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The Supreme Court sounds surprisingly open to a case against a death sentence

From the moment the Republican Party gained a 6-3 supermajority on the Supreme Court, in late 2020, the Court has often acted as if it is going down a...

previous day 1

Ian Millhiser

How the Supreme Court is using Trump to grab more power for itself

If you’ve followed the Supreme Court’s recent presidential power cases, you know there’s no mystery surrounding the Court’s eventual decision...

tuesday 20

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court takes up the most unconstitutional thing Trump has done

Last January, when Reagan-appointed Judge John Coughenour became the first federal judge to block President Donald Trump’s attack on birthright...

06.12.2025 8

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court just made gerrymandering nearly untouchable

The Supreme Court reinstated a Texas gerrymander that is expected to give Republicans five additional seats in the US House on Thursday evening, after...

05.12.2025 9

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court case that could redefine “cruel and unusual,” explained

Nearly a quarter century ago, in Atkins v. Virginia (2002), the Supreme Court held that it is unconstitutional to execute offenders with an...

04.12.2025 50

Ian Millhiser

Republicans ask the Supreme Court to gut one of the last limits on money in politics

There is a specter of inevitability hanging over much of the Supreme Court’s current term. It is unlikely that any legal argument could persuade the...

03.12.2025 40

Ian Millhiser

Republicans want the Supreme Court to save them from their own inept mistake

Last month, a federal court in Texas ruled that a Republican gerrymander, expected to give the GOP five extra seats in the US House, must be struck...

03.12.2025 30

Ian Millhiser

Congress is the Supreme Court’s favorite punching bag, and it’s about to get decked

The outcome in Trump v. Slaughter, which the Supreme Court will hear on Monday, December 8, could not be more preordained. Slaughter involves a...

01.12.2025 10

Ian Millhiser

The case against releasing the Epstein files

The Justice Department almost never discloses information it collected on a criminal suspect outside of a criminal judicial proceeding, and for very...

19.11.2025 7

Ian Millhiser

Trump’s Justice Department may have accidentally handed Democrats five House seats

In a decision that could potentially reshape the 2026 midterm elections and cement the Democratic Party’s future control of the US House, a federal...

19.11.2025 40

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court is about to rule on whether Trump can use troops against Americans

About a month ago, Trump v. Illinois looked like it was going to be one of the most consequential Supreme Court decisions of the entire Trump era. The...

15.11.2025 60

Ian Millhiser

A Supreme Court case about dreadlocks could end up gutting Medicaid

It’s hard to imagine a more clear cut violation of a federal law than what happened to Damon Landor. Landor is Rastafarian and does not cut his hair...

11.11.2025 10

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court will decide whether to toss out thousands of ballots

The Supreme Court announced on Monday that it will hear Watson v. Republican National Committee, a case claiming that, for many decades, states have...

11.11.2025 4

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court might actually stand up to Trump

The Supreme Court’s Wednesday morning argument on President Donald Trump’s ever-shifting tariffs went better for him than the 2025 elections, but...

05.11.2025 2

Ian Millhiser

The most horrifying religion case to hit the Supreme Court in years is also one of the hardest

Damon Landor suffered one of the most blatant and obvious violations of his religious liberty imaginable. Landor is Rastafarian and, as part of his...

05.11.2025 30

Ian Millhiser

Trump’s imperial presidency is Dick Cheney’s final legacy

Former Vice President Dick Cheney’s final political act was also his most admirable. Warning that then-candidate Donald Trump “can never be...

04.11.2025 4

Ian Millhiser

The tariffs case is Trump’s ultimate loyalty test for the Supreme Court

As recently as one year ago, the Supreme Court’s Republican majority was determined to reduce executive power. Joe Biden, a Democrat, was in the...

30.10.2025 5

Ian Millhiser

A new Supreme Court case could turn the National Guard into Trump’s personal army

It’s hard to think of a more dramatic question than the issue before the Supreme Court in Trump v. Illinois. President Donald Trump wants to use...

21.10.2025 3

Ian Millhiser

How the Supreme Court placed ICE above the law

By now, you’ve probably seen some of the videos of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), as well as other federal law enforcement agencies,...

20.10.2025 100

Ian Millhiser

It sure looks like the Voting Rights Act is doomed

Two things were obvious at Wednesday morning’s Supreme Court argument in Louisiana v. Callais, a case asking the Court to abolish longstanding...

15.10.2025 10

Ian Millhiser

The uncomfortable problem with America’s greatest civil rights law

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is among the most successful laws in US history. And it is one of the most morally righteous things the United States of...

