Supreme Court kicks off new term with fresh questions over its legitimacy and its future

The Supreme Court opens its new term on Monday facing continuing doubts about its credibility, safety concerns for the justices, and political talk about changing the court's membership. Chief Justice John Roberts will convene the nine justices at 10 a.m. EDT, and the first argument concerns whether oil and gas companies can be held liable for harms tied to climate change, a dispute pitting federal against state authority, according to Fox News.

Thomas Dupree, an appellate lawyer who formerly held a senior Justice Department post, describes Roberts as an institutionalist caught at a moment when long-standing traditions are under strain, and says the chief justice is trying to resist that current by sticking to them.

Fox News reports the justices will again handle disputes over the reach of presidential power, including immigration, restructuring of federal agencies, and potentially the White House ballroom and Kennedy Center building projects. Firearms, religious liberty and voting rules are also on the schedule. Last term, Donald Trump lost on tariffs, birthright citizenship and Federal Reserve governor removals, yet won on several immigration policies, redistricting, gerrymandering and campaign spending. The 6-3 conservative majority has often let the administration proceed through preliminary "shadow docket" orders.

Summarized by PolitiKool from Fox News’s reporting. Read the full story at Fox News →