Commentary: Overturning ‘Roe v. Wade’ Has Already Saved 32,000 Babies

You know there’s something to celebrate when The New York Times is forced to report in its headline: “The first estimate of births since Dobbs found that almost a quarter of women who would have gotten abortions carried their pregnancies to term.”

The number of infant lives saved by last year’s landmark Supreme Court decision is estimated at 32,000, according to a report by researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology, Middlebury College, and the German Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

Read the full story

Idaho Asks Supreme Court to Stop Federal Government from Using ERs as ‘Enclave’ for Abortions

Idaho is asking the Supreme Court to intervene and allow the state to enforce its pro-life law despite the Biden Administration’s efforts to block it by allowing abortions in emergency rooms, according to court documents.

The Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act is meant to ensure that all patients who request emergency room treatment are examined, but Idaho argued in its court filing Monday that the law turns “protection for the uninsured into a federal super-statute on the issue of abortion, one that strips Idaho of its sovereign interest in protecting innocent human life and turns emergency rooms into a federal enclave where state standards of care do not apply.”

Read the full story

Liberal ‘Dark Money’ Groups Gave Millions to SCOTUS Watchdogs Targeting Alito, Thomas, Docs Show

Nonprofit organizations managed by the liberal “dark money” consulting firm Arabella Advisors gave millions of dollars to “nonpartisan” Supreme Court watchdogs, new documents show, after a campaign was launched earlier this year targeting conservative Supreme Court Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito for not fully disclosing their finances.

Former Clinton appointee Eric Kessler founded Arabella Advisors in 2005, and its subsidiaries include the Sixteen Thirty Fund, the Hopewell Fund, the New Venture Fund, the Windward Fund and the North Fund. 

Read the full story

Federal Appeals Court Ruling Could Gut Voting Rights Act

A crucial decision by a federal appeals court on Monday could lead to the Voting Rights Act (VRA) losing much of its strength as a law, should the decision be upheld by the Supreme Court.

Politico reports that the ruling by the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals declared that only the federal government is allowed to sue under a key section of the civil rights law, not private citizens or civil rights groups, which had used the law to do so in the past.

Read the full story

Supreme Court Releases Code of Conduct

The U.S. Supreme Court released its own “Code of Conduct” on Monday evening to “set out succinctly and gather in one place the ethics rules and principles that guide the conduct of the members of the court.”

The Code of Conduct comes after intense pressure from liberal activist groups for the justices to implement an ethics code. Those activists particularly have taken aim at Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, accusing him of violating the court’s ethics rules.

Read the full story

Commentary: Domestic Violence Protection Orders Don’t Pass Constitutional Muster

How certain should we be that someone did something wrong before they lose their right to own a gun? Tuesday, the Supreme Court will hear a case that could have a major impact on how courts evaluate the constitutionality of gun control laws. The Biden administration asked for a review of the 5th Circuit Court’s decision not to deprive Zackey Rahimi of his right to own guns. 

Read the full story

Commentary: The Left Ramps Up the Supreme Court Intimidation Campaign

The Left’s campaign of vilification and intimidation to try to control the Supreme Court is a saga with a number of shameful chapters dating back to the smearing of Robert Bork in 1987. Their game plan is simple: defeat originalist nominees to the Court by whatever illegitimate attacks can be conjured up. Failing that, bully and delegitimize the Supreme Court justices who are not deciding cases with the policy-driven activism that is the hallmark of the modern Left. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) has made this his mission.

Read the full story

Supreme Court Takes Up Landmark Government Censorship Case

The Supreme Court on Friday took up Missouri v. Biden, the free speech case challenging the Biden administration’s efforts to censor content on social media, while issuing a pause on a preliminary injunction granted by a lower court.

Republican attorneys general from Missouri and Louisiana sued the Biden administration over its communications with social media companies related to the suppression of online speech, arguing it violated the First Amendment. District of Louisiana Judge Terry A. Doughty issued an injunction in July blocking certain parts of President Joe Biden’s administration from colluding with social media platforms to censor content online. The Supreme Court paused the injunction, but agreed to take up the case, according to the court order.

