OT16 IS UPON US | RBG Offers Advice For Living | SCOTUS Declines to Reconsider Obama’s Immigration Case
October 3, 2016
DRUMROLL, PLEASE
|The United States Supreme Court has officially started its October 2016 session as of 10 AM EST this morning. Hold on to your horses everyone…we’re in for a wild ride.
BUCKLE UP
|“This term promises to be the most unpredictable one in many, many years,” says NEAL KATYAL, former U.S. solicitor general for the Obama administration. In The New York Times, Adam Liptak reports on the volatility of this new term which promises nothing but unpredictability.
A BREAK WITH TRADITION
|The first day of a new Supreme Court term always includes the hearing of cases. But today, the opening session last only about five minutes with no oral arguments because of the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah. Of course, the other major “difference” with Opening Day 2016…it was the first time in 25 years the court reconvened without a full bench.
TOP ED
|In The New York Times, JUSTICE RUTH BADER GINSBURG penned a little something that is well worth reading. In it, she provides “advice for living,” including one piece of sage advice she got on her wedding day. Her mother-in-law told Ruth, “In every good marriage, it helps sometimes to be a little deaf.” And though RBG didn’t write it in this piece, we know that Ginsburg’s mother-in-law then handed her a pair of ear plugs. Something new, I hope.
THE WEEK AHEAD
|Wednesday, the justices will hear arguments in the case of an Illinois man, BASSAM SALMAN, who prosecutors claim made almost $1.2 million by trading on insider information from Citigroup Inc., where his brother-in-law worked. It’s the first time in twenty years that SCOTUS has taken up an insider trading case.
ED BOARD OVERTURE
|For The New York Times, The Editorial Board shares its thoughts on the “crippled Supreme Court’s new term,” offering a diagnosis that is far from optimistic. “This is American politics in 2016: the normalization of the deeply abnormal, the collapse of customs of behavior and respect, and the creation of an environment so toxic and polarized that the nation’s leaders struggle to carry out the most basic tasks of government.” Sadly, one of those most basic tasks includes filling the empty seat on the Supreme Court bench. FYI team — as of today, it’s been 201 days since JUDGE MERRICK GARLAND was nominated to our nation’s high court.
NO MEANS NO
|Justices said today they will not reconsider their ruling on the Obama administration’s immigration policy. Well, it was more of a non-decision because in June the justices deadlocked, leaving in place an appeals court ruling that blocked PRESIDENT OBAMA’S program which might have spared millions of undocumented immigrants from deportation.
SHOW ME THE MONEY
|Justices agreed today to hear a dispute between Delaware and 23 states over more than $150 million in uncashed money orders.
NONE FOR GRETCHEN WEINERS
|SCOTUS today refused to hear the trademark appeal brought forth by the Washington Redskins. Instead, justices will consider a case brought by Asian-American rock band, “The Slants,” whose bid for trademark protection raises very similar issues to those presented in the Redskins case.
QUOTE DU JOUR
|Could we see another Bush v. Gore in November? “That is the doomsday scenario, in some respect, of having an eight-member court.” — Carter G. Phillips, a lawyer, whose words were the quotation of the day yesterday in The New York Times.
NO DUH
|In The New York Times, Adam Liptak reports that when judges are elected like politicians, they tend to act like politicians.
NOT GOING NOWHERE
|On NPR’s Morning Edition, JUSTICE RUTH BADER GINSBURG “gossiped about herself” with Nina Totenberg, looking back her life of love, friendship, and fierce dedication to the law. RBG indicated right off the bat that she doesn’t have plans to leave the Supreme Court any time soon.
Totenberg also highlights Justice Ginsburg’s relationship with her late husband, Marty. Ginsburg reads aloud a hand-written note he had written her in his final days. Justice Ginsburg wells up in tears as she reads, “The time has come for me to tough it out or to take leave of life because the loss of quality now simply overwhelms. I hope you will support where I come out, but I understand you may not. I will not love you a jot less.”
Totenberg: “I have known Ruth Bader Ginsburg for some forty years, and when I asked her to read the letter for an interview this summer, it was the first time I ever saw her cry.”
NOTORIOUS RBG
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, The Internet Icon, May Be Coming To A Museum Near You
The Huffington PostWhile Notorious RBG kicks off a new term at the high court, over in Los Angeles a new exhibit comes to life that will trace the justice’s legacy both on and off the bench.
Justice Ginsburg Rides Celebrity Wave, Releases Anthology
The Associated Press“Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is riding the wave of her rock-star celebrity, releasing a compilation of her writings that range from a high school editorial to summaries of some of her spiciest dissenting opinions.”
REJECTION SECTION
Supreme Court Rejects Bid to Revive Wisconsin Governor Probe
Reuters“The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday let stand Wisconsin’s top court’s decision to halt a special prosecutor’s investigation into possible unlawful coordination between Republican Governor Scott Walker’s campaign and conservative advocacy groups.”
Supreme Court Declines to Consider N.C.A.A. Rules on Paying Athletes
The New York Times“The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear a case about whether the N.C.A.A. is violating federal antitrust laws by restricting what college athletes can earn.”
Supreme Court Won't Step Into Fight Over Backpage Sex Ads
The Associated Press“The Supreme Court won’t hear an appeal from an Illinois sheriff who was ordered to stop threatening credit card companies from doing business with classified ad website Backpage.com.”
OTHER NEWS
Supreme Court Preview: Cheerlearders' uniforms get their day at Court
Constitution Daily“One of the more interesting copyright cases coming up at the Supreme Court this fall involves an iconic American clothing symbol: the cheerleader’s uniform.”