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☆ Opinion | Justice Alito Is Holding Trump to a Different Standard
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-27 | by ( Jamelle Bouie | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

I mentioned it in passing in my Friday column, but I was struck — disturbed, really — by one specific point made by Justice Samuel Alito during Thursday’s oral arguments in Trump v. United States. Alito began innocuously enough: “I’m sure you would agree with me that a stable democratic society requires that a candidate who loses an election, even a close one, even a hotly contested one, leave office peacefully if that candidate is the incumbent.”“Of course,” answered Michael Dreeben, the lawyer arguing the case for the Department of Justice. “Now,” Alito continued, “if an incumbent who loses a very close, hotly contested election knows that a real possibility after leaving office is not that the president is going to be able to go off into a peaceful retirement but that the president may be criminally prosecuted by a bitter political opponent, will that not lead us into a cycle that destabilizes the functioning of our country as a democracy?”The implication of Alito’s question is that presidential immunity for all official acts may be a necessary concession to the possibility of a politically motivated investigation and prosecution: Presidents need to be above the law to raise the odds that they follow the law and leave office without incident.

Persons: Samuel Alito, Alito, ”, Michael Dreeben, “, ” Alito Organizations: Trump v ., Department of Justice Locations: Trump v, Trump v . United States

Trump himself has continued to lobby for absolute immunity, including before his appearance at a New York court where he’s on trial for business fraud. Dreeben told Barrett that the indictment against Trump is substantially about private conduct, meaning that a trial could proceed even if the Supreme Court finds some immunity for Trump’s official actions. Liberal justices weren’t impressed with Trump’s absolute immunity claimsIt was pretty clear where the court’s three liberals will be when the opinion lands. With arguments over, focus shifts to timing for decisionThe arguments about Trump’s immunity claim are over. In the immunity case, the court already helped Trump by denying the special counsel request last December to leapfrog the appeals court and resolve the question quickly.

Persons: Donald Trump’s, Jack Smith carte, Trump, John Roberts, Roberts, didn’t, he’s, ” Roberts, skeptically, ” Trump, John Sauer, Sauer, Amy Coney Barrett, Justice Elena Kagan, Brad Raffensperger, Raffensperger, ”, Justice Barrett, Barrett –, Barrett, Smith, ” Barrett, Michael Dreeben, Dreeben, weren’t, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Ketanji Brown Jackson, Kagan, “, that’s, ” Kagan, Jackson, ” Jackson, “ I’m, Alito, they’d, ” Alito, ’, Ty Cobb, Mark Meadows, Rudy Giuliani, Richard Nixon, Gore, Katelyn Polantz, Hannah Rabinowitz, Holmes Lybrand Organizations: CNN, Trump, Appeals, DC Circuit, Georgia, Republican National Committee, Arizona, Justice Department, Trump isn’t Locations: New York, Arizona, Michigan , Georgia, Nevada, Michigan, Washington

☆ Takeaways from the Supreme Court’s oral arguments over emergency abortions
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Tierney Sneed | John Fritze | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The court’s far-right wing, perhaps in an attempt to keep those two justices on their side, framed the case as a federal overreach into state power. Turner, Idaho’s attorney, shot back that mental health could essentially open a loophole. Conservatives have long opposed allowing exceptions to strict abortion bans for mental health. Justice Samuel Alito, a fellow conservative, picked up on that same theme, repeatedly pressing Prelogar to explain whether the Justice Department views mental health as a way around Idaho’s abortion ban. That is exactly the kind of political influence that the Supreme Court, especially under Roberts, has generally tried to avoid.