Read the full story

17 Minnesota DFL Legislators Sign Brief Asking Supreme Court to Preserve Access to Abortion Pill

Seventeen Democrat legislators from Minnesota have attached their names to an amicus brief last week that asks the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn an appellate court decision that would roll back the public’s access to mifepristone, an abortion-inducing medication.

The DFLers joined a group of more than 600 Democrat legislators from 49 states in signing onto the brief, which asks the nation’s highest court to reject the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals’ August ruling in FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine that concluded several decisions the FDA took in 2016 to make mifepristone more broadly available to women were illegal.

Read the full story

SCOTUS Backs Biden Admin ‘Ghost Guns’ Rule for Second Time

The Supreme Court on Monday blocked a federal judge’s order suspending the Biden administration’s “ghost guns” rule, which regulates gun parts kits as traditional firearms.

After blocking U.S. District for the Northern District of Texas Judge Reed O’Connor’s decision to vacate the rule nationwide in August, the Supreme Court vacated O’Connor’s more recent Sept. 14 injunction suspending enforcement of the regulation against two manufacturing companies, Blackhawk Manufacturing and Defense Distributed. The justice’s decision leaves in place the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) “Frame or Receiver” rule, which expands the definition of firearm to encompass parts kits that are “readily convertible to functional weapons” or “functional ‘frames’ or ‘receivers’ of weapons.

Read the full story

Supreme Court Issues Another Temporary Pause on Injunction Against Biden Admin Censorship Efforts

Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito on Friday issued another stay of an injunction blocking the Biden administration from encouraging social media companies to censor speech.

Alito’s administrative stay blocks the injunction originally issued by District of Louisiana Judge Terry A. Doughty until Oct. 20, giving the justices more time to consider the Biden administration’s request for a longer stay on the injunction and to take up the case. Alito has issued short stays against the injunction twice, with the last one expiring Sept. 27.

Read the full story

Commentary: TFA Joins GOA in Amicus Brief to Supreme Court in Challenge to Part of the 1968 Gun Control Act

Tennessee Firearms Association joined Gun Owners of America and other entities in an amicus brief that was filed with the United States Supreme Court on October 4, 2023, in the case of United States v. Rahimi, No 22-915.

Rahimi had been charged with and convicted of violating 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(8), which prohibits an individual who is subject to certain types of restraining orders from possessing a firearm. The initial federal district court denied his motion to dismiss the indictment. He appealed that denial to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals which held, following this Court’s decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Assn. v. Bruen, 142 S.Ct.211 that § 922(g)(8) “is inconsistent with the Second Amendment’s text and historical understanding.” United States v. Rahimi, 61 F.4th 443, 453 (5th Cir. 2023). Thus, the conviction was set aside.

Read the full story

‘Constitutional Crisis’: Wisconsin Senate President Chris Kapenga Calls on the Assembly to Impeach Rogue Elections Administrator

Senate President Chris Kapenga is urging the Assembly to take up the impeachment of rogue Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe, who was ousted by the Republican-controlled Senate nearly a month ago but refuses to step down.

In a letter to Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester), Kapenga wrote that it is unprecedented for a state appointee to refuse to obey the Senate through its advice and consent powers, as Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) Administrator Meagan Wolfe has done.

Read the full story

Justice Clarence Thomas to Hear Gun Rights Lawsuit from New York

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas will hear a lawsuit that has been filed by pro-Second Amendment groups in New York, challenging the state’s strict laws on the concealed carrying of firearms.

As reported by Just The News, Justice Thomas has arranged for a conference with the entire court that will take place on October 6th, during which he will consider a challenge to the New York Concealed Carry Improvement Act’s provision on background checks for purchases of ammunition. The law went into effect just several weeks ago.

Read the full story

Wisconsin Pro-Life Groups Call on Liberal DAs to Enforce Abortion Law and Stop Planned Parenthood

Pro-life groups are calling on liberal district attorneys in the Badger State’s two largest cities to enforce abortion statute as Planned Parenthood resumes performing abortions in Wisconsin.

