'Hidden' provision in Trump's big bill could disarm US Supreme Court
'Hidden' provision in Trump's big bill could disarm US Supreme Court
The provision would bar courts from enforcing contempt citations for violations of injunctions or temporary restraining orders unless a bond has been paid.
A provision "hidden" in the sweeping budget bill that passed the U.S. House on Thursday seeks to limit the ability of courts—including the U.S. Supreme Court—from enforcing their orders.
"No court of the United States may use appropriated funds to enforce a contempt citation for failure to comply with an injunction or temporary restraining order if no security was given when the injunction or order was issued," the provision in the bill, which is more than 1,000 pages long, says.
The provision "would make most existing injunctions—in antitrust cases, police reform cases, school desegregation cases, and others—unenforceable," Erwin Chemerinsky, the dean of the University of California Berkeley School of Law, told Newsweek. "It serves no purpose but to weaken the power of the federal courts."
"No court of the United States may use appropriated funds to enforce a contempt citation for failure to comply with an injunction or temporary restraining order if no security was given when the injunction or order was issued," the provision in the bill, which is more than 1,000 pages long, says.
The provision "would make most existing injunctions—in antitrust cases, police reform cases, school desegregation cases, and others—unenforceable," Erwin Chemerinsky, the dean of the University of California Berkeley School of Law, told Newsweek. "It serves no purpose but to weaken the power of the federal courts."
This is the kind of legislation you would use to pave the way for fascism. It sets the stage for autocracy. It has in mind a ruler. There's no other explanation.
The only solution left, the Blue States should secede to Canada.
We already have a basic problem
Governance ideally is people of good intentions coming together to make things better
Conservatives don't have good intentions
Prosecutors control law enforcement
Courts have no way to enforce their rulingsto what end? he is already not following any of the SCOTUS orders that are not convenient to him and receiving no consequences for it
I think this might be to make sure the defacto castration of the courts is now written into law
It's amazing that it took the US 10 times less time than Russia to become a full dictatorship. Putin started openly cracking down on opponents in 2011, 11 years into his rule (technical Medvedev was prez at that time, but not really). It amuses me to no end that some americans believe that the US is going to turn back into a democracy on its own, without them taking up arms against maga.
Several people the courts ordered released, were released. So it isn't true that he isn't following any of the scotus orders. People are saying that this law change will allow him to ignore all orders without threat of being held in contempt. I'm not sure that interpretation is correct. And even so, I imagine that scotus can just declare it unconstitutional. That will put the question in the hands of the people scotus asks to enforce their contempt rulling. I imagine if those people refuse, the court can ask for volunteers to be deputized. So all in all it isn't clear where this is going.
oh please, he is already ruling like a king and nobody is doing anything. This is another move of the goal post to justify inaction
This protects him even if the Dems take back Congress or the Republicans finally turn on him.
You can't legislate Constitutional overrides. Legislation either conforms to the Constitution, or it is declared invalid and gets sent back to Congress for reworking. It doesn't matter if it passes both Houses and gets signed by the President. If the Judiciary rules that it violates the Constitution, it gets thrown out. That's how this works.
A King, a priest, a rich man and a sellsword are in a room. Those three man tell the sellsword to kill the other two. Who lives and who dies?
I know how to do this, Astrid. The sell sword lives, and joins the brotherhood.
Yeah well the thing is:
If no one enforces the judiciary's edicts, but they all say aye to whatever trump's new decree of the day is then Judicial is just standing there foot in mouth ...This only works if everyone is honorable and defends their power. Just the writing of this bill (and others) shows the legislature's willingness to cede their own power. I have little confidence that the current SCOTUS bench will do anything to keep their own. Add to that a weakness in our 3 branch system that only one branch has the power of force.
Technically, the consitution never explicitly gave the Supreme Court the power to overturn laws, its just a precedent set by Marbury vs Madison, and congress and the president at the time just went along with it. I could totally see the military use this logic and go "Hmm... seems legit" and proceed to ignore court orders.
Yeah well congress is currently controlled by ass clowns so here we are.
Someone with standing has to file a case in court, then get a ruling in their favor.
Until then, this would stand.
Makes you think about the headline. "Could disarm US Supreme Court" is at that point hyperbolic and misleading.
It's crazy that the Supreme Court need to have guns, but I wouldn't expect anything else from the US