Persons: Biden, Elizabeth Prelogar, Roe, Wade, Brett Kavanaugh, John Roberts, Amy Coney Barrett, Prelogar, ” Prelogar, “, Roberts, Barrett –, Barrett, teed, Joshua Turner, Sonia Sotomayor, Turner, Elena Kagan, ’, Alito, CNN Sotomayor, ”, Clarence Thomas, EMTALA, Neil Gorsuch, ‘, Samuel Alito, ” Alito, –, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Trump, – Gorsuch, Kavanaugh Organizations: CNN, Justice, Labor, Liberal, Republican, Supreme, Department, Wade, Idaho, energizing Democratic, Food and Drug Administration, GOP Locations: Idaho, Wisconsin

The high court’s ruling could also affect the federal election subversion criminal case pending against former President Donald Trump, who was also charged with the obstruction crime. The law, Justice Elena Kagan said, could have been written by Congress to limit its prohibition to evidence tampering. Unless the court rules broadly in a way that undermines the charge entirely, the case against Trump may still stick even if Fischer wins his case. The Fischer case has prompted some liberal critics of the court to demand that Thomas recuse himself. “There have been many violent protests that have interfered with proceedings,” Thomas asked Prelogar, pressing on a theme he returned to repeatedly during the arguments.

Persons: Critics, ”, Donald Trump, Joseph Fischer, Trump, “, Fischer, Brett Kavanaugh, Elizabeth Prelogar, John Roberts, ’ ” Roberts, it’s, Prelogar, Kavanaugh, ‘, ” Prelogar, Neil Gorsuch, Jamaal Bowman, Bowman, Samuel Alito, ” Alito, rioter, Elena Kagan, ” Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor, Ketanji Brown Jackson, Jeffrey Green, Jackson, Jack Smith, Department’s, Smith, Clarence Thomas, Thomas, That’s, Thomas ’, Ginni Thomas, ” Thomas, “ I’m Organizations: CNN, Justice Department, Justice, Capitol, Court, Department, Riot, ”, New York Democrat, House, Hamas, Trump Locations: Pennsylvania, Gaza, Virginia, DC, Colorado, ”

☆ Civil War-era abortion ban rises again, exactly what Roe opponents wanted
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-09 | by ( Zachary B. Wolf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

But this is actually exactly the type of law that Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito referred to in the majority opinion overturning Roe v. Wade in 2022. The patchwork of access created by the Dobbs decision has created abortion rights states and abortion ban states. The decision by Arizona’s state Supreme Court to return to the 1864 law is just the latest evidence of the tortured fallout. Video Ad Feedback Arizona governor blasts ruling on abortion ban 03:07 - Source: KNXVWhat is the law in Arizona now? Democrats, nonetheless, are hoping to use the abortion rights issue to mobilize voters in November.

Persons: –, Samuel Alito, Roe, Wade, “, ”, Dobbs, Donald Trump, Trump, Arizona’s, Katie Hobbs, Ben Toma, Warren Petersen, Cindy Von Quednow, Christina Maxouris, Lauren Mascarenhas, Doug Ducey, Ron DeSantis, DeSantis, Kari Lake, Toma, Petersen, Hobbs, South Carolina Sen, Lindsey Graham Organizations: CNN, US, Jackson, Health Organization, Court, Trump, Republican, Democratic, Wade, Republican Gov, Republican Senate, South Carolina, Democrats Locations: Arizona, Florida

CNN —A majority of Supreme Court justices appeared skeptical Tuesday of the idea of a nationwide ban or new limits on mifepristone, the primary drug used for medication abortions. At issue in the case are lower-court rulings that would have rolled back recent Food and Drug Administration decisions to ease access to the mifepristone. “What the court did … is enter sweeping nationwide relief that restricts access to mifepristone for every single woman in this country. Some anti-abortion activists see the law as an avenue to end medication abortion, and perhaps all kinds of abortions. Danco’s attorney said that this case was not an appropriate venue for the court to weigh the reach of the Comstock Act.

