SCOTUStoday for Wednesday, December 24

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate it! SCOTUStoday will be back in your inboxes on Monday, Dec. 29.

We’ll be sending abridged editions from Monday to Wednesday, Dec. 31, and then taking that Thursday and Friday off. We will resume our regularly scheduled programming on Monday, Jan. 5.

SCOTUS Quick Hits

• The Supreme Court on Tuesday left in place a ruling by a federal judge in Chicago that bars the Trump administration from deploying the National Guard in Illinois. For more on the decision, see the On Site section below.

Morning Reads

• The Supreme Court hasn’t ruled on Louisiana’s redistricting. What happens next? (Alyse Pfeil, The Times-Picayune)(Paywall) — The Supreme Court’s June announcement that it would hear new arguments in Louisiana v. Callais, a case on race-based redistricting and the Voting Rights Act, prompted Louisiana to push back its spring 2026 elections and prepare for a last-minute redistricting effort. “But as 2025 draws to a close with no sign of a decision by the high court, … state leaders are starting to think through what happens next” and asking “[w]hat is the latest date that state lawmakers can draw a new congressional map in time to use it for the 2026 midterms,” according to The Times-Picayune.
• Trump credits tariffs for surprisingly robust economic growth (Ashleigh Fields, The Hill) — In a social media post on Tuesday, President Donald Trump called on the country to “[p]ray for the U.S. Supreme Court” as he credited his tariffs for “GREAT USA Economic Numbers,” according to The Hill. The post referenced newly released data showing that, “[i]n the third quarter, the economy grew by 4.3 percent with an increase in exports and consumer spending.”
• Judges who ruled against Trump say harassment and threats have changed their lives (Lawrence Hurley, NBC News) — With political tensions high, “dozens of federal judges … have found themselves at the center of a political maelstrom as they have ruled against President Donald Trump or spoken up in defense of the judiciary,” NBC News reported in a story recounting violent incidents and threats of violence against judges from the past year. “[Judge John] Coughenour pointed to the Trump administration’s harsh criticism of judges” when asked about what’s driving the uptick in harassment. “White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson defended the administration’s criticisms of judges, pointing out in a statement last week that the Supreme Court has regularly blocked the same rulings the White House has taken issue with.”
• Supreme Court Justice Alito grants Post-Gazette time to fight 3rd Circuit panel decision (Patrick Varine, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review) — On Monday, Justice Samuel Alito granted a request from the owners of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for an administrative stay in a case on their negotiations with the paper’s union employees. The stay temporarily pauses a ruling from a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit, which “found the Post-Gazette bargained in bad faith while trying to agree on a new contract,” according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
• Kristen Waggoner’s Legal Crusade for Conservative Christian Values (Maggie Severns and Jess Bravin, The Wall Street Journal)(Paywall) — The Wall Street Journal recently profiled Kristen Waggoner, chief executive of the Alliance Defending Freedom, the Christian legal advocacy group that has won “16 Supreme Court cases that have fundamentally altered the American legal landscape.” Waggoner and ADF have “four cases before the Supreme Court this term, including one challenging a ban in Colorado on conversion therapy, which discourages children from adopting gay identities or transitioning genders. In January, ADF will defend Idaho and West Virginia laws that ban transgender students from participating in women’s sports.”

On Site

From Amy Howe

Supreme Court rejects Trump’s effort to deploy National Guard in Illinois

In a three-page unsigned order on Tuesday, the Supreme Court turned down the Trump administration’s request to put a temporary restraining order preventing the National Guard’s deployment in Chicago on hold while litigation continues. Justices Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, and Neil Gorsuch dissented.

Relist Watch

December docket dash: twenty new (likely) relists on seven issues

The Supreme Court continues to churn through relisted cases at a brisk clip as it works to fill out the rest of this term’s argument calendar. Here’s a look at cases from the last conference that appear headed for relisting on issues like greenhouse gas emissions and excessive fines.

Contributor Corner

Out of the shadows

In his latest Nuts and Bolts column, Stephen Wermiel reflected on why the Supreme Court’s “shadow docket” is attracting so much attention these days. “It is not only this dramatic change in the volume of requests that has catapulted the interim docket into public debate, but also the nature of the issues being decided and the manner of decisions,” Wermiel wrote.