14.10.2025 6

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court fights over whether medical expertise actually exists

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court broke from its increasingly common practice of deciding important cases without holding an oral argument or even...

07.10.2025 3

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court fight over whether gay and trans people can be “cured,” explained

Are therapists protected by the First Amendment during talk therapy sessions with their clients? And are these free speech protections so robust that...

02.10.2025 10

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court’s newest decision could make it impossible to end the shutdown

On Friday, the Supreme Court handed down an order that could completely upend the balance of power between Congress and President Donald Trump. The...

01.10.2025 100

Ian Millhiser

One mystery, and two looming disasters, in the next Supreme Court term

Three issues dominate the Supreme Court term that begins next week, based on the cases the justices have agreed to hear so far. Realistically,...

29.09.2025 30

Ian Millhiser

Comey’s indictment is a warning to the Supreme Court justices

About two decades ago, Justice Antonin Scalia went on a duck hunting trip with then-Vice President Dick Cheney. This trip became an issue because the...

26.09.2025 3

Ian Millhiser

Trump’s prosecution of a Democratic lawmaker is a test run for authoritarian rule

On Thursday night, the Justice Department revealed an indictment against former FBI Director James Comey, that lays out vague allegations that Comey...

26.09.2025 10

Ian Millhiser

Trump asks the Supreme Court to give him total control over the US economy

In a trio of cases, two currently pending before the Supreme Court and one that is likely to land on the justices’ doorstep as soon as Tuesday,...

17.09.2025 400

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court is about to decide one of the biggest economic policy cases ever

A long-simmering showdown over whether President Donald Trump may seize control over the Federal Reserve appears to be entering its endgame. It is...

16.09.2025 10

Ian Millhiser

The overwhelming evidence that the Supreme Court is on Donald Trump’s team

Last month, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dropped an inflammatory allegation on most of her colleagues. On August 21, the Supreme Court handed down...

05.09.2025 10

Ian Millhiser

Trump’s lawyers just inadvertently admitted that his tariffs are illegal

The Trump administration formally asked the Supreme Court on Wednesday evening to decide whether President Donald Trump’s ever-shifting tariff...

05.09.2025 10

Ian Millhiser

Trump just did the one thing the Supreme Court said he can’t do

The six Republican justices have largely behaved as lickspittles to the leader of their political party. These are, after all, the same GOP political...

26.08.2025 6

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court hands down some incomprehensible gobbledygook about canceled federal grants

Late Thursday afternoon, the Supreme Court handed down an incomprehensible order concerning the Trump administration’s decision to cancel numerous...

22.08.2025 5

Ian Millhiser

A federal court took 2 years to figure out that gay people have First Amendment rights

Spectrum WT v. Wendler is one of the easiest First Amendment cases the federal courts heard this year — or in any other year. The question is...

19.08.2025 3

Ian Millhiser

Trump’s immigration raids are now before the Supreme Court

Last month, a federal judge in Los Angeles handed down a temporary order placing some restrictions on the Trump administration’s immigration...

15.08.2025 5

Ian Millhiser

Justice Kavanaugh just revealed an unfortunate truth about the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court handed down a very brief order on Thursday, which allows a Mississippi law restricting children’s access to social media to remain...

15.08.2025 50

Ian Millhiser

There’s a big, important limit on Trump’s power to seize control of DC’s police

On Monday, President Donald Trump released an executive order invoking a rarely used federal law that allows him to temporarily seize control over...

12.08.2025 6

Ian Millhiser

There’s only one type of American who still trusts the Supreme Court

A new Gallup poll finds public approval of the Supreme Court falling below 40 percent for the first time in the poll’s history. The poll aligns with...

07.08.2025 7

Ian Millhiser

A new Supreme Court case asks whether children still have First Amendment rights

Let’s give credit where it is due. The current Supreme Court has a decent record on free speech issues. There have been some worrisome moves, such...

06.08.2025 3

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court just revealed its plan to make gerrymandering even worse

One of the biggest mysteries that has emerged from the Trump-era Supreme Court is the 2023 decision in Allen v. Milligan. In Milligan, two of the...

05.08.2025 40

Ian Millhiser

Brett Kavanaugh says he doesn’t owe the public an explanation

Justice Brett Kavanaugh defended the Supreme Court’s recent practice of handing victories to President Donald Trump without explaining those...

01.08.2025 10

Ian Millhiser

Trump’s new plan for retribution against Democrats, explained

On Tuesday evening, President Donald Trump called for Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley (R-IA) to eliminate what Trump called the “‘Blue...

30.07.2025 5

Ian Millhiser

3 Supreme Court justices just said they’re fine with race discrimination in elections

Last month, two Republican federal appeals court judges effectively abolished the law banning race discrimination in elections in seven states. On...

