1/ I often write: The only thing I know *for certain* about the future is that it has not happened yet.
Yesterday’s SCOTUS ruling is a perfect example of how much I need to heed my own mantra.
For years, I heard Donald Trump was saying that he was certain that “his Supreme Court justices” . . .
2/ . . . would ride to his rescue. I scoffed at his “stupidity” and “naïveté”, confident that he did not understand how Supreme Court justices worked. I felt comfortable that “conservative” Justices would care more about their jurisprudence and institution than protecting one man. I thought SCOTUS
3/ . . . would deny cert. and leave the DC Circuit’s opinion in place. I was wrong.
I thought that SCOTUS would quickly dispatch of Trump’s appeal, perhaps in tandem with deciding the Insurrection Clause challenge to Trump’s candidacy. I was wrong.
I thought that even if though there . . .
4/ . . . was delay, that only meant that one or two Justices (likely Alito and/or Thomas) were doing Trump’s dirty work by withholding their dissents to the last possible minute, in order to make it impossible for Judge Chutkan to conduct the trial before Election Day. I was wrong.
To be fair to you (and me), before this opinion I’d say SCOTUs wasn’t making any “I’ll do anything for Trump” moves — they didn’t intervene in the 2020 election and rejected some other outrageous demands. This was a huge huge jump in the depth of the tank they are in.
“gratuitying the judges.” Bribes are passe.
RVs, Bali vacations, jet rides to vacations at private ski and hunting lodges took place AFTER whatever. It’s all very legit.
the six judges ruled for Snyder because they can now point to it and say, ‘well, that mayor did it. And we said that was legal.’
