JOHN ROBERTS ISN’T AS POLITICALLY SOPHISTICATED OR CLEVER AS HE THINKS HE IS, AND THE RESULTS WILL BE AWFUL:
This is now a real mess, caused by over-finessing by SCOTUS in a situation that called for clarity and decisiveness, combined with patently unreasonable behavior by the district court – weakness at the top and willfulness at the bottom. https://t.co/fByy6wqdsx
— Adrian Vermeule (@Vermeullarmine) April 11, 2025
To be clear, she is demanding details (in open court) about negotiations between the Executive Branch and a foreign power https://t.co/AS3uHQHcbu
— Adrian Vermeule (@Vermeullarmine) April 11, 2025
The problem with SCOTUS’ whole approach to this case — and the point generalizes to other cases as well — is that it is too clever by half. Subtle distinctions (“facilitate” vs. “effectuate,” release from custody in El Salvador vs. return to the US) are trampled over by district… https://t.co/IM86AtgAUv
— Adrian Vermeule (@Vermeullarmine) April 11, 2025
I always tell my law students that as a lawyer, when you’re patting yourself on the back about how clever you’re bing, you usually aren’t.