Please click here to opt in to receive the Executive Functions Roundup via email and to subscribe to Executive Functions.
The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed Judge Stephen R. Clark’s (E.D. Mo.) temporary restraining order enjoining Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins from using any congressional map other than the Republican-drawn plan the legislature enacted in 2025, leaving in place the Missouri Supreme Court’s ruling that the plan cannot be used unless voters approve it in a referendum. The state court held Hoskins in contempt the same day for directing election officials to use the map, though it said a notice he issued that afternoon had “corrected his contemptuous conduct.” (Order.) (WSJ.) (Law Dork.) Steve Vladeck argued that the conflicting orders are “a mess partly of the justices’ making.” (One First.)
A First Circuit panel on Thursday denied the government’s motion for a stay pending appeal of Judge Indira Talwani’s (D. Mass.) preliminary injunction barring the U.S. Postal Service from implementing the mandatory sections of its mail-in ballot rule. (Order.) Adam Unikowsky argued that the rule exceeds the Postal Service’s authority over mail operations because it regulates voting activity rather than the mail. (Adam’s Legal Newsletter.)
The Justice Department on Tuesday petitioned the Supreme Court to review a Ninth Circuit decision holding that Sigal Chattah cannot serve as acting U.S. attorney for Nevada because she was named the office’s first assistant only after it fell vacant. (Petition.) (SCOTUSblog.) For background, see a previous Roundup.
The city of Denver and three civic organizations sued the Department of Homeland Security on Thursday in the District of Columbia over its policy of authorizing armed immigration officers to go to polling places for immigration enforcement. The complaint alleges that the policy violates a Civil War-era statute barring armed federal officers from election sites except “to repel armed enemies of the United States,” and that “[t]he specter of armed officers at polling places threatens the freedom of this upcoming election.” (Complaint.) (NYT.)
Joseph diGenova, the Reagan-era U.S. attorney appointed in April to lead the Justice Department’s “grand conspiracy” investigation into federal officials who investigated President Trump, abruptly resigned on Thursday. The resignation reportedly followed pressure from department leaders who had lost confidence in diGenova’s handling of the investigation, which had not produced an indictment. (Politico.) (NYT.)
Jack Goldsmith appeared on the New York Times podcast “Interesting Times” to discuss President Trump’s “unprecedented” self-enrichment in office. (NYT.)
Pending Interim Order Applications Involving the U.S. Government in the Supreme Court
United States Postal Service v. California: The government filed an application with the Supreme Court on September 6 seeking an immediate administrative stay and a stay pending appeal of Judge Indira Talwani’s (D. Mass.) preliminary injunction barring the U.S. Postal Service from implementing the mandatory sections of its mail-in ballot rule. California and the League of Women Voters each filed responses on September 9, and the government filed a reply in support of the application on September 10. A First Circuit panel on September 10 denied the government’s parallel stay application.
Department of Homeland Security v. League of Women Voters: The government filed an application to the Supreme Court on September 8 seeking a stay pending appeal of a June 22 order issued by Judge Sparkle L. Sooknanan (D.D.C.) that vacated a Department of Homeland Security program that used Social Security data to verify voters’ citizenship status. Chief Justice Roberts set a response deadline of 4 p.m. on September 15.