Members of Wisconsin Right to Life, Wisconsin Family Action, and Pro-Life Wisconsin held a press conference last week at the state Capitol demanding Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne and his liberal counterpart, Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm follow statute 940.04, which prohibits most abortions in the state.

Read the full story

Supreme Court Extends Pause on Appeals Court Ruling on Biden Admin Censorship Efforts

The Supreme Court on Friday extended its stay on an injunction blocking the Biden administration from coercing or significantly encouraging social media companies to censor speech.

Justice Samuel Alito temporarily froze the injunction until Sept. 22 last week after the Biden administration requested a stay. On Friday, the justices extended the stay to Sept. 27.

Read the full story

Senator Bill Hagerty Leads Banking Committee Republicans in Opposing Government Agency’s Race-Based Housing Plans

Tennessee U.S. Senator and member of the Senate Banking Committee Bill Hagerty (R-TN) led the Republican members of the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday in sending a letter to Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Sandra Thompson in opposition to the agency’s racial equity housing plans, which encourage discrimination based on race.

“Yesterday, I led my Senate Banking Committee GOP colleagues in sending a letter to FHFA Director Sandra Thompson calling out racial equity housing plans that encourage discrimination on the basis of race, rather than focusing on ensuring the safety and soundness of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac,” Hagerty said.

Read the full story

A Closer Look at Vivek Ramaswamy’s Bold Plan to Take Down the Administrative State

President Calvin Coolidge once said, “unless bureaucracy is constantly resisted it breaks down representative government and overwhelms democracy.”

GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy wants to pick up where old Silent Cal, Ronald Reagan and Donald Trump left off, proposing a plan to halve the size of the federal administrative state in his first year in office — should he be elected.

Read the full story

GOP Presidential Candidate Vivek Ramaswamy Says He’d Win a Legal Challenge to His Plan to Slash the Administrative State

Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy knows there would be legal challenges to his sweeping plan to drastically reduce the size of the administrative state. The 38-year-old political outsider knows the big government left won’t give up the heart of the D.C swamp without a bruising fight.

Ramaswamy’s good with that.

Read the full story

The Supreme Court Could Weigh In on Alleged ‘Overcriminalization’ of January 6 Cases

Two Jan. 6 defendants are asking the Supreme Court to correct what they argue is “prosecutorial overcharging” before their cases go to trial.

Edward Lang and Garrett Miller, who allegedly both entered the Capitol on Jan. 6, are asking the Supreme Court to dismiss an obstruction charge against them before their trials, alleging prosecutors broadened an unrelated statute to “over-penalize” those who participated in the riots, according to their petitions. If the Supreme Court takes the case, it could have broad implications for hundreds of other Jan. 6 defendants indicted under the statute.

Read the full story

Football Coach Who Won Landmark Court Case on Public Prayer Resigns

Joe Kennedy resigned from his position as assistant football coach at Bremerton High School on Wednesday after the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in June 2022 allowed him to pray on the football field, according to Kennedy’s website.

Kennedy coached his first game since 2015 on Sept. 1 after he was suspended for refusing to stop praying on the field after each game. He had expressed before the game that he was unsure how long he would stay on as a coach and ultimately offered his resignation this week, citing the ailing health of a family member out of state and a desire to become an advocate for religious freedom, according to a statement from Kennedy’s website.

Read the full story

Court Rules Wisconsin Elections Commission Illegally Used Voter Registration Form

The Wisconsin Elections Commission has lost a lawsuit challenging its use of an unlawful voter registration form, the latest legal problem for a controversial state elections regulator with a history of bending the law.

The lawsuit, filed by the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL) on behalf of Wisconsin taxpayer and voter Richard Braun, challenged the use of the National Mail Voter Registration Form in Wisconsin.

