The cases before #SCOTUS involve Gwynne Wilcox of the National #Labor Relation Board #NLRB, which oversees laws protecting #workers’ rights, & Cathy A. Harris of the Merit Systems Protection Board #MSPB, which protects federal govt workers from #partisan practices — as well as a 90-year-old court #precedent the #Trump admin is seeking to overturn.

The practical consequences of the ruling may be limited, as another trial judge’s ruling requiring the reinstatement of many of the same workers remains in place. But, #Trump will likely decide the issue was resolved & ignore the #law.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor dissented, but gave no reasons. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said the court should not have ruled on such an important issue in the context of an emergency application.

Freezing the grant money “will inflict significant harm on grantees — a fact that the Government barely contests. Worse still, the Government does not even deign to defend the lawfulness of its actions,” wrote Jackson, who was joined by Sotomayor.

#Trump ofcls have turned to #SCOTUS multiple times in recent weeks after lower court judges stymied their initiatives to halt federal #funding, reshape #immigration enforcement & dismantle #FederalAgencies.

A district court judge had blocked the #Education Dept from canceling more than 100 grants that funded 2 programs— #Teacher Quality Partnership & Supporting Effective Educator Development—while #litigation challenging the decision continued.

Chief Justice #JohnRoberts & #SCOTUS’ 3 liberal justices said they would have denied #Trump’s request to intervene in the case.…

The initiatives provide leadership development, #teacher residency programs, training & other services. A coalition of Democratic-led states that challenged the funding freeze said it would trigger teacher #layoffs & other harm to #schools, weakening the teacher pipelines #Congress intended to enhance when it created the programs.

The exchange was so awkward, it should have been followed by the Curb Your Enthusiasm theme song. While #Trump was shaking hands down the aisle, exiting the House chamber after his address last night, network cameras caught him as he turned to Chief Justice #JohnRoberts, patted him on the back, & said, “Thank you again. Thank you again. I won’t forget.” Roberts, whose back was to the camera, then headed for the exit.

The dispute fundamentally focused on human waste & how #SanFrancisco disposes of it. The question before the court was whether the #CleanWaterAct of 1972 allowed the #EPA to impose prohibitions on #wastewater released into the #PacificOcean & to penalize the city for violating them.

The case was notable because it created unusual alliances. Liberal #SanFrancisco found itself on the same side as #mining & #petroleum trade groups like the National Mining Assn, American Farm Bureau Federation, & American #Fuel & #Petrochemical Manufacturers in opposing the #EPA.

#SCOTUS sided w/ #SanFrancisco on Tues in a challenge to #water quality #regulations issued by the #EPA in a ruling that could have sweeping implications for the agency’s ability to limit offshore #pollution.

The 5-to-4 decision dealt another blow to the agency, which has recently sustained several losses before the court over its efforts to protect the #environment.

Unpopular rulings on #elections, #abortion, presidential #immunity, #guns & other issues — as well as the #criminal cases against #Trump, which will likely move forward if he loses — have driven down public #trust in #SCOTUS & the #justice system.

That decline may be hard to reverse no matter which candidate prevails — especially if the courts play a role in deciding the winner.

Even as the #election will shape the #judiciary, the judiciary may also shape the election. As in 2020, #Republicans & #Democrats have already asked federal #judges, including those on #SCOTUS, to resolve disputes about ballots before Election Day. Their rulings could determine the outcome of a close race.

Perhaps related, Americans’ faith in the #courts has eroded in the #Trump era.

The appeals courts lean slightly #Republican, while the district courts lean #Democratic (if you count senior judges who work less but still hear cases)…. The next president will likely be able to tip that balance, letting one party’s appointees make up a clear majority of judges.

In a typical 4-yr term, a president replaces about ¼ of the country’s 870 active federal #judges, across both federal district & appeals courts. #Trump filled 231 vacancies, & President #Biden may equal that number before the next #Congress takes over.

Partly as a result, Republican & Democratic presidents have each appointed about ½ of the judges on federal courts.

In the lower #courts, #judges can serve for life. So the more a president appoints, the more he or she can shape the country. #SCOTUS hears only about 80 cases per year, meaning that lower courts are often the final arbiter on many issues. They set #precedent on #criminal #justice, #bankruptcy proceedings, #corporate disputes & #antitrust enforcement, & on whether federal #laws & rules are #constitutional.