A call to overturn the landmark Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide is on the agenda Friday for the justices' closed-door conference. Among the new cases the justices are expected to consider is a longshot appeal from Kim Davis, the former Kentucky court clerk who refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples following the court's 2015 ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges. Davis had been trying to get the court to overturn a lower court order for her to pay $360,000 in damages and attorney's fees to a couple whom she denied a marriage license. Clarence Thomas is the only justice to call for erasing the same-sex marriage ruling.
The Supreme Court appears ready to gut a key tool of the Voting Rights Act that's helped root out racial discrimination in voting for more than a half century. Such a change would boost Republican electoral prospects, particularly across the South. During 2 1/2 hours of arguments Wednesday, the court's six conservative justices seemed inclined to effectively strike down a Black majority congressional district in Louisiana because it relied too heavily on race. If that is the outcome, it would mark a fundamental change in the 1965 voting rights law that was the centerpiece legislation of the Civil Rights Movement. The court is expected to rule by early summer in 2026.
A federal judge in New Hampshire has issued a ruling pausing President Donald Trump's executive order ending birthright citizenship from taking effect anywhere in the United States. The judge issued a preliminary injunction Thursday blocking Trump's order and certified a class action lawsuit including all children who will be affected. The judge announced his decision, which includes a seven-day stay to allow for appeal, after an hourlong hearing. The ruling puts the birthright citizenship issue on a fast track to return to the Supreme Court.
A divided Supreme Court has ruled that individual judges lack the authority to grant nationwide injunctions, but the decision leaves unclear the fate of President Donald Trump's restrictions on birthright citizenship. The outcome Friday was a victory for Trump, who has complained about individual judges throwing up obstacles to his agenda. But a conservative majority left open the possibility that the birthright citizenship changes could remain blocked nationwide. The Republican president's order would deny citizenship to U.S.-born children of people who are in the country illegally. Trump says the court's decision is "amazing" and a "monumental victory for the Constitution," the separation of powers and the rule of law.
A split Supreme Court has rejected a pair of gun rights cases, though one conservative justice predicts the court will soon consider whether assault weapons bans are constitutional. The majority did not explain its reasoning in turning down the cases over high-capacity magazines and guns like the AR-15, which are popular weapons that have also been used in mass shootings. Justice Brett Kavanaugh indicated Monday he's skeptical that the bans are constitutional and said he expects the court to return to the issue soon. The decisions in cases from Maryland and Rhode Island come three years after the high court handed down a landmark ruling that expanded Second Amendment rights.
