Here we go: Trump regime’s latest effort to get its election interference ok’d by the Roberts Court. The regime seeks to have the Court require California to “segregate” mail ballots cast by those the regime has identified as “likely noncitizens”. This would require the Court to stay a federal district order against such segregation, an order upheld by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. https://assets.bwbx.io/documents/users/iqjWHBFdfxIU/r2A28lzqdS_4/v0 1/ #LawFedi
3 Boosts
0 Likes
@andy They don’t have to. Administrative stay can be granted without a response. Also, Election Day is not the end of the period for which the Trump regime requests ballot segregation. At a minimum, they will be arguing that this should happen throughout county canvass, which runs through the 13th day after the election.
Reminder of facts and proceedings below. The Trump DHS made up lists of supposed noncitizen voters. It has never been able to defend the accuracy or credibility of these lists. Then, on the strength of a federal misdemeanor statute forbidding noncitizens from voting, the regime instructed California to share California’s voter roll with it, presumably to compare it with the DHS list. CA refused to turn over voter rolls. 2/
This is all in service of the Trump regime’s attempt to take over state election administration, which the U.S. Constitution reserves to the states, subject to some Congressional power to regulate. The federal executive branch has no Constitutional role in U.S. elections. 3/
The Trump regime sued California for the voter rolls and directing it to “segregate” and not count votes by people on the DHS list while their citizenship was verified. In addition to being an unconstitutional assertion of federal executive power, this would create delay and disruption in California’s post-Election-Day count and certification of results. (As I’ve explained before, this is a key aim of the Trump regime.) 4/
The federal district court refused the Trump regime’s request, a refusal upheld by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. The Trump regime is now trying to have the Roberts Court do what both these courts refused to do: permit the regime to interfere in California’s election administration, so as to lay the groundwork for post-Election-Day interference. 5/
The request to the Roberts Court is an important early test of that Court’s willingness to read the Constitution in contradiction to how every other court has so far. Every court that has heard arguments like the ones in the California case and decided has ruled against the Trump regime. 6/
@heidilifeldman It's remarkable how unsuccessful these election interference attempts have been in the courts, even those staffed by judges predisposed toward the administration.
The intent seems to be not to actually win (which they have to know they won't) but to "flood the zone", and also to have something to complain about after they lose.
I think you're right. They are bad faith stunt lawsuits aimed at feeding the "rigged election" fakery.
@heidilifeldman It's almost as if the literal plain language of the constitution still sometimes matters.
@mattblaze Let’s see how much it matters to the Roberts Court!
@heidilifeldman My prediction is they'll just let this one moot itself, given the timeframe.
@heidilifeldman would the state even have time to submit a reply to the court before Tuesday?