Please consider taking a few minutes to complete a brief survey about the Executive Functions Roundup. Your feedback will help us improve the Roundup and better serve our readers.
The en banc D.C. Circuit on Tuesday affirmed a preliminary injunction barring the Environmental Protection Agency from terminating $20 billion in Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund grants. Six of the ten participating judges concluded that EPA likely contravened the Inflation Reduction Act’s mandatory appropriation by attempting to claw back disbursed funds “based solely on a policy disagreement.” (Judgment.) (NYT.)
Judge Amit P. Mehta (D.D.C.) on Tuesday granted the Justice Department’s motion to dismiss with prejudice the indictment against nine members of the Oath Keepers, closing the last January 6 prosecution. Judge Mehta wrote that the government’s request “to absolve these Defendants of crimes against the United States itself” is not in the public interest, but that the court “must give way to the primacy of the Executive Branch in making charging decisions.” (Memorandum Opinion and Order.) (Politico.)
Judge Philip A. Brimmer (D. Colo.) on Monday dismissed with prejudice the Justice Department’s suit seeking Colorado’s statewide voter registration list. The ruling is the department’s 20th consecutive district court loss in its effort to obtain state voter rolls. (Order.) (Democracy Docket.) For background, see a previous Roundup.
Twenty-four states and the District of Columbia sued the Administration for Children and Families on Monday over a records notice that would let the agency disclose Temporary Assistance for Needy Families recipients’ Social Security numbers and immigration status “to any public or private entity that ACF chooses, at any time.” (Complaint.) (Press Release.)
The Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday advanced acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s nomination to be attorney general on a 12–10 party-line vote, after Senators John Cornyn and Thom Tillis dropped their objections. Senator Susan Collins said afterward that she does not intend to support Blanche on the floor. (NYT.) Chris Geidner argued that Cornyn and Tillis’s acceptance of Blanche’s written assurances “is not oversight, it is not principled.” (Law Dork.) For background on the assurances, see a previous Roundup.
U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s office has moved in recent days to dismiss misdemeanor charges against three more defendants accused of vandalizing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, after investigators attributed the damage to a contractor. President Trump met with Pirro in the Oval Office on Monday, hours after accusing her of “folding like an umbrella.” He said Tuesday that he had told her he was “not happy” with her filing and declined to say whether her job was safe. (NYT.) (NYT.) (Politico.) For background, see a previous Roundup.
The National Guard deployment in Washington, D.C., is set to cost an additional $1.4 billion from October through the end of President Trump’s term, according to an estimate the Pentagon’s comptroller nominee provided to Senator Elizabeth Warren during his confirmation. (WaPo.)
Pending Interim Order Applications Involving the U.S. Government in the Supreme Court
Trump v. California: The government filed an application on July 27 requesting the Supreme Court to stay a district court injunction that blocked federal agencies from implementing certain portions of the president’s March 31 executive order entitled “Ensuring Citizenship Verification and Integrity in Federal Elections.” The 23 states and the District of Columbia challenging the order filed a consolidated opposition on August 3, arguing that a stay “would allow the federal government to rush out an unprecedented, legally indefensible voter-verification and ballot-interception program.” The government filed a reply on August 4, arguing that the states rest their challenge on “speculation about what impact the Executive Order would have if it were ultimately implemented in violation of federal law.”
Alabama v. California: Twelve states filed an application on July 29 requesting the Supreme Court to stay a district court injunction that blocked federal agencies from implementing certain portions of the president’s March 31 executive order entitled “Ensuring Citizenship Verification and Integrity in Federal Elections.” The 23 states and the District of Columbia challenging the order filed a consolidated opposition on August 3. The twelve states filed a reply on August 4, arguing that the executive order “imposes zero obligations on the States or public.”