Today in Politics, Bulletin 409. 6/30/26
… The Supreme Court struck down Trump’s executive order seeking to end birthright citizenship. In Trump v. Barbara, Justice Roberts wrote for the narrow 5-4 majority that “children born of parents unlawfully or temporarily present in the US satisfy both elements of the Citizenship Clause. Under the Constitution, they are citizens at birth.”
… In a dissenting opinion, Justice Samuel Alito called the ruling both “one of the most important decisions in the history of the Court” and “a serious mistake … the 14th Amendment confers citizenship on only those children who, at birth, owe allegiance solely to this country.”
… Justice Clarence Thomas’s opinion was an astonishing 91-page long angry rant.
… Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) said she now wants pregnant tourists banned from the US: “The State Department should IMMEDIATELY cease to give out visas to pregnant applicants. Sorry, Birth Tourism cannot continue.”
… Ed Whelan with the Ethics & Public Policy Center: “Question for those who immediately reject Chief’s opinion on birthright citizenship: Who got it right? Thomas? Alito? Kavanaugh? Their approaches appear to be in conflict. And while Gorsuch joins Thomas’s opinion, he also opines that children born to illegal aliens ‘who make their permanent home here’ might have birthright citizenship. So 4 different positions among the dissenters on the constitutional question?”
… Stephen Miller reacted to the decision on Fox: “Birthright citizenship means the children of illegal aliens can vote to tax your children and seize their inheritance.”
… Sean Davis, Editor of The Federalist: “Several ways forward here given the choice of Roberts/Barrett to nullify the 14th Amendment and extra-constitutionally replace it with their own language:
Nullification. States issue birth certificates, and they can just stop issuing them to non-citizens. Roberts/Barrett can deal with the fallout and litigate each birth individually.
Pack the court. If Robert wants to be a politician who writes laws instead of a judge, then he can fight with 10 more unelected legislators in robes.
Deny entry to all pregnant foreigners.
Deny entry to all female foreigners.
Require sterilization of all foreign visitors prior to entry.
Dissolution of the Union. A nation which can’t even restrict who gets to be a citizen isn’t a nation.
Amend the Constitution. This is pointless, because once a judge decides he can rewrite the Constitution at will.”
… This is the Republican Party.
… NPR reported that Justice Alito just retired, then retracted their story less than an hour later. It appears that they had a tip that the announcement was going to be made this Friday and were supposed to embargo the story until then but someone screwed up and released it early. Alito has long been rumored to retire in 2026 to ensure a Republican majority in the senate will confirm his successor.
… Trump is now threatening to prosecute gas stations: “Gasoline Retailers must get their Prices down, IMMEDIATELY! They’re too high considering that Oil is now at $68 a Barrel, and heading south. The Retailers must quickly react to this statement, and do what they know is right - DROP YOUR PRICE FOR OUR GREAT AMERICAN PEOPLE! There will be no gauging, which is totally illegal. If Retailers don’t do this, big problems lie ahead! Start targeting around the $2.50 a Gallon number.”
… Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Fox: “I would encourage all of the gasoline retailers to be good actors, especially on the 250th anniversary, because we’re watching.”
… Analyst Eric Pachman: “We don’t put crude in our tanks. We put gas and diesel. So why does everyone watch the oil price? This is the number that matters even more - refining margins. And they’re back at levels we haven’t seen since the 2022 oil crisis. The last time margins were here, everyone knew there was a crisis. This time we’re being told it’s over. The ‘ceasefire’ didn’t fix what’s broken in the oil complex.”
… Oil market analyst Rory Johnston: “Unfortunately for Trump, while obviously connected, crude oil and gasoline are actually different commodities. Crude market currently loose (yep, temporarily, surprising but true), but gasoline near its tightest ever relative to crude.”
… The Atlantic: “The WH is discussing a possible announcement of presidential pardons as a centerpiece of the nation’s celebrations over the 4th of July weekend. The idea has been described as ‘250 pardons for 250 years,’ an initiative that would put one of the most politically fraught constitutional powers at the forefront of the country’s birthday festivities.”