Persons: Roe, Wade, John Roberts, Neil Gorsuch, ” Roberts, Erin Hawley, interjected, Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s, ”, ” Gorsuch, Biden, …, Elizabeth Prelogar, Brett Kavanaugh, ” Kavanaugh, Prelogar, Ketanji Brown Jackson, “, Jackson, ” Jackson, Amy Coney Barrett, Barrett, Alito, Thomas, Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, ” Alito, Mifepristone, Comstock, mifepristone, Matthew Kacsmaryk –, Trump, –, Kacsmaryk Organizations: CNN, Drug Administration, Conservative, FDA, Justice Department, Amarillo Division, Court, Northern, Northern District of, US, US Judicial Locations: mifepristone, FDA’s, Amarillo, Northern District, Northern District of Texas

☆ Takeaways from the Supreme Court’s oral arguments over social media censorship
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-18 | by ( Brian Fung | John Fritze | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —The Supreme Court on Monday appeared deeply skeptical of arguments by two conservative states that the First Amendment bars the government from pressuring social media platforms to remove online misinformation. Louisiana and Missouri accused the Biden administration of a sweeping censorship campaign conducted through emailed and other communications with social media platforms. Barrett asked: Could the FBI not call the social media sites and encourage them to take such posts down? Fletcher pointed to the context of the communication between the Biden administration and the social media companies. That is Congress’ role, he said, challenging claims that the administration has issued credible threats against social media that could support a coercion argument.

Persons: Biden, Roberts, Kavanaugh, Barrett, John Roberts, Brett Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett, ”, Roe, Wade, Benjamin Aguiñaga, Alito, Samuel Alito, ” Alito, Brian Fletcher, Elena Kagan, Justice Kavanaugh, I’ve, ” Kagan, chuckles, Fletcher, Ketanji Brown Jackson, you’re, ” Aguiñaga Organizations: CNN, FBI, Facebook, New York Times, Communications, medica Locations: Louisiana, Missouri

Here are the key takeaways from the courtroom:How far does the First Amendment reach when it comes to social media? Online platforms engage in censorship when they silence certain users’ speech, the states argued to the court. In fact, the tech industry argued, government requirements that social media not moderate content would violate the platforms’ own First Amendment freedoms from government meddling. Section 230 features prominently in argumentsOne question kept coming up during the arguments, just as it has in lower courts: What these state laws could mean for Americans’ overall ability to sue social media companies over content moderation. The state laws explicitly allow users to sue tech platforms for alleged censorship.

Persons: Donald Trump, Samuel Alito, Biden, ” Alito, Brett Kavanaugh, ’, ” Kavanaugh, Elena Kagan, Elon Musk, ” Kagan, –, – that’s, Kagan, Uber, you’re, Amy Coney Barrett, ” Organizations: CNN, Meta, ”, X, Elon, YouTube, Communications Locations: Texas, Florida

☆ Trump’s critics hope that Antonin Scalia can sway the Supreme Court in 14th Amendment fight
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-01 | by ( John Fritze | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

On a court where conservatives hold a 6-3 supermajority, including three Trump nominees, citing Scalia is no coincidence. The advocates are hoping to convince the justices that they can write off Trump’s arguments in a way that still squares with conservative legal principles. The Scalia concurrence, joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and two other conservatives, involved a dispute between the teamsters and a soda distributor. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia and former President Donald Trump. “Many times, members of the court greatly respect each other but will disagree with what they’ve had to say,” Muller said.

Persons: Scalia, Donald Trump, Antonin Scalia, Trump, “, –, ”, Derek Muller, “ They’re, Conway, SCOTUS, CNN Trump, J, Michael Luttig, John Roberts, Joshua Blackman, South Texas College of Law Houston, Blackman, ” Blackman, Neil Gorsuch, Gorsuch, Samuel Alito, ” Alito, they’ve, ” Muller Organizations: Trump, CNN — Liberal, Capitol, Supreme, Notre Dame Law, CNN, United, Republican, Chief, teamsters, South Texas College of Law, Getty, Appeals, Colorado Republican Party, Congress Locations: United States, Colorado

☆ The nonstop sparring match between Justice Samuel Alito and Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-06 | by ( Joan Biskupic | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +16 min

CNN —Justice Samuel Alito is the tip of the spear for conservatives challenging the Biden administration during oral arguments at the Supreme Court. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar is the Biden administration’s top lawyer at the court, defending the policies that are the source of much of Alito’s consternation. “I think our best example historically is the Customs Service,” Prelogar responded. The Biden administration was backing admissions practices that considered students’ race as a factor in admissions to achieve campus diversity. “No, Justice Alito,” Prelogar said.

