Justice #ClarenceThomas, writing for the 5 conservative justices, said the federal #law that generally shields the #PostalService from lawsuits over missing, lost & undelivered #mail includes “the intentional nondelivery of mail.”

In dissent, Justice Sonia #Sotomayor wrote that while the protection against lawsuits is broad, it does not extend to situations when the decision not to deliver mail “was driven by #malicious reasons.” Justice Neil #Gorsuch joined his 3 liberal colleagues in dissent.

“I think it persuaded some, but we have this ruling now that so clearly puts the power back in Congress’s hands, the House’s hands,” Bacon said. “We have to stand up on our own two feet & use these authorities, because that’s what the founders intended.”

He, too, posted a screenshot of Justice #Gorsuch’s conclusion on social media on Friday, calling his homage to the role of the #legislative branch “perfect words.”

#law #SCOTUS #SeparationOfPowers #Trump #Congress #3CoEqualBranchesOfGovernment

The few expressions of pushback that have emerged have largely been futile, & instigated by #Republicans who are set to #retire at the end of this congressional session or cut rare maverick streaks, such as Sen #RandPaul & Rep #ThomasMassie, both Kentucky #libertarians who posted Justice #Gorsuch’s words admiringly on social media.

#law #SCOTUS #SeparationOfPowers #Trump #Congress #legislative #3CoEqualBranchesOfGovernment

Most of the major elements of #Trump’s agenda have been accomplished via executive action, with the exception of the #tax & #spending cut #legislation #Republicans pushed through last year using the #partisan reconciliation process—hardly the “broad support to survive the #legislative process” that Justice #Gorsuch wrote was vital to enacting enduring policies.…

#law #SCOTUS #SeparationOfPowers #3CoEqualBranchesOfGovernment

…It was hard not to detect a note of reproach for the current #dysfunctional state of affairs in #Congress in Justice #Gorsuch’s reflections about the virtues of #legislating, in which, he wrote, “deliberation tempers impulse, & compromise hammers disagreements into workable solutions.”

“For some today, the weight of those virtues is apparent,” he added. “For others, it may not seem so obvious.”

#law #SCOTUS #SeparationOfPowers #3CoEqualBranchesOfGovernment

#Gorsuch continued, “But the deliberative nature of the legislative process was the whole point of its design. Through that process, the nation can tap the combined wisdom of the people’s elected representatives, not just that of one faction or man.”

It was a description of governing completely at odds with what is currently underway across the street from #SCOTUS at the Capitol, where #Republicans controlling the #House & the #Senate have ceded their #power to one man — #Trump.…

#law

Justice Neil M. Gorsuch’s concurring opinion released on Friday after #SCOTUS struck down Trump’s #tariffs concluded with a paean to #Congress that read like a requiem for a bygone era of #legislative #power.

“Yes, legislating can be hard & take time,” wrote Justice #Gorsuch, a #Trump appointee who is part of the court’s #conservative majority. “And yes, it can be tempting to bypass Congress when some pressing problem arises.”

#law #SeparationOfPowers #3CoEqualBranchesOfGovernment