… “Trump’s advisers are split on whether mass pardons for the anniversary of American independence would be a good idea. Advocates for the plan say that it would both underscore the president’s singular authority and reinforce an image he has long sought to cultivate: ‘Trump the merciful,’ as a person close to the WH described it. Meanwhile, the prospect of a mass pardon has set off an international frenzy of lobbying and dealmaking, in which even slight proximity to the president can be monetized.”
… “5 current and former admin officials and 9 private-sector lawyers, lobbyists, and other individuals with ties to Trump’s orbit told us that the jockeying among those seeking clemency for past crimes has been intense. One criminal-defense attorney called it ‘a 3-ring circus,’ and a former admin official said that it was ‘batshit crazy.’ One lobbyist told us that he had started turning off his cellphone as the ‘aggressive’ requests from clients intensified in recent weeks.”
… “One attorney familiar with the recent pardon efforts told us that there have been discussions involving ‘very rich, well-placed individuals’ from India, Greece, Turkey, and France who were told that their cases were under consideration.
… One attorney: “It is general knowledge in our practice that for $2 million, you can have a pardon. The clients come to us and tell us, I’ve been told I need to go hire this specific person, and I will get a pardon.”
… Liz Oyer, who was DOJ’s Pardon Attorney under Biden: “Donald Trump has turned the pardon process into the Hunger Games.”
… Mike Johnson was forced to send the House home for the rest of the week today without passing the crucial National Defense Authorization Act that funds the military. The additional farm bailout money is also attached to the bill. The House floor is basically shut down by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna who is blocking a rule until the SAVE Act is also added to the NDAA by amendment.
… Luna: “The current plan being proposed by HOUSE GOP to ‘MIRV- NDAA + SAVE is a procedural head fake. This does not do anything but guarantee the Senate will EASILY TAKE OUT SAVE America from the NDAA. HOUSE GOP LEADERSHIP SHOULD allow an AMENDMENT to ATTACH VOTER ID + PROOF OF CITIZENSHIP or SAVE to the ACTUAL TEXT of NDAA. IF IT IS NOT DONE THIS WAY, IT WILL EASILY BE TAKEN OUT.”
… “If we do it as an amendment, the way that I proposed it, the Senate would need 60 votes to pass the legislation without SAVE attached. Meaning it would be harder for them to TAKE it out.”
… House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole (R-OK) to Politico: “The idea you’re going to make the Senate do something by doing nothing in the House is ridiculous. You make the Senate move by putting pressure on them by passing bills, not by having a self-inflicted shutdown. If she wants to be a senator, she should run for the Senate. Trying to use the House in that way just makes us ineffective - as ineffective as they are.”
… Stephen Miller was foaming at the mouth on Fox about the Senate not passing the SAVE Act:
“Should the Democrats regain power, it’s game over. 12 more justices on SCOTUS, two new Democrat states, they’re going to get rid of the 2nd Amend, they’re going to get rid of our borders, they’re going to get rid of our police, they’re going to get rid of ICE, Border Patrol, DHS, and they’re going to elect communists, like actual communists, not even socialists. Communists will wreck this country.”
“We have 53 Republican senators, and everybody says, well this senator won’t vote for it or that senator won’t vote for it, it’s because there is no consequence on them. But they have foundations they want to be a part of, corporate boards they want to be a part of. If you want to be in Republican politics, you have to understand it’s a team sport.”
Q - “Gov. Mike DeWine said we’ll cease to have healthcare workers in OH if you deport all of those Haitians. Miller: If I have a loved one in the hospital, I’m going to take licensed American nurse, not the illegal alien from Haiti. That’s just me.”
… NYT: “The Democratic Party has a serious chance to win a Senate seat in TX for the first time in a generation, as James Talarico begins the summer locked in a tied race with Ken Paxton, the state AG weighed down by past scandals, according to a NYT/Siena poll. Frustrations over Trump’s handling of the economy and concerns about Paxton’s character have put the Senate seat in play in one of the nation’s Republican strongholds.”
