š© Right-Wing Supreme Court Justices are Coming for your Power in Looming Relentless Decision
š½A well informed citizenry is the best defense against tyranny.
People Power United joined other local, state, and national groups in the United for Democracy coalition to send a letter to Congress, demanding that it use its authority to protect our freedoms while it still can, before the justices likely entrench a disproportionate amount of power in their branch.Ā
United for Democracy sent a letter from over 90 local, state, and national grassroots organizations representing millions of Americans demanding Congressional action on SCOTUS.
WASHINGTON, D.C. ā United for Democracy recently sent a letter from over 90 local, state, and national grassroots organizations representing millions of Americans ā including Demos, Voto Latino, Indivisible, SEIU, Center for American Progress Action Fund, and AFT ā to Congress, demanding that it use its authority to protect our freedoms while it still can, before the justices likely entrench a disproportionate amount of power in their branch.Ā
The letter, addressed to Congressional leaders, sounds the alarm about the threat that the Supreme Courtās power grab poses to communities across the nation, and calls on elected officials to act to protect their constituents. Specific attention is given to the pending Relentless Inc. v. Department of Commerce case, which threatens to overturn 40 years of legal precedent. Relentless opens the door for Supreme Court justices to override agency expertsā interpretation and execution of the laws passed by Congress.
āIn the Relentless cases, the right-wing justices threaten to make their greatest power grab yet ā and if last weekās Garland v. Cargill decision is any indication, itās a threat they are likely to make good on. Yet in the face of the right-wing justicesā blatant disregard for Congressā authority under āchecks and balancesā and the rollback of their constituentsā rights and freedoms, Congress has virtually ignored the stakes in these cases,ā said Stasha Rhodes, Campaign Director of United for Democracy. āOur organizations, and the millions we represent, know that we are running out of time for Congress to stop the right-wing justices before they continue trading in on the lives, freedoms, and democracy of the American people in order to boost their billionaire backers. Itās time for Congress to act.ā
Here is the letter sent on behalf of our People Power United membership:
June 2024
Dear Majority Leader Schumer, Minority Leader McConnell, Speaker Johnson, Minority Leader Jeffries, Chairman Durbin, Ranking Member Graham, Chairman Whitehouse, and Ranking Member Kennedy:
The Supreme Court has, in recent years, abandoned established precedent and embraced a framework of its own design in order to amass more power for itself by taking it from federal agencies, and by extension the peoplesā elected representatives in Congress. All signs point to the Court supercharging this effort in the coming months.
We therefore write to you on behalf of the tens of millions of Americans we represent to sound the alarm about the threat the Supreme Courtās relentless power grab poses to our communities and to your authority as democratically elected officials. A series of cases on the docket this term, with Relentless Inc. v. Department of Commerce and Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo being the most prominent examples, have the potential to completely upend the balance of power between the judicial, legislative, and executive branches of government with consequences that will reverberate in our country for decades.
Put simply, the Supreme Court is coming for Congressās power and the executive branchās ability to appropriately implement legislative mandates. And that means Americansā representation in their government ā our most basic right ā is at stake.Ā
In Relentless Inc. v. Department of Commerce the right-wing justices on the Supreme Court are threatening to overturn 40 years of legal precedent to give themselves the power to rewrite policy decisions enacted by federal agencies. This case could grant partisan, life-tenured, unelected judges more power to overrule elected officials like you who are accountable to the American people, solidifying the Roberts Courtās legacy advancing an extreme agenda that benefits billionaires over the interests of the American people. A decision empowering the Supreme Court with more decision-making power over policy could:
Give Supreme Court justices the ability to set drug safety standards ā impacting which medications we have access to.Ā
Empower the Supreme Court to dictate environmental policy rather than deferring to scientists and experts at the EPA.
Put Supreme Court justices in charge of evaluating worker safety standards.Ā
Enable Supreme Court justices to decide who should get Social Security benefits.Ā
On these topics and so many more, Relentless opens the door for Supreme Court justices to supersede elected officialsā intentions by overriding agency expertsā interpretation and execution of Congressional intent. And the impact of this power grab would not stop at Supreme Court rulings. This case would multiply the destabilizing effect of the extremist Supreme Court by empowering lower court justices with limited expertise to make consequential decisions about every aspect of our government. In doing so, the Supreme Court diminishes Congressās ability ā your ability ā to effectively represent your constituents.Ā
Undoing the current ability of agency experts to interpret the laws they administer, should the Supreme Court do so, will inevitably have unpredictable and unintended effects. As Congress is well aware, most laws are written with the current framework of deference in mind. Without it, we anticipate a huge increase in litigation, creating an uncertain environment for businesses, as well as a patchwork of interpretations across the country that will exacerbate the trend of manipulating outcomes in cases via federal court venue-shopping and judge shopping. The damage to our nationās ability to innovate, to the services our government provides for our most vulnerable citizens, and to our rights altogether, could be severe.Ā
We already have a window into a post-Chevron world. Since the newly conceived major questions doctrine became standard practice at the high court, the majority has overridden Congressional intent and agency rulemaking to severely restrict the EPAās climate authority under the Clean Air Act, overturn President Biden's student loan forgiveness program, and more, despite the broad authority Congress provided agencies to implement these directives. The status quo is already harmful to our communities, now Relentless stands to further codify and prop open the floodgates to judicial lawmaking.
