Authoritarian / Unconstitutional: General
New, from me: until recently the big question was “what happens when Trump defies the courts?”
The answer, as it turns out, is that SCOTUS will support him.
The new question is what are the consequences for American democracy and governance?
* The Trump administration has defied or frustrated the court in more than one third of the 165 cases where the courts have ruled against them.
* Since April, SCOTUS has granted relief to Trump in all 15 of the emergency applications, writing a decision to explain its reasoning only three times.
* It is not just that SCOTUS is weakening Congress by giving its powers to Trump; it is also weakening other parts of the judiciary.
* It is overturning decisions in a fashion it did not do under Biden (hat tip to @adambonica.bsky.social for the graph).
* Lower court judges know they will receive death threats if they rule against Trump. They are frustrated with the blatant nature of his law-breaking. Now imagine how those judges feel when the Supreme Court waves away their efforts to defend the law.
* SCOTUS has created a presidential version of Wilhoit’s Law: "Conservatism consists of exactly one proposition, to wit: There must be in-groups whom the law protects but does not bind, alongside out-groups whom the law binds but does not protect."
* One basic question is whether words or legal terms hold any meaning. For example, Presidents are allowed to do limited and narrow reductions in force (RIFs). They are not allowed to do large-scale reorganizations without Congress. But Trump is just calling his massive reorganization a RIF.
* Recent SCOTUS decisions allowing Trump to move ahead with his stated goal of illegally dismantling the Department of Education illustrate how fights about spending are fights about democracy.
(donmoynihan.substack.com)
The answer, as it turns out, is that SCOTUS will support him.
The new question is what are the consequences for American democracy and governance?
* The Trump administration has defied or frustrated the court in more than one third of the 165 cases where the courts have ruled against them.
* Since April, SCOTUS has granted relief to Trump in all 15 of the emergency applications, writing a decision to explain its reasoning only three times.
* It is not just that SCOTUS is weakening Congress by giving its powers to Trump; it is also weakening other parts of the judiciary.
* It is overturning decisions in a fashion it did not do under Biden (hat tip to @adambonica.bsky.social for the graph).
* Lower court judges know they will receive death threats if they rule against Trump. They are frustrated with the blatant nature of his law-breaking. Now imagine how those judges feel when the Supreme Court waves away their efforts to defend the law.
* SCOTUS has created a presidential version of Wilhoit’s Law: "Conservatism consists of exactly one proposition, to wit: There must be in-groups whom the law protects but does not bind, alongside out-groups whom the law binds but does not protect."
* One basic question is whether words or legal terms hold any meaning. For example, Presidents are allowed to do limited and narrow reductions in force (RIFs). They are not allowed to do large-scale reorganizations without Congress. But Trump is just calling his massive reorganization a RIF.
* Recent SCOTUS decisions allowing Trump to move ahead with his stated goal of illegally dismantling the Department of Education illustrate how fights about spending are fights about democracy.
(donmoynihan.substack.com)