Read the full story

Wisconsin U.S. Senator Ron Johnson Introduces Resolution to Overturn Biden’s Next ‘Reckless’ Student Loan Bailout

U.S. Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) joined 18 of his Republican colleagues on Tuesday in introducing a Congressional Review Act resolution of disapproval.

The CRA aims to end President Joe Biden’s latest end-around to the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling this summer striking down the administration’s original student loan bailout.

Read the full story

Coach at Center of Religious Supreme Court Victory Says He Has ‘A Lot of Angst’ About Returning to the Field

High School Assistant Coach Joe Kennedy said he’s nervous about returning to the football field Friday after winning a years-long battle in the Supreme Court in 2022 allowing him to pray on the field, according to an interview with the Associated Press.

Bremerton High School, located in Washington state, is having its opening game of the season and it will be the first time Kennedy has coached since 2015 after he was suspended by Bremerton School District (BSD) for refusing to stop praying on the field, according to the AP. Kennedy expressed that he was nervous about people’s expectations and the reaction to him praying after the game.

Read the full story

Virginia Natural Gas Pipeline Continues Construction Through Opposition

After a ruling in its favor from the Supreme Court at the end of July, it appeared that construction on the 303-mile natural gas Mountain Valley Pipeline could continue unhindered in Virginia. Not so.

The Supreme Court decision settled objections to a provision congressional Republicans had slipped into the debt ceiling bill passed in June. The provision directed government agencies to grant the needed permits for the pipeline’s completion. It moved jurisdiction over the pipeline from the Fourth Circuit Court – which had ruled against it in several cases – to the D.C. federal court.

Read the full story

Commentary: The Left’s Relentless, Unjustified Assaults on the Supreme Court’s Legitimacy

In recent years, the Supreme Court has been the target of a relentless and strategic campaign aimed at undermining its credibility and impartiality.

Left-wing publications such as ProPublica, Slate, and The Guardian have led an orchestrated assault against the high court’s Republican-appointed justices, and their message has been amplified by Senate Democrats.

Read the full story

Federal Court Dismisses Lawsuit over Bethel School District Transgender Bathroom Policy

A federal judge in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio dismissed a lawsuit on Monday challenging Bethel Local School District’s policy to permit students to use bathrooms according to their gender identity rather than their biological sex.

The Bethel School board adopted a new policy last January that allowed students to use bathroom facilities according to their gender identity. Before the policy change, transgender students predominantly utilized a gender-neutral bathroom.

Read the full story

Trump Asks Supreme Court to Intervene in Lawsuits Against Him, Citing ‘Election Interference’

Former President Donald Trump on Friday called on the Supreme Court to intervene in the numerous lawsuits against him, citing it as election interference.

“CRAZY! My political opponent has hit me with a barrage of weak lawsuits, including D.A., A.G., and others, which require massive amounts of my time & money to adjudicate,” Trump posted on TRUTH Social.

Read the full story

Georgia Gov. Kemp Files Supreme Court Amicus Brief in Chevron Case

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has filed an amicus brief in a highly visible U.S. Supreme Court case that could overturn a standing practice that gives federal agencies the power to interpret statutes.

Kemp, a Republican, filed his brief in the case of Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, which seeks to overturn the so-called Chevron deference established by the 1984 decision in Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. It compels federal judges to defer to federal agencies’ interpretations in “ambiguous situations” as long as the interpretation is “reasonable.”

Read the full story

Federal Lawsuit Targets Race-Based Government Grant Decisions Alleged to Discriminate Against White and Other Business Owners

In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling striking down affirmative action in college admisssions, a San Antonio-based government program that allegedly uses race-based preferences to hand out federal grants faces a federal discrimination lawsuit.

The lawsuit, filed this week by the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL), could spark a national re-examination of such taxpayer-funded, race-focused initiatives.

Read the full story

Ohio College Employees Could Be Held ‘Personally Liable’ for Violating Affirmative Action Ban: Attorney General

Ohio higher education employees “will face personal risk” if they violate the Supreme Court ban on considering race during admissions, state Attorney General Dave Yost wrote in a recent letter.