Persons: Samuel Alito, Biden, He’s, Elizabeth Prelogar, Alito, Prelogar, Ronald Reagan, George H.W, Bush, George W, Sandra Day O’Connor, ” Prelogar, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Elena Kagan, Robert Mueller, Joe Biden, –, ” Alito, “, ”, John Roberts, Roberts, I’m, It’s, ” Alito interjected, ’ Jeffrey Wall, Trump, …, Wall, We’re, Justice Alito, Juliet, Friar Laurence, Brett Kavanaugh, Ketanji Brown Jackson, Friar, Taylor Swift, Friar Lawrence, “ I’m Organizations: CNN, Supreme, Princeton, Yale Law School, Department of Justice, Emory University, Harvard Law School, Miss, ahs, Senate, Republicans, Democrats, Consumer Financial, Federal Reserve System, Customs Service, Biden, FDA, OSHA, Occupational Safety, Health Administration, Harvard, University of North, America, United States, Fair, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Verona Locations: Trenton , New Jersey, New Jersey, Boise , Idaho, Miss Idaho, University of North Carolina, America, ”, Verona, Washington

WASHINGTON (AP) — Justice Samuel Alito on Friday rejected demands from Senate Democrats that he step aside from an upcoming Supreme Court case because of his interactions with one of the lawyers, in a fresh demonstration of tensions over ethical issues. Alito attached an unusual statement to an otherwise routine list of orders from the court. “There is no valid reason for my recusal in this case,” Alito wrote in a four-page statement. The committee approved an ethics code for the court on a party-line vote, though it is unlikely to become law. The case in which he is involved was never mentioned; nor did we discuss any issue in that case either directly or indirectly.

Persons: Samuel Alito, Alito, ” Alito, Clarence Thomas, Dick Durbin, John Roberts, David Rivkin, Rivkin, Leonard Leo, Leo, Brett Kavanaugh, ” Organizations: WASHINGTON, —, Democrats, Committee, Federalist Society, Senate Democrats Locations: Alaska

A simmering dispute between branches of government over Supreme Court ethics reform boiled over Friday when Justice Samuel Alito publicly rejected a senator’s call to recuse himself from an upcoming case due to a perceived conflict of interest. After Alito was interviewed for a report in the opinion pages of The Wall Street Journal and expressed the view that Congress has no authority over the high court, Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois in August urged Chief Justice John Roberts to take steps to ensure that the prominent conservative justice recuse himself from cases concerning legislation that regulates the high court. He also asked for Alito’s recusal in the case of Moore v. United States – a major tax case in which the petitioners are represented in part by one of the authors of the report in the Journal. Durbin, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has been among lawmakers leading a push for ethics reform at the high court that has come to a head amid bombshell reports in recent months questioning the ethics of some justices. He argued along with committee Democrats that, in this situation, the writer’s “access to Justice Alito and efforts to help Justice Alito air his personal grievances could cast doubt on Justice Alito’s ability to fairly discharge his duties” in the tax case.

