The Supreme Court Gets Back to Work

"In one sense, it is impossible to give an overview of what to expect from the Supreme Court in the New Year, because the agenda depends so much on what President Donald Trump will do. And he might try almost anything. A little more than a week ago, Nicolás Maduro was serving as President of Venezuela; now he and his wife, Cilia Flores, are in the Metropolitan Detention Center, in Brooklyn."

"Those cases will take time; even without them, though, the Court is heading into a busy, contentious season, after something of a lull over the holidays. In the first few months of the term, which began in October, the Justices worked through an "emergency docket" that included many stays or restraining orders related to Trump's often outrageous executive actions, involving, for example, deportations."

"In several instances, the Justices dodged the central legal issue and sent matters back to the lower courts; some may be coming right back at them in the next months. They also heard major cases-on tariffs, on the President's ability to fire the heads of independent agencies, on the constitutionality of a section of the Voting Rights Act-on which they could rule at any time, although it may take them until the summer."

The Supreme Court faces a busy and contentious term shaped in part by actions of President Donald Trump, whose unpredictable moves can alter the Court's agenda. The arrest of Nicolás Maduro and Cilia Flores in Brooklyn raises federal legal questions, including drug and weapons charges, prisoner-of-war claims, and oil-tanker seizures. The clash between federal supremacy and state prosecutions gained urgency after Maduro's arraignment, exemplified by Minnesota's potential prosecution of a federal ICE agent. The Justices handled an emergency docket earlier, issuing stays and restraining orders tied to executive actions and deportations. Major cases on tariffs, presidential removal power, and the Voting Rights Act remain pending. Oral arguments resume January 12 with a coastal-damage case involving Louisiana parishes and oil companies.

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