His office won’t be able to protect public colleges and universities if they act counter to the ruling, Yost wrote, according to The Columbus Dispatch.

Read the full story

Jan. 6 Defendant Appeals to Supreme Court in Case that Could Upend Hundreds of Riot Charges

Jan. 6 defendant Edward Jacob Lang is asking the Supreme Court to hear his challenge against one of the 11 charges he was indicted on – obstruction of an official proceeding – in a case that could upend legal proceedings against hundreds of other defendants indicted on charges related to the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol riot. 

The obstruction charge could be levied against “anyone who attends at a public demonstration gone awry,” attorneys for Lang wrote in an appeal to the Supreme Court last week. The proceeding for which the charge was brought refers to the event where Congress certifies the Electoral College votes to confirm the president.

Read the full story

Watchdog Group Reports on Ohio State University College of Medicine ‘Anti-Racism’ DEI Practices Post-Supreme Court Decision

A comprehensive report by an organization that seeks to protect health care from discriminatory ideology has published a report that finds Ohio State University (OSU) College of Medicine is steeped in teaching medicine through the lens of the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) agenda, and notes the school will need to examine its admissions processes to align with the Supreme Court’s recent affirmative action ruling.

The report, by Do No Harm, is released in the wake of the Court’s decision in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College, which struck down affirmative action policies in school admissions.

Read the full story

Despite Supreme Court Smackdown, Biden Admin Plans to Wipe $39 Billion in Student Debt

The Department of Education (DOE) announced Friday that it will automatically forgive $39 billion of student loan debt for more than 804,000 borrowers, following a recent ruling by the Supreme Court that blocked the administration’s plan to grant forgiveness to nearly 40 million Americans.

The DOE will start notifying borrowers Friday that their federal student loans “will be automatically discharged in the coming weeks,” according to a DOE press release. The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in June that the Biden administration cannot use executive power to cancel up to $10,000 in student loan debt for non-Pell Grant recipients and up to $20,000 for Pell Grant recipients.

Read the full story

Supreme Court Unveils the First Cases It Will Hear Next Term

The Supreme Court released its oral arguments schedule for October on Friday, which features the first six cases it will hear for its 2023-2024 term.

The Court will hear a major constitutional challenge to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) funding mechanism, an Americans with Disabilities Act “tester” lawsuit against a hotel and a racial gerrymandering case from South Carolina. Oral arguments are set to begin on October 2.

Read the full story

Wisconsin Congressman Introduces Constitutional Amendment to Prevent Court Packing

U.S. Representative Mike Gallagher (R-WI-08) re-introduced a constitutional amendment that would prevent court packing by locking in the size of the U.S. Supreme Court at the long-standing nine justices.

U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) originally proposed the amendment in 2019, and it was re-introduced in 2021 after President Joe Biden announced the creation of a commission to explore expanding the nine-member court and other “reforms.” 

Read the full story

GOP Presidential Candidate Vivek Ramaswamy Stands with Iowa Conservative Lawmakers Poised to Pass ‘Heartbeat Bill’

GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy took his campaign to the steps of the Iowa State Capitol Tuesday, throwing his support behind a swiftly moving “heartbeat bill” that would limit most abortions in the Hawkeye State after six weeks of pregnancy. 

The Ohio biotech entrepreneur met with Republican state legislators and Governor Kim Reynolds, as a special legislative session to take up the bill got underway amid loud opposition from hundreds of pro-abortion activists.

Read the full story

Commentary: Biden Begins Shadow Loan Forgiveness Plan

Last week, the Supreme Court ruled against the Biden administration’s student loan forgiveness proposal which would have forgiven $10,000-$20,000 of student loans per borrower. But the fight for student loan forgiveness isn’t going anywhere.

In a previous article for FEE, I highlighted how student loan forgiveness has already been happening and started under president Trump due to the freeze on interest accumulation. Although this may not be as visible as a $10,000 lower balance, frozen interest means the real cost of taking a loan out became smaller than the initial terms suggested.

Read the full story