…
Terry resembles Bostock in the sense that Congress probably didn't intend this result when it passed the law at issue. But the Supreme Court unanimously followed the text instead of congressional intent. The difference is that this time, Alito, Thomas, and Kavanaugh didn't balk.
Shorter Alito/Thomas/Kavanaugh
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The seamless expansion of same-day registration to so many states proves that there is no legitimate reason to cut off voter registration before Election Day, let alone a full month before. Registration deadlines are just a pretext to prevent less engaged citizens from voting.
In many states, you can walk up to the polls on Election Day, register to vote, and cast your ballot. In other states, you have to register up to a full month before Election Day. The only difference is that the first group of states wants people to vote and the second does not.
Same-day registration also protects voters against administrative errors and unlawful purges that cancel their active status shortly before an election. In Virginia, for instance, citizens wrongfully purged by Youngkin can re-register at the polls through Election Day.
NEW: A far-right panel of the 5th Circuit rules that it is *illegal* for states to count ballots that arrive shortly after Election Day but are postmarked by Election Day.
BUT: The 5th Circuit decision only applies to Mississippi, the one state within the circuit that counts ballots received after Election Day.
The 5th Circuit is trying to tee up a Supreme Court decision to strike down ballot laws in many other states, too. s3.documentcloud.org/documents/2525…
The 5th Circuit declined to issue a preliminary injunction against Mississippi's law, but declared it illegal and ordered the district court to issue an appropriate remedy. Nobody knows what that will look like! Confusion will now reign. s3.documentcloud.org/documents/2525…
The Supreme Court also sends NINE Chevron cases back down to the lower courts for reconsideration in light of Loper Bright. The disruption officially begins: supremecourt.gov/orders/courtor…
The Supreme Court vacates an 8th Circuit decision that had granted North Dakota lawmakers a "legislative privilege" from discovery in an important Native redistricting case, agreeing with the plaintiffs that the dispute has become moot. (KBJ dissents.) supremecourt.gov/orders/courtor…
🚨The Supreme Court rules that President Trump has "absolute immunity" from criminal prosecution for all "official acts" he took while in office. The vote is 6–3 with all three liberals dissenting. supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf…
Sotomayor, dissenting: Today's decision shields presidents from prosecution "for criminal and treasonous acts" and "makes a mockery of the principle, foundational to our Constitution and system of Government, that no man is above the law." supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf…
The Supreme Court's second decision is NetChoice. Justice Kagan's complicated opinion for the court remands both cases to the appeals courts for the proper analysis of a First Amendment facial challenge, which, she says, they flunked the first time. supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf…
HOWEVER: Kagan's opinion for the court holds that content moderation IS "expressively activity" and that social media platforms ARE protected by the First Amendment, no matter their size, from state intrusion. That's a major holding. supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf…
Kagan says social media platforms engage in protected speech when moderating content posted by third parties, and Texas' alleged interest in interfering with that practice amounts to the "suppression of free expression, and it is not valid" under the First Amendment.
The Supreme Court's first decision is Corner Post. By a 6–3 vote, the majority allows plaintiffs to challenge an agency action LONG after it has been finalized. All three liberals dissent. supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf…
This article explains why today's outcome in Corner Post will be so destabilizing to the administrative state—it means that agency actions are never really safe from legal assault, even decades after they're finalized. It's a really big deal. americanprogress.org/article/corner…
In her dissent, Justice Jackson urges Congress to enact a new law to "forestall the coming chaos" created by today's decision, reimposing the statute of limitations that had, until now, prevented new plaintiffs from endlessly challenging regulations. supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf…