Scalia’s dead. Now what?
Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has died, creating a vacancy at the Supreme Court that’s got the political world abuzz. A proponent of so-called “originalism,” Scalia had been a reliable vote for conservatives.
Because his passing splits the court evenly along idealogical lines, it leaves open the possibility of getting a tie on court decisions, particularly on a few of the most contentious ones. That’s important because when a Supreme Court ruling is split 4–4, the case is then decided by lower appeals courts — which are largely controlled by Democrat appointees.
Another thing to know about split decisions is that they don’t have an impact outside of the particular case that’s being considered.
Here are some of the important cases likely to come down as split decisions in the high court that we’ll have our eyes on in the coming months:
Unions
Scalia was likely to side with conservatives in a case that would have crippled public sector unions. Unless swing-vote Justice Anthony Kennedy sides with liberals, the case will likely be a split 4–4 decision. This special situation means unions can breathe easy knowing that there won’t be a sweeping ruling that could have dealt them a deadly blow nationwide.
Abortion
The abortion case from Texas will likely be a loss for the pro-choice movement if there’s an even split in the Supreme Court. A split decision would leave the case to be decided by the conservative 5th Circuit Court, a move that would force the majority of the state’s abortion clinics to close. According to NPR, that would leave “nearly 1 million women at least 150 miles from the nearest abortion provider.”
Environment
This is a YUGE win for President Obama. Republicans were hoping to challenge Obama’s plan to cut carbon-dioxide emissions. Early signs showed the five conservative justices were open to striking it down. Now, since the vote is likely to split, it means the lower court in D.C. will likely decide the fate of Obama’s climate change plans. In the past, the court has been very open to siding with environmentalists.
Voting Rights
In a case out of Virginia, a lower court had ruled against the state for the gerrymandering of a district. In that case, Republicans drew lines that created a district with a black majority — but it consequently diminished the power of the black vote in two surrounding districts. With a 4–4 split, the state would be subject to a court-appointed official to redraw district lines.
Don’t know what Gerrymandering is?
Watch this video:
