SUPREME COURT OF TEXAS OVERRULES SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, to be fair, when it comes to interpreting Texas law the Supreme Court of Texas is, in fact, supreme. “Justice Gorsuch made an Erie guess. He guessed wrong.”

But really, it’s more about how the Supreme Court of the United States can’t help but hedge where abortion is concerned:

Justice Gorsuch took pains to not forcefully disagree with Justice Thomas, who determined that the licensing officials cannot enforce the statute.

On remand, the Fifth Circuit certified a question to the Texas Supreme Court: did the state licensing officials enforce the statute? Today, SCOTX answered the question no. Justice Boyd wrote the majority opinion for the unanimous Court.

There are many things I like about this opinion.

First, this case reaffirmed the principle that the United States Supreme Court is not supreme–at least with respect to the interpretation of state law. (You’re welcome, Judge Sutton.) It is rare that a state court formally disagrees with the United Supreme Court, but this is such a case. And contrary to the protestations in Judge Higginson’s dissents, I do not think the Supreme Court will revisit its decision. Justice Gorsuch made an Erie guess. He guessed wrong.

Second, Justice Thomas is vindicated. Thomas was the only Justice willing to adopt the most natural reading of S.B. 8. The cynic in me thinks that at least some of the Justices in the majority were unwilling to adopt a reading that foreclosed every possibility of relief. Better, the thinking goes, to at least signal that there may be some way for the abortion clinics to prevail, even if that relief was meaningless. You know, force the journalists to write about a “divided” ruling or some such pablum. Gorsuch’s hedged decision reflects an effort to keep a majority together. But Thomas, once again, was willing to speak truth to power.

Third, Chief Justice Roberts’s judicial supremacy was rebuked. It is very rare that Roberts gets overruled. It happened. He deserves it. Thank you, Justice Boyd.

Fourth, SCOTX reaffirmed that Jonathan Mitchell is in fact a genius. He wrote a statute that pre-empted every possible line of attack. Eight members of the Supreme Court thought they found a loophole. And the highest court of Texas said they were wrong.

However you feel about the underlying issue, it’s nice to see the temporizers brought up short.