Persons: Samuel Alito, Alito, Democratic Sen, Dick Durbin of, John Roberts, Alito’s, Moore, Durbin, ”, Durbin’s, ” Alito, “ Organizations: Street, Democratic, Dick Durbin of Illinois, United, Committee, Senate Locations: United States

CNN —Justice Clarence Thomas disclosed Thursday that Republican megadonor Harlan Crow paid for private jet trips for Thomas in 2022 to attend a speech in Texas and a vacation at Crow’s luxurious New York estate, as ethics questions continue to rock the Supreme Court. Thomas made the disclosures after receiving an extension to file the yearly reports that were originally due in May 2023. In a statement after the ProPublica report, Thomas acknowledged the friendship but stressed that Crow did not have business before the court. In addition, he said that he should have disclosed a 2014 private real estate deal between Crow, Thomas and members of Thomas’ family. According to the disclosure, Thomas flew down to be the keynote speaker of the event in February, but returned via private jet “due to an unexpected ice storm.”The talk was rescheduled in May and Thomas rode round trip on Crow’s plane.

Persons: Clarence Thomas, Harlan Crow, Thomas, Dobbs, Roe, Wade, “, Crow, Samuel Alito, ProPublica, Thomas ’, ” Thomas, Virginia Thomas, Leola Williams, Williams, VII, –, Elliot S, Berke, Thomas “, ”, Sen, Sheldon Whitehouse, Chip Somodevilla, Elena Kagan, Alito, ” Alito, Gabe Roth, he’s, ” Roth, Rome Alito, Duke Organizations: CNN, Republican, Judicial Conference, Old Parkland Conference, Hoover Institution, Manhattan Institute, American Enterprise Institute, Black Americans, Crow Holdings, Democrats, Supreme, Capitol, Rhode Island, Wall Street, Notre Dame, School’s, Liberty Initiative, Religious Liberty Summit, Regent University School of Law, Duke Law School Locations: Texas, New York, Georgia, Savannah , Georgia, Washington ,, Rome

☆ Supreme Court: John Roberts can't get an ethics code. Samuel Alito's interview shows why
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( Joan Biskupic | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —When the Supreme Court left for its summer recess in June, the justices were at a stalemate on adopting a formal ethics code. Chief Justice John Roberts has been seeking unanimity among the nine justices for firm ethics standards, CNN has learned, but such agreement has eluded him. He told the WSJ writers that he was speaking out to defend himself and the Supreme Court because “nobody else” would. “Even assuming that trip is somehow relevant to present concerns about Supreme Court ethics, the connection is highly attenuated, focused on ‘an object remote’ from purported ‘legitimate concerns’ about ethics standards,” Rivkin wrote. A separate Associated Press investigation recently focused on liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s use of Supreme Court staff to coordinate and promote the sale of her books.

Persons: John Roberts, Samuel Alito’s, Alito, “, ”, ” Alito, David B, Rivkin Jr, Rivkin, Leonard Leo, Brett Kavanaugh, Leo, – Alito, Paul Singer, Singer, ” Rivkin, Clarence Thomas, Harlan Crow, Crow, Thomas ’, Thomas, Sonia Sotomayor’s, ’, Roberts, Sen, Murphy, Democratic Sen, Chris Murphy, ” Murphy Organizations: CNN, Democratic, Supreme, WSJ, Republicans, Wall Street Journal, Federalist Society, Democrats, Republican, Associated Press, Congress, House, CNN’s Locations: Alaska, Georgia, CNN’s “ State, Connecticut

☆ Samuel Alito tells Congress to stay out of Supreme Court ethics controversy
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-28 | by ( Dan Berman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Congress should stay out of the Supreme Court’s business and stop trying to impose ethics rules on justices and clerks, Justice Samuel Alito said in an interview published by The Wall Street Journal editorial page Friday. “Congress did not create the Supreme Court,” Alito said. No provision in the Constitution gives them the authority to regulate the Supreme Court – period.”Spurred by a string of stories calling out questionable ethical decisions and a lack of transparency and disclosure, Senate Democrats have advanced legislation meant to create a code of ethics for the Supreme Court. In an unusual move, Alito last month sought to preempt a ProPublica report on him by publishing a Wall Street Journal op-ed rather than responding to ProPublica’s request for comment directly. “If we’re viewed as illegitimate, then disregard of our decisions becomes more acceptable and more popular,” Alito said.

