Supreme Court signaling a right turn

Key actions are a sign of a conservative shift

WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to implement its partial ban on transgender troops in the military Tuesday as part of a flurry of actions that gave conservatives cautious optimism.

The justices also agreed to consider a Second Amendment challenge to gun restrictions for the first time in nearly a decade. But it delayed action on President Donald Trump’s effort to end deportation protections for more than 700,000 undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children.

The high court’s actions were closely monitored as the clock winds down on its ability to schedule cases for the current term, which ends in June. The tug of war between its conservative and liberal factions remains without a clear winner, but the addition of Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh has bolstered the court’s right flank.

That was evident in a series of orders regarding the Pentagon’s partial ban on transgender troops, paving the way for lower court blockades to be lifted. All four of the court’s liberal justices said the injunctions should remain in place.

It was evident from the decision to hear the New York City gun rights case, which will shed light on restrictions that have withstood the court’s landmark 2008 and 2010 rulings upholding the right to bear arms at home for self-defense. The court had sidestepped simi-

lar cases before Kavanaugh succeeded Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy, its swing vote, last year.

And it was evident from the court’s refusal to hear a religious liberty case involving a high school football coach who was fired for kneeling in prayer at the 50-yard line after games. Four conservative justices expressed concern for the coach’s plight and signaled they may agree to hear a future case.

Only by delaying action on Trump’s attempt to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, did the court hand conservatives a defeat. But that may be temporary. The justices still could hear the case in its next term, starting in October.

“The court is moving the ball, slowly,” said Josh Blackman, associate professor at South Texas College of Law in Houston.

Here’s a quick look at the Supreme Court’s actions:

Transgender troops

The justices lifted all but one injunction against the plan, and the last one is expected to fall shortly. That will green-light a policy first announced by Trump on Twitter 18 months ago.

Justice Department spokeswoman Kerri Kupec hailed the action. “Due to lower courts issuing nationwide injunctions, our military had been forced to maintain a prior policy that poses a risk to military effectiveness and le- thality for over a year,” she said.

The high court’s action followed a decision by a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. It ruled that the policy had been fine-tuned by Pentagon officials over a period of months and no longer constituted a “blanket ban.”

The Pentagon reiterated in a statement Tuesday that the policy is not a complete ban and that transgender troops will continue to be treated with respect and dignity. There are several thousand transgender troops serving now, according to a Rand Corp. study.

Young immigrants

By taking no action on the administration’s petition to end the DACA program, the justices merely kicked the can down the road further.

Trump’s effort has been on hold for a year after a federal district judge’s nationwide injunction. In November, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit upheld that ruling.

The Justice Department had asked the Supreme Court to intervene even before the most recent ruling. But with its inaction, the court likely let slip any chance the case can be heard during the current term, which ends in June. That pushes oral argument to October at the earliest and a decision into 2020, if the court agrees to hear the case at all.

Gun rights

Surprising even Second Amendment advocates, the court agreed to consider a petition backed by gun owners’ groups asking them to strike down New York City’s strict rules for carrying legally owned guns outside the home.

The rules do not allow gun owners to transport firearms outside city limits, even to practice ranges or second homes. Lower courts have upheld the city’s regulations.

Since 2010, the justices had refused to hear challenges from gun rights or gun control groups. That left issues such as assault weapons bans, trigger locks and the right to carry guns in public up to individual states.

Public prayer

The court refused to tackle a First Amendment dispute between a Washington State school district and a football coach fired for praying in public view along with willing athletes.

The lawsuit by Joseph Kennedy, a Bremerton High School coach who was fired in 2015, had become a cause celebre among religious conservative groups who argued that he was denied his free speech rights as a private citizen. Trump even tweeted support for the coach during his presidential campaign.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit ruled in 2017 that Kennedy acted as a public official by praying in school attire and in full view of students and parents.

Four conservative justices – Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch and Kavanaugh – wrote separately Tuesday to register concerns about religious liberty. “The (federal appeals court’s) understanding of the free speech rights of public school teachers is troubling and may justify review in the future,” Alito wrote.