25.07.2025 70

Ian Millhiser

The absurd fight over Trump’s MAGA prosecutor in New Jersey, explained

About four months ago, Attorney General Pam Bondi appointed Alina Habba, one of Trump’s personal lawyers, as the top federal prosecutor in New...

23.07.2025 3

Ian Millhiser

The lawsuit seeking to kill Trump’s tariffs is back

Three very important tariff-related stories loom over the US economy this month. The first is that, after a few weeks of relative quiet, President...

23.07.2025 10

Ian Millhiser

The conservative case against Trump’s worst judicial nominee

Emil Bove is one of President Donald Trump’s former criminal defense lawyers. He’s now a senior Justice Department official — and he’s widely...

22.07.2025 4

Ian Millhiser

A new Supreme Court case is an existential threat to the Voting Rights Act

In mid-May, two Republicans on a federal appeals court declared that the Voting Rights Act of 1965 — the landmark law that a Senate report once...

22.07.2025 30

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court just handed Trump his biggest victory of his second term

The Supreme Court ruled on Monday that the Trump administration may fire more than half of the Department of Education’s workforce — mass...

15.07.2025 100

Ian Millhiser

What the Supreme Court did to America in 2025

There are two big winners in the Supreme Court’s most recent term. One is social and religious conservatives. In the last two days of its term,...

02.07.2025 10

Ian Millhiser

The hilarious implications of the Supreme Court’s new porn decision

The Supreme Court upheld a Texas anti-pornography law on Friday that is nearly identical to a federal law it struck down more than two decades...

28.06.2025 30

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The Supreme Court sounds surprisingly open to a case against a death sentence

Ian Millhiser

How the Supreme Court is using Trump to grab more power for itself

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court takes up the most unconstitutional thing Trump has done

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court just made gerrymandering nearly untouchable

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court case that could redefine “cruel and unusual,” explained

Ian Millhiser

Republicans ask the Supreme Court to gut one of the last limits on money in politics

Ian Millhiser

Republicans want the Supreme Court to save them from their own inept mistake

Ian Millhiser

Congress is the Supreme Court’s favorite punching bag, and it’s about to get decked

Ian Millhiser

The case against releasing the Epstein files

Ian Millhiser

Trump’s Justice Department may have accidentally handed Democrats five House seats

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court is about to rule on whether Trump can use troops against Americans

Ian Millhiser

A Supreme Court case about dreadlocks could end up gutting Medicaid

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court will decide whether to toss out thousands of ballots

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court might actually stand up to Trump

Ian Millhiser

The most horrifying religion case to hit the Supreme Court in years is also one of the hardest

Ian Millhiser

Trump’s imperial presidency is Dick Cheney’s final legacy

Ian Millhiser

The tariffs case is Trump’s ultimate loyalty test for the Supreme Court

Ian Millhiser

A new Supreme Court case could turn the National Guard into Trump’s personal army

Ian Millhiser

How the Supreme Court placed ICE above the law

Ian Millhiser

It sure looks like the Voting Rights Act is doomed

Ian Millhiser

The uncomfortable problem with America’s greatest civil rights law

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court fights over whether medical expertise actually exists

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court fight over whether gay and trans people can be “cured,” explained

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court’s newest decision could make it impossible to end the shutdown

Ian Millhiser

One mystery, and two looming disasters, in the next Supreme Court term

Ian Millhiser

Comey’s indictment is a warning to the Supreme Court justices

Ian Millhiser

Trump’s prosecution of a Democratic lawmaker is a test run for authoritarian rule

Ian Millhiser

Trump asks the Supreme Court to give him total control over the US economy

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court is about to decide one of the biggest economic policy cases ever

Ian Millhiser

The overwhelming evidence that the Supreme Court is on Donald Trump’s team

Ian Millhiser

Trump’s lawyers just inadvertently admitted that his tariffs are illegal

Ian Millhiser

Trump just did the one thing the Supreme Court said he can’t do

Ian Millhiser

The Supreme Court hands down some incomprehensible gobbledygook about canceled federal grants

Ian Millhiser

A federal court took 2 years to figure out that gay people have First Amendment rights

Ian Millhiser

Trump’s immigration raids are now before the Supreme Court

Ian Millhiser

Justice Kavanaugh just revealed an unfortunate truth about the Supreme Court

Ian Millhiser

There’s a big, important limit on Trump’s power to seize control of DC’s police

Ian Millhiser

There’s only one type of American who still trusts the Supreme Court

Ian Millhiser

A new Supreme Court case asks whether children still have First Amendment rights