Supreme Court sits again Now it will be decided whether Trump can take over the USA
In its new session, the Supreme Court must decide in numerous cases how far Donald Trump can extend his power. The USA is facing weeks of truth.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- In the coming weeks and months, the US Supreme Court will decide whether US President Donald Trump's policies are in line with the constitution.
- The majority conservative Supreme Court will have to deal with issues such as tariffs and mass redundancies in government agencies.
- In the meantime, Donald Trump continues to create facts and undermine laws.
The nine judges of the Supreme Court, the highest court in the USA, are actually supposed to have three months in the summer to rest and reflect. After all, the most important court makes far-reaching decisions. This "summer break" is traditionally over on the first Monday in October - although this year it was hardly a break at all.
Over the past few weeks, the Supreme Court has repeatedly had to deal with urgent applications from Donald Trump and his government - and make provisional decisions. Now the new session begins - and it is likely to be decisive for the future of the USA.
The panel of judges has already agreed to accept three cases with far-reaching consequences. In November, the Supreme Court will hear arguments on the legality of the comprehensive tariffs. In December, Trump's efforts to gain control over independent authorities will be on the agenda. And finally, in January, his attempt to dismiss a member of the Federal Reserve Board will be heard.
Is the Supreme Court now speaking out?
Since Trump re-entered the White House in January, the court's conservative majority (Trump appointed three justices alone in his first term) has repeatedly sided with the government - albeit often with emergency rulings and unsigned orders. "One of the things we'll see [now] is whether the Supreme Court will actually turn Donald Trump down on any issue," says Pamela S. Karlan of Stanford Law School in the New York Times.
"They have tried to duck, dodge and evade by agreeing with him through procedural means rather than rejecting him," Karlan continued. However, the judges could not keep this up for the entire session.
"It's hard to imagine greater tests of presidential power than these possibly one-off power struggles over the separation of powers," says lawyer Deepak Gupta, who frequently argues cases before the Supreme Court.
A look at Trump's current attempts to concentrate power in his hands seems to prove him right.
Project 2025
It is becoming increasingly obvious how Donald Trump is plowing up the political landscape and preparing the ground for an authoritarian style of government. So far, courts at lower levels have been able to slow him down - but with the conservative majority in the Supreme Court, Trump could push through his agenda, which is increasingly oriented towards "Project 2025".
During the election campaign, Donald Trump distanced himself from the measures contained therein, but began implementing them as soon as he took office in January 2025. In addition, co-authors of the catalog of measures were given key positions in Trump's administration. These include CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Border Patrol Commissioner Tom Homan and Russ Vought as budget chief.
"Project 2025" envisages, among other things, the dismantling of parts of the US federal agencies and the dismissal of thousands of employees in favor of Trump loyalists. The aim: to expand presidential power. The current budget shutdown now appears to be accelerating the advancement of the agenda.
Budget shutdown as a demonstration of power
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB), headed by Russ Voughts, has instructed the federal authorities to prepare for further mass redundancies in the course of the current shutdown. Trump is also using the shutdown to punish political opponents.
Since the federal government shutdown, the White House has cut or suspended billions in funding for cities and states governed by Democrats, reports the New York Times. Particularly affected: New York City and Chicago.
The budget freeze gives Trump and his budget chief further decision-making power, affirms the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson. The decision means that the legislature has been practically eliminated. The Democrats have thus "handed the president the keys to the kingdom".
National Guard at will
Trump has repeatedly tried to send the National Guard into Democrat-governed cities. He has already been successful in Los Angeles and Washington, but has failed for the time being in Portland, Oregon. After the project was initially prohibited by a court, Trump's government resorted to a trick and wanted to activate units from other states. However, this was also temporarily prohibited by the court - incidentally by a federal judge who Trump himself had once nominated.
A dispute over the deployment of 300 National Guardsmen to Chicago ordered by Trump is currently threatening to escalate. His government is using war rhetoric. On Sunday, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on the conservative news channel Fox News that the major city in the state of Illinois was "a war zone".
Arbitrary dismissals at immigration courts
US President Trump's administration has dismissed dozens of judges from immigration courts since January. In some cases, they had received their dismissal notices during a trial. The vacancies are now to be temporarily filled by lawyers from the military. It is the latest measure in a larger plan that experts warn could weaken immigration courts and the military justice system.
"They're letting a lot of experienced judges go, terminating them without notice, and they're still claiming there's a shortage, so these military lawyers have to step in and take over," says Margaret Stock, a migration lawyer and retired army lieutenant. In her view, it is particularly worrying that, unlike in the past, experience as an administrative or immigration judge is no longer a must. The job advertisement, on the other hand, calls for a "suitable disposition".
Funding only for universities that are in line
US President Donald Trump wants to entice several of the country's top universities with large amounts of funding in order to bring them into line with the government. Several US media outlets have reported that the White House has sent letters to nine top universities. The letters are said to have called on university leaders to adhere to certain principles set out by the government in accordance with its educational goals.
According to the New York Times, the universities must prohibit anything that "punishes, demeans or even incites violence against conservative ideas", the US newspaper quotes from the agreement. The number of foreign students is also to be limited and tuition fees are to be frozen.
The respective university is also to commit to strict definitions of gender - which alludes to Trump's criticism of trans people. Trans people do not identify with the gender they were assigned at birth.
With agency material.
