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The Supreme Court on Thursday granted Texas’s request to stay a district court ruling that had blocked the state from using its newly redrawn congressional maps, which the lower court had found were likely an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. (Order.) The stay allows Texas to use its 2025 map in the 2026 midterms—and, as the Times notes, comes amid a broader push by President Trump for GOP-led states to redraw maps prior to the election. (NYT.) In July, the Justice Department sent Texas a letter urging the state to “rectify the racial gerrymandering” of four districts or face legal action. (Letter.) (Scotusblog.)
A Virginia grand jury declined to re-indict New York Attorney General Letitia James on Thursday. (NYT.) See a previous Roundup for the district court order dismissing the previous indictment against James.
The Justice Department asserted in a recent court filing that Attorney General Pam Bondi and Pardon Attorney Ed Martin are empowered to determine who falls within President Trump’s Nov. 7 blanket pardon for “certain offenses related to the 2020 presidential election,” with Martin concluding that the proclamation does not apply to at least one defendant charged with double-voting. Politico reports that this delegation of presidential power would give Trump’s subordinates considerable discretion, as the “pardon’s language is so vague and limitless that it could apply to thousands of people.” (Politico.)
Adm. Frank M. Bradley and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine on Thursday briefed leaders of the House and Senate Armed Services and Intelligence Committees, in addition to military appropriators, about the decision to conduct a follow-up strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean in September. Lawmakers said video of the attack showed two men unsuccessfully attempting to flip the front portion of the boat, which was capsized but still afloat, before the men were killed in the second strike. Bradley, the commander of the operation, insisted that the second strike was lawful and told lawmakers that Secretary Hegseth had not given him an order to grant no quarter. (NYT.) While some GOP members who viewed the video defended the follow-up strike as justified, Democrats said it depicted two shipwrecked men posing no threat and demanded the Pentagon publicly release the full, unedited footage. (WSJ.) Bob Bauer argued that the boat strike episode illustrates the ways that his presidency is built to disregard conventional checks and wrote that Trump’s response to the controversy will likely mirror his expansive, accountability-averse view of executive power. (Executive Functions.)
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced on Thursday that it will begin requiring some migrants to renew their work permits every 18 months instead of every five years in order to screen and vet migrants more often. (NYT.)
César Cuauhtémoc García Hernández argued that the Trump administration’s implementation of the Asylum Transit Rule and metering policy, which are at issue in Noem v. Al Otro Lado, may incentivize unauthorized migration. (SCOTUSblog). See a previous Roundup for the Supreme Court’s grant of certiorari in this case.
Steve Vladeck argued that, though Sen. Mark Kelly may be legally subject to court-martial as a retired servicemember, there are several major obstacles facing his prosecution. (One First.)
Pending Interim Order Applications Involving the U.S. Government in the Supreme Court
Blanche v. Perlmutter: The government filed an emergency application on October 27 requesting the Supreme Court to stay a district court interlocutory injunction that temporarily reinstated Shira Perlmutter to her role as Register of Copyrights while litigation over her removal continues. Chief Justice Roberts formally set a deadline of November 10 for a response to the application. Perlmutter submitted a response on November 10. Blanche submitted a reply on November 12. The Court deferred the application for stay on November 28 pending the Court’s decisions in Trump v. Slaughter and Trump v. Cook.
Trump v. Illinois: The government filed an emergency application on October 17 requesting the Supreme Court stay a district court order barring the deployment of the National Guard to Illinois. Justice Barrett formally set a deadline of October 20 for a response to the application. Illinois and the City of Chicago submitted a response on October 20. President Trump filed a reply on October 21. On October 29, Justice Barrett requested supplemental briefs to be filed by November 10. President Trump, as well as Illinois and the City of Chicago, both filed supplemental letter briefs on November 10 and supplemental letter replies on November 17.
Trump v. Cook: The government filed an emergency application on September 18 requesting the Supreme Court to stay a preliminary injunction issued by a district court that blocked President Trump from removing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. Cook filed an opposition to the request on the same day. The Chief Justice formally set a deadline of September 25 for a response to the application. Cook filed a response on September 25. On October 1, the Court deferred action on the stay application pending oral argument in January 2026 and established a supplemental briefing schedule. Additional amicus briefs were filed on October 29. The Court set argument for January 21, 2026, and both sides filed supplemental briefs on November 19.