Courts

Neil Gorsuch Unintentionally Proves The Farce Of The Supreme Court Leak Story

The Court has struggled to come up with a good reason why this leak was actual a problem other than not liking when the little people question them.

By  
on
Activists Continue To Gather Outside Supreme Court After Historic Overturning Of Roe v. Wade

(Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

Neil Gorsuch spoke to the 10th Circuit Bench and Bar Conference and cried the standard crocodile tears about how awful it was for the Supreme Court, nay the universe, that someone leaked an early draft opinion of the Sam Alito’s rambling survey of 16th century witch hunting textbooks to overrule Roe v. Wade.

As chronicled in the Wall Street Journal:

Improper efforts to influence judicial decision making, from whatever side, are a threat” to the judicial process, he said.

“From whatever side” is the slyest effort yet to maintain the faux outrage while also acknowledging that everyone else is pretty much on board that Ginni Thomas was just trying to lock in that draft before John Roberts could peel a couple justices off into a “Roe is the law of the land and also totally allows abortion bans 20 seconds after orgasm.” A fear that was probably completely unfounded, but at least understandable.

They inhibit our capacity to communicate with one another,” reducing the candor between jurists of different persuasions that “improves our final products,” he said. “I very much hope we get to the bottom of this sooner or later.”

So here’s the thing, if this is the #reason they’re going with for why leaks are bad, then Gorsuch inadvertently gave away the store.

Sponsored

Because either the leak did successfully paralyze the Court because Gorsuch admits its membership is so spineless it cannot overcome this untoward influence, or the Court courageously pressed on with its duties in spite of the leak and… turned out the exact same f**king draft anyway.

Well, not EXACTLY the same. The references to coming after the rest of America’s civil liberties got softened to more of a “we won’t do that wink wink” passage, but hardly a distinction with difference.

They had a draft position and months went by with little more than fixing some typos. If any “communication and candor” took place in that body it sure doesn’t show up on the page. Maybe they’ll quibble to the last moment of the finer points of some ERISA challenge but on the nakedly political questions that earned them FedSoc’s seal of approval there was no drawn out give and take.

It’s just such a joke that these delicate geniuses need to live in a cone of silence until they decide to unveil long-finished opinions. They just want to control their own narrative and don’t like the idea that the unwashed masses might see what they’re doing. No one is asking to livestream their conferences or anything. In fact, no one even necessarily wants to see every draft. But don’t pee on our leg and tell us the decision is still up in the air at that stage.

Just stop it with this nonsense. The “process” wasn’t undermined by this leak. The opinion wasn’t altered by this leak. And the legitimacy of the Court wasn’t undermined by this leak.

Sponsored

The substance of the opinion undermined legitimacy of the Court, but that’s another story.

Justice Gorsuch Said Findings of Probe Into Leaked Roe Draft Opinion Will Be Made in Report [WSJ]

Earlier: Neil Gorsuch Picks A Fight With Law Schools
Taking Bets On Who Leaked The Supreme Court Opinion

Topics

, , , , ,