Well, are they or aren’t they?
Has the SCOTUS swung to the right with the Kavanagh seating and will Roberts compensate by shifting left to restore what he considers balance? Ginsberg recently hinted at a lot of 5-4 decisions favoring conservatives. Though both Kavanaugh and Gorsuch have recently gone rogue on occasion. With twenty-four rulings on deck for decision in a couple of weeks some aspects of those questions will be answered.
A big SCOTUS vote will be whether the Trump administration can put a citizenship question on the 2020 census. The consequences are big. Political maps are redrawn and districts are changed over this data every ten-year census. Citizenship query on, less illegals counted, thus they have less political impact and the Dems have less power. Keep it off, more illegals counted as population and Dems gain more power and possible seats.
Gerrymandering, a practice that both parties abuse with abandon, is also on the agenda. Specifically, cases in Maryland, North Carolina, and Virginia will be affected before next year. The justices could set new rules or let party majorities in state legislatures continue to carve up voting districts like Christmas hams to isolate their foes and protect their own.
LGBT, or whatever acronym is faddish this week, and discrimination in the workplace is on tap, as is whether the administration can end the DACA program that lets kids who illegally get across the border stay here.
All these cases and more will have a profound political impact in 2020. One side, maybe both on different issues, will claim martyrdom and attempt to rile up the base for revenge. Another may use victories as a reason to stay the course.
No matter who wins or loses it reminds us what serious power the unelected SCOTUS has over our national and individual lives. It further showcases that U.S. Senate and state legislative elections matter, as they respectively confirm White House SCOTUS picks and draw political district lines.
So that next primary or even general election you don’t vote in for whatever lame reason?
Think again.
By ignoring your duty there it makes you a bystander to your own fate, not to mention to the fate of America.
