Will The Rubber Meet The Road? We'll Know Very Soon.

Shipwreckedcrew has a quite lengthy article out on Pennsylvania development, but the implications can be briefly summarized for those who want the bottom line:

Case Challenging Penn. Mail-In Voting Seeks Emergency Injunction From Justice Alito To Prevent Naming of Electors

Yesterday GOP Congressman Mike Kelly, GOP congressional candidate Sean Parnell, and five others filed an Emergency Application for a Writ of Injunction with Justice Samuel Alito of the Supreme Court, seeking to prevent Pennsylvania officials from taking any remaining steps to certify the election result or name Electors for Joe Biden to the Electoral College.

This is a very interesting development and will give us a strong indication as to the willingness of the Supreme Court to enter into the election litigation brawl.

Most people, including me, assume from Alito's past opinions regarding the actions of Pennsylvania Supreme Court in rewriting PA election law that Alito is very much in favor of the SCOTUS taking up this case. Those earlier opinions came in the context of an 8 member pre-Justice Amy SCOTUS, which deadlocked 4-4, thanks to Roberts. SWC gives a full account of those opinions and you can read all about it, but the point is this: It's a new game, now. There won't be any 4-4 opinion if the SCOTUS takes it on. How would that happen? Here's how:

Justice Alito has the authority under Supreme Court rules to issue the Emergency Injunction on his own authority, and then refer the matter to the entire Court for further consideration.  The Justices are individually assigned to the 13 Circuit Courts of Appeal for purposes of receiving matters such as this, and take action individually in order to act promptly in situations with time is of the essence. ...

SWC goes through all the legal ins and outs. It's complicated for non-lawyers but he does a good job. But here's his bottom line:

I expect Justice Alito will act quickly on this application — he might have done so while I’ve been writing this — and then refer the matter to the full court for further determination.

If Justice Alito denies the injunction, then that would be a signal that there are not five votes on the Court to enter into the fight over Pennsylvania’s 20 electoral votes in connection with any of the matters now pending or making their way to the Court.

If Justice Alito grants the injunction, preventing further steps at naming electors in Pennsylvania, and that decision is affirmed by four other Justices, then you can pretty well assume that it’s “Game On” in the SCOTUS with regard to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and State/County Election Officials.

IOW, if Alito denies the injunction it's very hard to see a second term for President Trump.

First Amendment In The Crosshairs

For the past week we've been periodically referring to Justice Samuel Alito's recent address to the Federalist Society. Today Jonathan Tobin reminds us of the warning that Alito presented--The pandemic brought an assault on our basic rights:

The usual mainstream-media suspects wasted no time in blasting as inappropriate Samuel Alito’s address last week to the Federalist ­Society. Which is another way of saying they didn’t like what he had to say. The Supreme Court justice warned that “religious liberty is fast becoming a disfavored right,” that freedom of speech is also ­“becoming a second-tier constitutional right.”

He was exactly right — and his wake-up call was urgently timely: Democrats threaten to “reform” the high court by packing it with liberals, while the pandemic has imposed what Alito called a “stress test” on the Constitution, creating a new ranking order of fundamental rights.

Simply put: Basic respect for some rights is dying.

I think it's no longer arguable that Covid has been used as an excuse to target religion and worship. Now, as if on cue, to confirm everything Alito said, we learn that those fears are definitely NOT overblown. The putative Biden presidency will be appointing anti-First Amendment zealots to influential positions. Jonathan Turley is here to sound the alarm--Biden Taps Anti-Free Speech Figure For Transition Lead On Media Agency:

Justice Alito--How Does He Feel About Dems?

Earlier this week we discussed Justice Alito's recent address to the Federalist Society. I admit, I have listened to or read the entire address. Today I came across an excerpt in which Alito discusses a 2nd Amendment case that the SCOTUS decided was moot. But what Alito is really talking about is a brief that was filed by several Dem senators--and to which he took great umbrage. You can agree or disagree with Alito on this. My point is simply this: Alito will likely be be taking part in one or more decisions with regard to the election. If you were a Dem--and in light of these expressed views (below)--how would you feel about arguing your case to the SCOTUS, knowing that Alito and several other justices who agreed with Alito on the 2nd Amendment case also agree with Alito on the Pennsylvania supreme court's rewrite of the PA election law? And by the way, what do you think Alito thinks of Roberts, CJ?

UPDATED: Justice Alito Unloads

Yes, you really should read this article--or maybe the full address that Justice Alito gave to the Federalist Society:

Justice Alito unloads on coronavirus restrictions in bombshell Federalist Society speech

America's response to the coronavirus outbreak has resulted in 'previously unimaginable restrictions on individual liberty,' warned Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito. He also explained ongoing threats to religious liberty and freedom of speech.

Highlights of the article--and of course there's much more: