Supreme Court Rules 5-4 To Uphold Pandemic Orders Limiting Church Services JONATHAN TURLEY
Last week, President Donald Trump has pledged that he will override state orders barring in-person religious services unless governors do so. As I have previously noted, the President is claiming authority that is expressly denied to him in our system of federalism. While I have warned such deference given to the states wanes with time, any order to reopen churches in a given state will be based on the inherent authority of the courts, not the President. The Administration can, and has promised, joined legal challenges to such state orders but it is not claiming the inherent authority of presidents to override state decisions. The Justice Department has warned Newsom that his order is contravening constitutional rights. However, now that the Supreme Court has ruled, any move by President Trump to override such orders would directly contravene the authority of the Supreme Court as the final arbiter of what the Constitution means in such conflicts.