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Oct 28 • 14 tweets • 5 min read
The amicus briefs in the SCOTUS fight vs. the independent state legislature theory—Moore v. Harper—are now all IN. Together, they make a strong cross-partisan case against the ISLT that highlights big problems with Petitioners' presentation. Let's go! 🧵👇
@BrennanCenter
The takeaways:

1. Opposition to the ISLT is bipartisan

2. The anti-ISLT camp is big and diverse, the pro-ISLT camp... isn’t

3. The weight of authority is anti-ISLT

4. The ISLT threatens major harms, which Petitioners ask the Court to ignore
@BrennanCenter
#ISLTamici
(“Petitioners” = the gerrymanderers from the North Carolina legislature who are asking SCOTUS to reinstate that state’s heavily gerrymandered congressional map by endorsing the ISLT.)
For those just joining me, I’m a legal strategist and appellate attorney @BrennanCenter. My goal here is to sift through thousands of pages of sometimes very technical material and pull out the major themes. And, with that, let’s dig in...
Because these threads got too long to spin together, I'm going to give you each theme in the main thread: you can drop down into each from here...
First Theme:
Second Theme:
Third Theme:
Fourth Theme:
We’ll continue to track the case as it develops. For more on the independent state legislature theory, visit our resource page: brennancenter.org/issues/defend-…
For a full list of the SCOTUS filings, including any and all I’ve cited or quoted here:

brennancenter.org/our-work/court…
For quick background on the Moore v. Harper case, see @BrennanCenter

brennancenter.org/our-work/resea…
For more background on the independent state legislature theory, see @BrennanCenter

brennancenter.org/our-work/resea…
And for a quick two-minute video to educate friends and family on the independent state legislature theory and what it could do to democracy, see @BrennanCenter

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More from @tomTMwolf

Tom
Oct 28
Fourth #ISLTamici Theme: The ISLT’s potential harms are significant, and the Petitioners are asking the SCOTUS to ignore them
One of the more alarming features of the Petitioners’ brief is that it never explains why, as a practical matter, anyone—the Framers, Americans today, the Supreme Court—should want what the ISLT is offering them.
Their brief amounts to a lot of “pay no attention to the man behind the curtain” hand-waving.
Read 14 tweets
Tom
Oct 28
Third #ISLTamici Theme: The weight of authority is anti-ISLT
Let’s use history as an example.

Particularly after the Supreme Court’s rulings last term in Dobbs (on abortion rights) and Bruen (on gun control), history will play an important role in resolving this case.
The pro-ISLT side makes a lot of representations regarding the history. But none of these people are historians. And they rely heavily on a fake document to make their historical case (such as it is).

politico.com/news/magazine/…
Read 18 tweets
Tom
Oct 28
Second #ISLTAmici Theme: The anti-ISLT camp is big and diverse, the pro-ISLT camp... isn’t
There have been nearly 70 amicus briefs filed in the case—roughly two-thirds of them oppose the ISLT.
Joining the folks I noted above is a massive group of historians, law professors, U.S. senators, state AGs, secretaries of state, current and former federal and state executive officials, civil rights organizations, good government groups, and think tanks, among others.
Read 9 tweets
Tom
Oct 28
The amicus briefs in the SCOTUS fight vs. the independent state legislature theory—Moore v. Harper—are now all IN. Together, they make a strong cross-partisan case against the ISLT that highlights big problems with Petitioners' presentation. Let's go! 🧵👇@BrennanCenter
The takeaways:

1. Opposition to the ISLT is bipartisan

2. The anti-ISLT camp is big and diverse, the pro-ISLT camp... isn’t

3. The weight of authority is anti-ISLT

4. The ISLT threatens major harms, which Petitioners ask the Court to ignore @BrennanCenter #ISLTamici
(“Petitioners” = the gerrymanderers from the North Carolina legislature who are asking SCOTUS to reinstate that state’s heavily gerrymandered congressional map by endorsing the ISLT.)
Read 18 tweets
Tom
Sep 7
The 1st wave of amicus briefs in SCOTUS’s upcoming “independent state legislature theory” case is incoming—if you read no other brief, read the Conference of Chief Justices'. This is a rare and significant brief that should send a strong caution to the Justices🧵👇 @BrennanCenter
Here’s the brief: supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/21/2…
For some background: The Conference of Chief Justices is comprised of the Chief Justices or Chief Judges of the highest courts in all 50 states, D.C., Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana Islands, the Territories of American Samoa, Guam, and the Virgin Islands.
Read 13 tweets
Tom
Jun 30
SCOTUS has just decided to take a case out of NC that several conservative Justices seem to be eyeing to liberate rogue state legislatures to undermine fair elections and fair maps. Unpacking what this decision does —and what it might mean 👇 🧵@BrennanCenter
The Court’s order list is here: supremecourt.gov/orders/courtor…. The case is Moore v. Harper, No. 21-1271.
Brief background on this case: Legislative leaders involved in the extreme gerrymandering of NC’s congressional map were asking SCOTUS to overturn a ruling from the NC Supreme Court that struck that map down as unconstitutional under NC’s state constitution.
Read 18 tweets

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