Someday We'll Be Together

June 8, 2023 10:39 AM

Supreme Court rejects voting map that diluted Black voters' power (NYT gift)

US Supreme Court rules in favour of Alabama black voters (Al Jazeera)
Supreme Court rules in favor of Black Alabamans in unexpected defense of Voting Rights Act (AP)

Justices Roberts and Kavanaugh joined Sotomayor, Kagan, and Jackson in the majority opinion.

Also, Supreme Court sides with Jack Daniels in dispute over dog toy (ABC)

posted by box (32 comments total)

Law professor Steve Vladeck on Twitter: "If you assume that additional majority-minority districts in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, & 1–2 other states would’ve been safe Democratic seats, then today’s #SCOTUS ruling strongly suggests that the Court’s 2022 shadow docket stays wrongly gave Republicans control of the House."
posted by box at 10:40 AM on June 8, 2023 [18 favorites]

Didn't expect to see that. More please.
posted by cmfletcher at 10:47 AM on June 8, 2023 [9 favorites]

Oof, Rogers v. Grimaldi takes it on the chin.
posted by praemunire at 10:48 AM on June 8, 2023 [1 favorite]

Dilution is really the absolute worst metaphor for how gerrymandering works.
posted by srboisvert at 10:50 AM on June 8, 2023 [8 favorites]

North Carolina and Florida will just ignore this by coming up with one racist plan after another to protect their gerrymanding until it is too late to correct it for election day.
posted by dances_with_sneetches at 10:51 AM on June 8, 2023 [7 favorites]

Any plausible theories out there yet as to WTF is going on with Roberts and Kavanaugh, here?
posted by merriment at 10:56 AM on June 8, 2023

The NYT article quotes a UCLA law professor: “Roberts and Kavanaugh’s joining with the liberals in preserving the status quo helps not only minority voters, but the court’s fragile legitimacy in the face of these other rulings and ethics scandals.”
posted by box at 10:57 AM on June 8, 2023 [23 favorites]

Yeah, my read is that this is a (relatively) low-stakes fig leaf attempt to cover the mincemeat that's become of SCOTUS's legitimacy.
posted by tclark at 11:01 AM on June 8, 2023 [16 favorites]

Thomas in particular, but the conservative majority in general, have argued that racial gerrymandering is BAD but partisan gerrymandering NO PROBLEM. So the key bit here is that these states did not provide enough cover that the racism in the gerrymandering stays hidden.

Roberts is desperate to have his legacy say that he didn't run the most blatantly partisan SCOTUS in history, which is comically quixotic but there ya go.

As terrible as I think Kavanaugh is he's not going to be 100% with the Alito/Thomas right wing monster hydra.
posted by mcstayinskool at 11:03 AM on June 8, 2023 [7 favorites]

It feels like they’re fattening us up for the kill.

Still, I’m happy for the voters who brought the case.
posted by kitten kaboodle at 11:10 AM on June 8, 2023 [2 favorites]

Any plausible theories out there yet as to WTF is going on with Roberts and Kavanaugh, here?

They are trying to avoid being executed by revolutionaries in about 15 years.
posted by rhymedirective at 11:41 AM on June 8, 2023 [18 favorites]

Wild theory - Roberts and Kavanaugh joined the majority because they thought Alabama’s map was unconstitutional.

Also, I doubt the Alabama voters think the decision is a low stakes fig leaf.

Sometimes it’s ok to just take the W.
posted by lumpy at 11:54 AM on June 8, 2023 [22 favorites]

Breaking Down the Supreme Court's Voting Rights Act Decision Out of Alabama by Caroline Sullivan for Democracy Docket: Today’s decision did not restore previously weakened sections of the VRA, but it maintained the status quo.

I am genuinely surprised by this, and happy to have been wrong. Of course, we're still waiting on what SCOTUS will do with Moore v Harper, so we aren't out of the terrible electoral decisions woods yet for this term. Let alone the pending cases on affirmative action.
posted by the primroses were over at 12:01 PM on June 8, 2023 [1 favorite]

Wild theory - Roberts and Kavanaugh joined the majority because they thought Alabama’s map was unconstitutional.

Roberts and Kavanagh didn't get where they are by thinking in terms of "constitutional" and "unconstitutional". They got where they are by thinking in terms of "what we can get away with". They joined -- they formed the majority because they realize that nakedly partisan shots at democracy aren't good for making money flow upward to their billionaire patrons.
posted by Etrigan at 12:08 PM on June 8, 2023 [11 favorites]

It's kind of stunning that Kavanaugh, as a rapist/sexual assaulter/generally gross dude, is far from being the most repellent member of the current court.

I'm happy to see this decision, regardless of if it is just them trying to regain a bit of respectability.
posted by Dip Flash at 12:31 PM on June 8, 2023 [6 favorites]

> "Wild theory - Roberts and Kavanaugh joined the majority because they thought Alabama’s map was unconstitutional."