Persons: Samuel Alito, “, ” Alito, David B, Rivkin Jr, Alito, George W, Bush, he’s, that’s, ”, I’ve, Roe, Wade, Brown Organizations: CNN, Wall, Democrats, Supreme, of Education

☆ Takeaways from the latest controversial and contentious Supreme Court term
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-01 | by ( Ariane De Vogue | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +17 min

In his opinion blocking the student debt program, Roberts insisted he is concerned about criticisms of the court. “Make no mistake: Supreme Court ethics reform must happen whether the Court participates in the process or not,” he warned. In June, the court sided with a cement mixing company that sought to bypass federal labor law and sue a union in state court for the destruction of property caused by striking workers. On Tuesday, when Roberts announced the court’s opinion in Moore v. Harper, liberals and even some conservatives exhaled, relieved that the court was rejecting a controversial Trump-backed election law theory. “Justice Jackson has a different view,” he said at one point.

Persons: John Roberts, Roe, Wade, ” Roberts, Roberts, Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, he’d, Joe Biden’s, Roberts –, –, It’s, Donald Trump’s, ”, Gorsuch, Neil Gorsuch, Bostock, Lorie Smith, ” Alito, Alito, Dobbs, Jackson, Brett Kavanaugh’s, hadn’t, Paul Singer, Singer, ProPublica, “ we’d, “, ” ProPublica, Thomas, Dick Durbin, Elena Kagan, KBJ, Ketanji Brown Jackson, Dr, Adam Feldman, ” Feldman, Sonia Sotomayor, Kagan, Barrett, Thomas couldn’t, ” Jenny Hunter, ” Jackson, ‘, Harper, exhaled, Barack Obama, Rick Hasen –, Hasen, Moore, Thomas Long, Kevin Merida, Michael Fletcher, “ Justice Jackson, Thomas ’ “, ” Thomas Organizations: CNN, Civil, Creative, Politico, Wall Street Journal, Street, GOP, Illinois Democrat, pounced, University of North, National Labor Relations, Independent, Trump, Federal, “, UNC Locations: Colorado, Washington , DC, United States, “, Rome, Illinois, American, Moore, North Carolina

☆ Alito jokes about Black Santa and Ashley Madison during Supreme Court arguments
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Summer-Concepcion-Byline-Jm.Jpg | Summer Concepcion | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

Justice Samuel Alito joked about Black Santa, children in Klan robes and dating websites as the Supreme Court heard arguments Monday in a case weighing a web designer's bid to avoid working on same-sex weddings because she is a conservative evangelical Christian. David Zalubowski / AP fileEric Olson, the Colorado solicitor general, said that the Black Santa wouldn’t have to follow through with the request since KKK outfits are not protected characteristics under accommodation laws. Alito quipped, “You do see a lot of Black children in Ku Klux Klan outfits, right? Kagan, who is Jewish, jumped in to confirm that Alito was correct, which drew laughter from those in attendance. Conservative justices on the high court appeared sympathetic toward the web designer’s bid as they heard arguments for more than two hours Monday.

☆ Alito says leaked abortion opinion made conservative justices 'targets for assassination'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Zoë Richards | Zoë Richards Is The Evening Politics Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito said Tuesday night that the leak of the draft opinion to overturn Roe v. Wade this year endangered the lives of justices by putting a target on their backs. Alito, who was nominated by former President George W. Bush and is part of the court’s 6-3 conservative majority, authored the draft and the final opinion that removed constitutional protections for abortion. Now we're in a new term," Alito said Tuesday, adding that the justices and staff members "want things to get back to normal, the way they were before all of this last term, before Covid." Additional security measures were put in place in the aftermath of the leak and in response to demonstrations outside several justices’ homes. Last week, a Georgia man was arrested on weapons charges after police said they found two handguns and a shotgun in a van he was driving in Washington with plans to “deliver documents” to the Supreme Court.

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