Public Notice: John Roberts created a monster. It's about to eat him. [View all]

[Dennis Donovan]

Public Notice - John Roberts created a monster. It's about to eat him.

The Supreme Court faces an existential dilemma of its own creation.

David R. Lurie
Mar 31, 2025

John Roberts and his fellow Republican Supreme Court justices not only paved the way for Donald Trump to retake the White House, but encouraged him to seize dictatorial powers upon his return. Now, the Trump Court’s rightwing ideologues appear poised to green light many of his authoritarian actions, thereby enabling him to further destroy the foundations of our democracy.

But Roberts and his extremist compatriots on the Court face one serious problem: Trump also wants the justices to endorse his campaign against the authority and independence of the judiciary, potentially rendering the Court into a shameless stooge. As a result, the cost of the Supreme Court continuing to do Trump’s bidding may be to undermine the judicial power and authority that Republicans devoted so much effort to obtain.

Roberts prepares a throne

After voting against convicting Trump for his January 6 coup attempt, Mitch McConnell said there was no need for Congress to act because "we have a criminal justice system in this country. We have civil litigation. And former presidents are not immune from being held accountable by either one."

But Trump escaped such accountability — with the crucial help of John Roberts.

While much has been made of the delays in prosecuting Trump under Biden’s Attorney General Merrick Garland, the players that actually ensured Trump would not be held accountable for his assault on the nation’s democracy were the rightwing jurists on the nation’s highest court who effectively crippled Jack Smith’s prosecution through a combination of calculated delay and a ruling that undermined the rule of law.

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