#GhostGuns, which have been used in a growing number of #crimes over the past decade, are typically assembled at home using parts, kits or pieces printed by #3Dprinters. Manufacturers say they don’t have to comply w/ #regulations on other #guns sold commercially because ghost guns don’t meet the #legal definition of a “firearm” under the nation’s main #GunControl #law & are marketed for hobbyists.

#ChiefJustice #JohnRoberts expressed incredulity at that, given how easy they are to assemble.

The NYT recently reported on the internal #SCOTUS deliberations, & they paint #ChiefJustice #JohnRoberts, author of the #Trump #immunity decision, as having turned from a justice known for seeking common ground & minimalist outcomes to one set out to protect the office of the [Trump] presidency at all costs.

“As #ChiefJustice #JohnRoberts & his archconservative supermajority have asserted dominance & made it harder for #Congress & #POTUS to #govern, #ElizabethPrelogar has been there all along: making sure the govt, if it’s going to lose, will at least lose well. Or wielding her oratory skills & legal argumentation to convince, at minimum, 2 members of Roberts’s bloc to rule for her side—or rule in a way the damage to our #laws & institutions is manageable. Or averted for a time.”

It would appear that the #ChiefJustice of #SCOTUS, #JohnRoberts, has been fully captured by the #cult of #Trump. The article…details how Roberts has been help[ing] Trump accomplish his #legal & #political goals.…It reveals…that Roberts wanted to make sure Trump could run in this #election, wanted to make sure Trump escaped #accountability for his many #crimes, & wanted to grant Trump unprecedented #immunity to commit additional crimes should he be returned to office.

Since 1957, when Dwight Eisenhower sent federal troops to Arkansas, to enforce #BrownvBoardOfEducation, powerful #politicians have mostly agreed to honor & enforce the decisions of #SCOTUS, a convention that had been flagrantly defied by several southern governors of that era. (It had been defied earlier, too, by President #AndrewJackson, who, when #ChiefJustice #JohnMarshall ruled in 1832 that treaties made w/the Cherokees must be respected, was alleged to have said, “Let him enforce it”…)
#law

That left #ChiefJustice #JohnRoberts in control of the outcome. He LINGERED over the choice…. Ultimately, he sided w/the 4 conservatives in an opinion that he wrote but that was issued unsigned. Justice #AmyConeyBarrett & the 3 #liberals wrote concurrences saying the majority had gone TOO FAR.

While all 9 justices agreed that #Trump should remain on state ballots, 4 of the conservatives were pushing to go beyond that & rule that the #Constitution’s prohibition would require congressional action. Such a decision would provide even greater protection for Trump: To prevent him from taking office if he won re-election, #Congress would have to vote to enforce the #insurrectionist ban.

#SCOTUS’ #conservative supermajority has prevailed in many of the most consequential cases in recent years. This time, #ChiefJustice #JohnRoberts told his colleagues he wanted the decision to be unanimous & unsigned. In any politically charged case, agreement among the justices made the decision more authoritative. He even said he would consult individually w/everyone to discuss what they would accept — a rare step.

#ChiefJustice #JohnRoberts’s Unsigned Opinion

…In Feb, the justices heard arguments on a provocative question. The #Constitution’s #FourteenthAmendment, adopted after the Civil War, contains language barring #insurrectionists from holding office. So could #Colorado kick #Trump off the ballot in its #Republican primary, creating an obstacle for his presidential campaign?

“It’s a strange, sprawling opinion,” said William Baude, a University of Chicago #law prof & a fmr clerk to #ChiefJustice #JohnRoberts. “It’s hard to tell what exactly it is trying to do.”

Others said the ruling was untethered from the law. “It’s certainly not really tied to the #Constitution,” said Stephen R. McAllister, a law prof at University of Kansas & fmr clerk to Justice #ClarenceThomas.

Now #JohnRoberts’ opinion is the key doc in a #legal drama playing out this autumn, as the judge presiding over the long-delayed trial, Tanya S. #Chutkan, parses what the court meant and how to move forward. Legal scholars say her job won’t be easy. Despite the #ChiefJustice’s reputation as a methodical craftsman, many experts, both conservative & liberal, say he produced a disjointed, tough-to-interpret opinion.

…Both #conservatives & #liberals saw it as an epic win for #Trump. He & his supporters exulted over the decision, which greatly expanded presidential #immunity & pushed off any trial until well after the #election —if ever. To #Democrats, the #Republican-appointed #SCOTUS justices were brushing away the #violent Capitol attack & abandoning the core principle that no one is above the #law. The #ChiefJustice, who had long said he wanted to keep the court out of #politics, had plunged it deeply in.

#ChiefJustice #JohnRoberts’ opinion cited “enduring principles,” quoted Alexander Hamilton’s endorsement of a vigorous presidency, & asserted it would be a mistake to dwell too much on #Trump’s actions. “In a case like this one, focusing on ‘transient results’ may have profound consequences for the separation of powers & for the future of our Republic,” he wrote. “Our perspective must be more farsighted.”

Though the #ChiefJustice often favors consensus, he did not take the opening. As the court split 6 to 3, #conservatives vs #liberals, Justice #Sotomayor started work on a 5-alarm dissent warning of #danger to #democracy.

In his writings on the #immunity case, #JohnRoberts seemed confident that his arguments would soar above #politics, persuade the public, & stand the test of time. [#hubris]