None of this is happening by accident. Meticulous investigative reporting has revealed the massive influence that billionaires like Leonard Leo and the Koch brothers have exercised at the Supreme Court. Right-wing justices are being showered with luxury gifts and travel, refusing to recuse themselves from cases that impact their benefactors, and even refusing to respond to inquiries from Congress. Rather than being fair, objective final arbiters of the law, the right-wing majority on the Supreme Court is rewriting the rules in favor of their billionaire benefactors who are determined to force their own extreme agenda on Americans. Taken together, the Relentless cases represent the latest front in the attack on Americansā rights and freedoms.Ā
To date, Congress has virtually ignored the damage the Supreme Court has done and could do in these cases, both to itself as an institution and to the American people. The Relentless case attacks the heart of our balanced system of government and will profoundly undercut Congressās ability to enact legislation that protects our nation, conserves our environment, and supports the wellbeing of our people. The basic rights and protections put in place by democratically elected representatives will be eroded over months and years of courtroom litigation. And while we may not feel the impacts immediately, by the time we do feel them, it will be too late. We deserve better.Ā
Our communities need a Supreme Court that can be trusted to ensure equal justice under the law for all people. Congress should use its role in our system of checks and balances to defend the rights and freedoms this broken Supreme Court appears poised to take away ā while it still can.
Signed,
Accountable.US
Action Together NEPA
AFT
Albert Shanker Institute
All* Above All
America's Voice
American Atheists
American Center for Religious Freedom
American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees
American Humanist Association
Americans for Tax Fairness
Beyt Tikkun
Blue Future
Catholics for Choice
Center for American Progress Action Fund
Center for Popular Democracy
Center for WorkLife Law
Clean Elections Texas
Climate Hawks Vote
CommonDefense.us
Courage California
Court Accountability
DemCast USA
Democratic Messaging ProjectĀ
DÄmosĀ
Disability Victory
Emancipate NC
End Citizens United // Let America Vote Action Fund
Enough of Gun ViolenceĀ
Equal Ground Action FundĀ
Equal Justice Society
Equality CaliforniaĀ
Evergreen Action
Faith For Black Lives
Fourth Branch Action
Free Speech For People
Freedom From Religion Foundation
Fuerte Arts Movement
Greenpeace USA
Indivisible Hawaii
Indivisible Rural IllinoisĀ
Indivisible Santa Fe
Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility
Jewish Alliance for Law and Social Action
JustUS Coordinating Council
Lawyers for Good Government
League of Conservation VotersĀ
National Council of Churches
National Education Association
National Employment Law Project
National Partnership for Women & Families
National Women's Law Center
New Disabled South
Newtown Action Alliance
Ocean Defense Initiative
P Street
Patriotic Millionaires
People For the American Way
People Power United
People's Parity Project
Progress Arizona
Protect Borrowers Action
PureLegaceeĀ
Reproductive Rights CoalitionĀ
Revolving Door Project
RootsAction.org
Secure Elections Network
SEIU
SisterLove, Inc.Ā
Social Security Works
Sojourners-SojoAction
Stand Up America
Student Borrower Protection Center
Take Back the Court Action Fund
The Media and Democracy Project
The Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC UNITED)
The Workers Circle
True North ResearchĀ
Tulipshare
Un-PAC
Union of Concerned Scientists
Unitarian Universalist AssociationĀ
Vote Pro-Choice
Voter Choice Connecticut
Voters of TomorrowĀ
Voters Rights and Protection TaskforceĀ
Voto Latino
Wisconsin Faith Voices for Justice
Worker Power
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People Power United is a group of community members that champions progressive values and power for the people. The 2024 election depends on us, and we are attempting to persuade people to vote for Freedom over Fascism.Ā If you wish to support our efforts, please consider becoming a paid subscriber.
United for Democracy is a diverse and growing coalition of 140 grassroots organizations, labor unions, and advocates for reproductive rights, gun violence prevention, the environment, workersā rights and more, all representing tens of millions of Americans. The nationwide campaign launched to educate Americans about the impact todayās Supreme Court is having on their lives, freedoms, and democracy ā and call on Congress to rein in its unchecked powers.