They've never made rulings on that basis before. I don't see why they would start now.
posted by kyrademon at 12:33 PM on June 8, 2023 [3 favorites]

Yeah, the reason why we're in this situation is because progressives and liberals won't stop assuming good faith of these monsters.
posted by rhymedirective at 12:35 PM on June 8, 2023 [5 favorites]

I Assume this means that we will get a chance to vote in louisiana as well? Thank you alabama.
posted by eustatic at 12:56 PM on June 8, 2023 [3 favorites]

1. Roberts and Kavanaugh didn't come onto the court to be perceived as Klansmen. The rest of the conservative justices don't give a fuck.

2. They're about to strike down affirmative action, although the way that will shake out in practice could make for some strange alliances in and of itself.
posted by kingdead at 12:59 PM on June 8, 2023

Do the supreme justices hang out with each other and talk about what they want to do as a team? Or, is it like a city commission, where they can only talk to each other if quorum has been met and people are watching?
posted by rebent at 1:11 PM on June 8, 2023

Do the supreme justices hang out with each other and talk about what they want to do as a team? Or, is it like a city commission, where they can only talk to each other if quorum has been met and people are watching?

You might want to keep a closer eye on your city commissioners.
posted by srboisvert at 1:23 PM on June 8, 2023 [16 favorites]

I don't know about the current justices, but Ginsburg and Scalia were friends that hung out together.

"It is common knowledge in DC that the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia and the now-late Ruth Bader Ginsburg were close personal friends. They shared a love of opera, went souvenir shopping together when they traveled, and rode an elephant in India with Scalia up front. Their families spent New Year's Eve together, and when Chief Justice (John) Roberts announced the death of Ginsburg's husband, Marty, Scalia wept on the bench," the post says.
posted by ActingTheGoat at 1:25 PM on June 8, 2023 [2 favorites]

Any plausible theories out there yet as to WTF is going on with Roberts and Kavanaugh, here?

This might not be true with the specific geography of AL, but *in general* creating majority-Black districts is itself a weak Republican gerrymander. Even moreso districts with Black supermajorities.
posted by GCU Sweet and Full of Grace at 1:31 PM on June 8, 2023 [2 favorites]

I have no doubt that Kavanaugh and Roberts, more than they will admit to themselves, engage in motivated reasoning. (That's probably true of me and you as well.) But, and call me naive, I also think that they honestly try to determine what they think is the "right" answer on a legal basis. The crux of the problem is that the Republicans do their darnedest to select judges whose legal beliefs align with the political beliefs of their party, and they have been getting better at that, with fewer Souters and more Alitos.
posted by Mr.Know-it-some at 1:31 PM on June 8, 2023 [1 favorite]

(After the announcement, the Cook Political Report changed its ratings for five districts in AL, LA, and NC.)
posted by box at 1:38 PM on June 8, 2023 [5 favorites]

The crux of the problem is that the Republicans do their darnedest to select judges whose legal beliefs align with the political beliefs of their party, and they have been getting better at that, with fewer Souters and more Alitos.

They're not so much choosing them these days as cultivating them horticulturally. Neil Gorsuch was practically raised from birth to be a Republican Supreme Court justice endorsed by the Federalist Society. The Republicans have built an industrial framework for manufacturing the jurists that it requires to twist and torture the word of law to their own ends.
posted by srboisvert at 2:36 PM on June 8, 2023 [14 favorites]

Any plausible theories out there yet as to WTF is going on with Roberts and Kavanaugh, here?

I've been assuming that Roberts is getting nervous about how nakedly partisan his court is. As for Kavanaugh, well, I saw this suggestion on Twitter.
posted by grandiloquiet at 2:51 PM on June 8, 2023 [3 favorites]

One of the best things I've found in my life to help me feel sane when it comes to SCOTUS matters is the Crooked podcast Strict Scrutiny. And right now, this is prime season for them. Smart women having smart and snarky conversations about what they're calling The YOLO Court... It's been perfect for me.

I cannot wait to hear what they can say about this on their new episode on Monday.
posted by hippybear at 4:52 PM on June 8, 2023 [2 favorites]

Strict Scrutiny is the one podcast I have merch from! I got a t-shirt that says "Stare Decisis is for Suckers" on it a couple years ago.
posted by suelac at 5:26 PM on June 8, 2023

Any plausible theories out there yet as to WTF is going on with Roberts and Kavanaugh, here?

I think Kavanaugh is watching what the DOJ is doing to Trump and hoping to move down a few slots on the 'priority to prosecute' list.
posted by jamjam at 1:09 PM on June 9, 2023 [2 favorites]

Yeah, do Texas now.
posted by blurker at 6:35 PM on June 9, 2023 [2 favorites]

I want a Marvel superhero who goes after corrupt, racist, corporation-licking politicians. Just boring, venal, stupid, greedy, corrupt everyday politicians. One at a time. The superhero's power would be unimaginable tenacity, endless funding, an inability to be dissuaded, an Instagram account with 200 million followers and an insatiable hunger for justice, based on childhood trauma. They wouldn't even need a costume or a mask.
posted by mecran01 at 9:15 AM on June 12, 2023 [1 favorite]