… “Paxton swept past indictment, impeachment and allegations of infidelity to thump an incumbent Republican senator who vastly outspent him in a primary this year. Now, as he faces Talarico, Paxton finds himself in a tight race that is marked by striking demographic divides. Talarico and Paxton each garnered 47% of the vote in the poll.”
… “There were several signs of weakness for Paxton in the poll. A majority of likely Texas voters see Talarico as having good character and the right moral values, but not Paxton. Talarico is winning 61% of Hispanic voters - less than two years after Trump carried that community in TX in the 2024 election.”
… “Still, the poll shows the extent of the challenge ahead of Talarico. His enormous lead among independent voters - 27 points - was only good enough to force the race into a virtual tie in heavily Republican TX. While Talarico is ahead in TX’s big urban centers, Paxton is crushing him 2-1 everywhere else.”
… Daily Mail published photos of Paxton getting cozy in Iceland this week with his latest mistress: “Instead of hitting the campaign trail to court voters in the hotly contested US Senate race in Texas over Fourth of July, MAGA firebrand Ken Paxton is on a trip with his mistress in Iceland.”
… Talarico: “Ken Paxton was impeached for taking bribes from donors. He became a multi-millionaire on a govt salary. He takes lavish vacations in Iceland while Texans can’t afford the basics. Ken Paxton doesn’t serve us - he serves himself.”
… A campaign volunteer was caught on a hot mic as she approached Sen. Susan Collins at a campaign event: Volunteer - “Senator Collins, I just really wanted to thank you for standing with Trump when it really counts. Collins: Thank you.”
… Democratic challenger Graham Platner responded: “Her supporters said it best, Senator Collins always stands with Trump when it counts.”
… AP: “A man with the same name as Alaska US Sen. Dan Sullivan is eligible for state’s primary ballot, judge rules, overturning a decision by state election officials.”
… CNN’s Manu Raju: “The fear among Republicans is that the other Dan Sullivan will end up in the final 4 making it to the general - with only their middle initial the difference - and would be enough to siphon away enough votes to give Peltola an edge in a close and high-stakes race.”
… Alaska’s peculiar primary system along with rank-choice voting makes a candidate with the same name as Sen. Sullivan on the ballot a major headache for the Republican, which is why he and the RNC fought so hard to try and get the other Sullivan removed.
… Journalist Madeline Pelz with an update from the Great American 250 Fair: “Just left the great American state fair where I watched Michael Knowles debate a 10 year old girl about the Salem witch trials in front of DOZENS of people.”
… Dave Levinthal with NOTUS: “The 11 AM Tuesday time slot at the Great American State Fair is apparently not the most fruitful, as there are more musicians in the band than spectators.”
Reminder there is no Bulletin tomorrow because I do my weekly podcast Uncovered where we do a deep dive into the top stories of the week. There is a good bit of prep that goes into those 90-minute live shows, and 5 days a week putting these together is the max I can do mentally each week, so I don’t write on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
If you missed yesterday’s Bulletin, you can find it here.
… Meidas Capitol Hill reporter Pablo Manriquez asked Republican and Democratic members of the House why nobody was showing up to Trump’s Freedom 250 Fair. Republicans mostly refused to answer, but he got some fun answers from Dems:
Rep. Yassamin Ansari (AZ): “I’m not surprised. No one wants to be associated with the most corrupt president in American history, who has absolutely destroyed this country while enriching himself and his family. It was hilarious and sad to see Fox with the empty background trying to tout this as some kind of success.”
Rep. Maxine Dexter (OR): “It’s hard to be patriotic when they are dividing the country, and he is using this as a platform for his hate and cruelty, so people don’t get inspired by such nonsense.”
Rep. Johnny Olszewski (MD): “His party sucks. There’s nothing fun to do. Even Vanilla Ice canceled at the last minute because the weather was supposed to be
