The Supreme Court Just Crowned Trump King--Again - Elie Mystal @ The Nation [View all]
The Nation (
Archived)

The Supreme Court just gave Donald Trump a backdoor way to revoke federal spending authorized by Congress, in violation of the separation of powers written into the Constitution. This backdoor way also allows Trump to do one of his favorite things: fire peoplespecifically, employees of the Department of Education. In the process, the court has handed him the means to decimate the agency and, with it, myriad federal programs created by Congress.
The case, which was resolved on the Supreme Courts shadow docketwhich should really be viewed as Trumps personal docketis called
McMahon v. New York. It involves Ignorance Secretary Linda McMahons plan to lay off over half of the people who work for the Department of Education. The firings were challenged in federal court by a teachers union, education groups, school districts, and a number of states, all of which will argue that they will be harmed if half the workforce is taken out. The Department of Education is primarily responsible for distributing money to college students, mostly in the form of grants and loans, enforcing antidiscrimination laws, and overseeing programs for low-income students and students with disabilities.
The plaintiffs won in lower court and, as has now become customary, lost in front of the Supreme Court. A 63 Republican supermajority ruled that, once again, Trump can do whatever he wants. They lifted the lower courts ruling and allowed McMahon to commence body-slamming all the smart people who educate others to know that wrestling is fake.
Technically, the Supreme Courts order is a temporary procedural ruling that merely allows Trump to proceed with his plans until there can be a full hearing on the constitutionality of his actions. But dont get it twisted. Firing over half of the department is not a thing that can be easily
undone at a later date.