The newest member of the #SCOTUS, #KetanjiBrownJackson, is the epitome of the #rhetorical Justice. Last week, as the Court prepared to finish its work for the year, Jackson issued a pair of dissents that signalled her despair over the Court’s trajectory, her refusal to sugarcoat its behavior, & her willingness to break with her [appeasing] #liberal colleagues, #Kagan & Sonia #Sotomayor.

A rhetorical Justice can call out the conservatives for the sake of educating the current public & planting a flag for history. Or she—& the 3 #liberals are all #women—can tailor her response to the specific case.

Elena #Kagan exemplifies this last, hybrid model. She is more than willing to let the majority have it when that is warranted; she also forges compromises w/individual #conservatives when it is possible to pick up their votes.

Being a #liberal justice on a #SCOTUS with a 6-Justice #conservative super-majority can be a miserable job. The opportunities for victory are scant; frustration is the baseline. There are 2 different models for dealing w/this reality, approaches that can broadly be described as strategic & rhetorical. A strategic Justice can try to lure a conservative vote here & there, to cobble together an elusive majority & at least limit the damage.
#law #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #NewApostolicReformation

Start of this :

https://masto.ai/@Nonilex/114427947242091075

#Religious leaders, politicians & #PublicPolicy experts predict an explosion of new, #government-funded #religious #schools if #SCOTUS sides w/ #Catholic church ofcls in #Oklahoma in the case. Becoming a charter school would mean a steady stream of #funding & no need to charge #tuition.

#law #Constitution #ChurchAndState #judiciary #NAR #NewApostolicReformation #education #indoctrination #FederalistSociety #FarRight #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #USpol

#AmyConeyBarrett, who previously taught at #NotreDame, honorably #recused herself from the case, presumably because of her relationship w/ Garnett & the #law school.

Legal experts have said that one of Chief Justice #JohnRoberts’ most significant legacies is how #SCOTUS’ #conservative majority has steadily pushed #religion into #public life.

But detractors say such schools are a fundamental violation of the separation of #ChurchAndState, could sap dollars from traditional #PublicSchools & could lead to [actual] #discrimination against #religious #minorities, #nonbelievers & #LGBTQ+ #students.

Supporters say denying direct #public #funding to public charter #schools amounts to anti-religious *discrimination* since states allow public money to flow to other types of charter schools [but #Catholic schools get money from the #church, #PublicSchools do not]. They say the schools will also give parents greater #education choices.

#law #SCOTUS #Constitution #ChurchAndState #NAR #NewApostolicReformation #indoctrination #FederalistSociety #FarRight #PartisanCourt #ActivistCourt #USpol

The sea change could have vast — & unpredictable — implications for the nation’s #parochial & traditional #PublicSchools alike, sparking efforts to create similar schools in other states. It would also supercharge a push by the #conservative majority on #SCOTUS to give #religion new prominence in #public life.

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.