Supreme Court News
In-depth reporting and commentary on the Court’s rulings and their influence on law, politics, and society.
-
- News
Poll: Majority Support Delaying Supreme Court Replacement
Republican opposition to any Supreme Court nominee by President Barack Obama may be politically popular, a new poll claims. Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, distributed the poll findings in a memo to members of the Republican Senate Conference to show public perceptions on filling the current Supreme Court vacancy, Politico reports. The opinion poll was conducted…Mariana Barillas -
- Opinion
Give the American People a Voice on the Next Supreme Court Justice
President Barack Obama will soon nominate a justice to fill Antonin Scalia’s seat on the Supreme Court. Senate Republicans have vowed to ignore him until after the voters decide in November who will serve as our next president. That’s exactly what should happen.Daily Signal Staff -
- Opinion
How a New Liberal Supreme Court Justice Would Change America
It’s another day, and another tantrum from Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev. But it doesn’t matter how much he jumps up and down and stomps his feet—we aren’t going to let the far left get away with denying the American people the opportunity to be heard. Letting the American people decide this question is the reasonable approach….Sen. Chuck Grassley -
- News
Will Tie Votes on the Supreme Court Be a Problem? These 2 Justices Don’t Think So.
For more than a century, the Supreme Court’s bench has had nine spots, enough to round out the roster of a baseball team. With the death of Antonin Scalia, eight justices remain. Now President Barack Obama and his fellow Democrats are pushing Republicans to OK an Obama recruit to replace Scalia. But Republicans say the court can field cases…Philip Wegmann -
- News
Democrats Count on Public Pressure as Their ‘Best Weapon’ in Supreme Court Fight
From the steps of the Supreme Court, Senate Democrats unleashed their latest messaging barrage in the battle over whether President Obama should fill the open seat of the late Justice Antonin Scalia. Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., blasted Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, after the chairman of the Judiciary Committee accused Democrats earlier Thursday of throwing…Philip Wegmann -
- News
6 Supreme Court Rulings That Could Be Overturned If a Liberal Replaced Scalia
If President Barack Obama or a future Democratic successor were to replace late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia with a liberal, a host of prior high court decisions that favored conservatives could be revisited, and possibly be overruled completely. The reach of cases that could get another look by a liberal majority Supreme Court touch on…Josh Siegel -
- News
Next President Could Stack the Deck as Supreme Court Justices Near Retirement
With three of the surviving Supreme Court justices in or near their 80s, successors named by the next president could shift the ideological makeup of the nation’s highest court. Within hours of Justice Antonin Scalia’s death Saturday at age 79, President Barack Obama and Senate Republicans began to clash over whether he should nominate, and the Senate confirm, a…Leah Jessen -
- Opinion
Fight to Replace Scalia Proves Supreme Court Has Become Too Powerful
The stakes are high—very high. Finding a replacement for deceased Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia will be a battle royale. But why should one government official’s position be so existentially important? Yes, control of the Supreme Court hangs in the balance, but that raises the question as to why the Court itself is so…Kim Holmes -
- Opinion
Why 25 States Have Asked Supreme Court to Halt This Costly EPA Regulation
Twenty-five states (and four state agencies) are petitioning the Supreme Court to halt the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s Clean Power Plan, after the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit declined to stay the rule last week. The states described the Clean Power Plan “as the most far reaching and burdensome rule EPA…Katie Tubb -
- Opinion
From Inside the Supreme Court, the Key Exchanges on a Case Pitting Unions vs. First Amendment
This morning, the Supreme Court heard a challenge to the requirement in California that government employees, such as public school teachers, pay fees to the local union even if they choose not to join the union. First Amendment Rights In Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association, Rebecca Friedrichs and other teachers argue that forcing them to…Hans von Spakovsky -
- News
Disapproval Rating of Supreme Court Reaches New High
Disapproval rates of the high court are rising, according to a new Gallup poll. The poll, released Friday, shows a 50-percent disapproval rating of the Supreme Court. Underlying the disapproval rating is a wide partisan gap. Most of those who disapprove of the Supreme Court’s performance are Republican,…Joshua Gill -
- News
Two Top Litigators Preview Upcoming Supreme Court Cases
The new term for the Supreme Court is gearing up to begin on Oct. 5. Top Supreme Court litigators Paul Clement, a former U.S. solicitor general, and Lisa Blatt, an adjunct professor of law at Georgetown University, spoke on Tuesday at The Heritage Foundation. Clement and Blatt, who have collectively argued more than 100 cases before the…Leah Jessen -
- Opinion
5 Cases to Watch in the Supreme Court’s Next Term
The Supreme Court’s last term was one for the history books, with high-profile cases involving Obamacare and gay marriage. The next term may not attract the same level of attention from the media and general public, but the justices will consider a number of important issues. Voting rights, public employee unions, and racial preferences in…Elizabeth Slattery -
- News
How the Supreme Court’s ‘One Person, One Vote’ Case Could Boost Republican Clout
The Supreme Court will trek into a redistricting case this fall that will settle the contested meaning of the “one person, one vote” principle that has shaped American elections for over half a century. At hand is whether electoral districts should continue to be drawn using a state’s total population, which is the current precedent,…Natalie Johnson -
- News
What’s Next for the Marriage Debate After Supreme Court Ruling
Far from settling the marriage debate, the Supreme Court’s ruling on Obergefell v. Hodges raised more questions, according to four participants in a panel discussion Tuesday at The Heritage Foundation. Regardless of their views on same-sex marriage, the panelists said that the majority’s opinion in the Obergefell ruling is unclear, and fails to provide accommodation for…Kate Scanlon -
- Opinion
Federal Judge Blocks EPA and Corps’ Water Rule From Going into Effect
On Aug. 27, 2015, a federal district judge in North Dakota issued an order delaying the effective date of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s and the Army Corps of Engineers’ rule defining what waters they can regulate under the Clean Water Act. According to a press release from the North Dakota attorney general’s office: In today’s order, Judge Erickson agreed that…Daren Bakst -
- News
County Clerk Appeals Federal Judge’s Gay Marriage Mandate
Lawyers for a county clerk in Kentucky who refuses to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples appealed a federal judge’s order that she do so, asking that the clerk not have to comply meanwhile. Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis so far has not obeyed the order of U.S. District Judge David Bunning that she resume issuing…Ken McIntyre -
- Opinion
4 Reasons We Must Protect Freedom for Everyone After Supreme Court’s Marriage Ruling
The Supreme Court’s redefinition of marriage has left many concerned about protecting freedom for everyone who believes that marriage is the union of a man and a woman. Among them are law professors Richard W. Garnett, John D. Inazu and Michael W. McConnell. In a characteristically thoughtful essay at Christianity Today, they argue that post-Obergefell,…Ryan T. Anderson -
- Opinion
How Supreme Court’s Understanding of ‘Liberty’ in Gay Marriage Case Could Have Repercussions
Justice Samuel Alito joined Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol for a 90-minute conversation about life, baseball and a few recent Supreme Court decisions. Alito expressed concern about what “liberty” means following the decision in Obergefell v. Hodges. The 14th Amendment’s Due Process Clause, which prohibits the deprivation of life, liberty or property without due process…Elizabeth Slattery -
- Opinion
Can Government Unions Demand Your Money? The Supreme Court Will Decide Next Term.
After multiple tries, the U.S. Supreme Court will have the opportunity next term to overturn an outdated ruling from a 1977 case, Abood v. Detroit Board of Education. Previously, the Court ruled against public school teachers who didn’t want to pay dues to a union. The Supreme Court has recently made clear that government employees…Andrew Kloster