Supreme Court decisions 2020 to date

OnTheIssues.org excerpts:  (click on issues for details)

Abortion     Clarence Thomas: Nothing in Constitution dictates states must allow abortions.

Civil Rights     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Upheld program for disadvantaged small businesses.     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Nomination endorsed by the Human Rights Campaign.     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Served on board for school that condemned LGBTQ people.     Brett Kavanaugh: In the eyes of government, we are just one race here.     Neil Gorsuch: Ruled against claimants in employment discrimination cases.     Nancy Pelosi: Ending LGBTQ job discrimination a victory for our democracy.

Corporations     Brett Kavanaugh: Company can challenge onerous IRS reporting requirement.     Elena Kagan: Company can challenge onerous IRS reporting requirement.     Sonia Sotomayor: Company can challenge onerous IRS reporting requirement.     Clarence Thomas: Upheld "double windfall": plain text of tax law permits it.

Crime     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Prisons must evaluate and accommodate deaf prisoners.     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Miranda warning not required outside of police interrogation.     Ketanji Brown Jackson: No expectation of privacy when not in your apartment.     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Denied release of child pornographer as risk to community.     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Pushed to commute uncle's sentence under "three strikes" law.     Amy Coney Barrett: George Floyd video shows that racism persists.

Drugs     Ketanji Brown Jackson: 100-to-one crack-powder penalty distinction unwarranted.     Clarence Thomas: Federal marijuana laws may no longer be necessary or proper.

Education     Ketanji Brown Jackson: On Harvard Board of Overseers; will recuse on Harvard case.     Amy Coney Barrett: Schools are limited in regulating student off-campus speech.     Brett Kavanaugh: Schools are limited in regulating student off-campus speech.     Clarence Thomas: Don't limit schools in regulating student off-campus speech.     Elena Kagan: Schools are limited in regulating student off-campus speech.     John Roberts: Schools are limited in regulating student off-campus speech.     Neil Gorsuch: Schools can't regulate student off-campus speech like parent.     Samuel Alito: Schools can't regulate student off-campus speech like parent.     Sonia Sotomayor: Schools are limited in regulating student off-campus speech.     Stephen Breyer: Schools are limited in regulating student off-campus speech.

Energy & Oil     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Can't use EPA review to stop oil pipelines.     Amy Coney Barrett: Declines to acknowledge well-established climate science.     Brett Kavanaugh: Global warming is not a blank check for executive action.     John Roberts: EPA cannot regulate greenhouse gases as air pollutants.     Samuel Alito: Clean Air Act should not include greenhouse gases.     Sonia Sotomayor: Expansive reading of EPA's authority under the Clean Air Act.     Amy Coney Barrett: No extensions for refineries' Renewable Fuel Program.     Elena Kagan: No extensions for refineries' Renewable Fuel Program.     Neil Gorsuch: Allow refineries Renewable Fuel Program extensions.     Sonia Sotomayor: No extensions for refineries' Renewable Fuel Program.

Environment     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Rejected challenge to forest management regulations.     Elena Kagan: Congress can empower EPA and executive branch.     Neil Gorsuch: Congress should write EPA rules, not Executive Branch.     Stephen Breyer: Broad jurisdiction for EPA under Clean Water Act.

Families & Children     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Decide child pornography based on intent, not just actions.     Ketanji Brown Jackson: 2018: Keep Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program.     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Don't require religious employers to cover contraception.

Free Trade     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Use only government data to set tobacco import subsidies.

Government Reform     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Judges should defer to expert opinion of federal agencies.     Amy Coney Barrett: AZ mail-in restrictions don't violate Voting Rights Act.     Brett Kavanaugh: AZ mail-in restrictions don't violate Voting Rights Act.     Clarence Thomas: AZ mail-in restrictions don't violate Voting Rights Act.     Democratic Party: AZ mail-in restrictions violate Voting Rights Act.     Elena Kagan: AZ mail-in restrictions violate Voting Rights Act.     John Roberts: AZ mail-in restrictions don't violate Voting Rights Act.     Mark Brnovich: AZ mail-in restrictions don't violate Voting Rights Act.     Neil Gorsuch: AZ mail-in restrictions don't violate Voting Rights Act.     Samuel Alito: AZ mail-in restrictions don't violate Voting Rights Act.     Sonia Sotomayor: AZ mail-in restrictions violate Voting Rights Act.     Stephen Breyer: AZ mail-in restrictions violate Voting Rights Act.     Amy Coney Barrett: Constitution says count all residents in census.

Gun Control     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Has never affirmed individual right to guns.

Health Care     Amy Coney Barrett: Individual mandate is constitutional even with $0 tax.     Brett Kavanaugh: Individual mandate is constitutional even with $0 tax.     Clarence Thomas: Individual mandate is constitutional even with $0 tax.     Elena Kagan: Individual mandate is constitutional even with $0 tax.     Joe Biden: Individual mandate is constitutional even with $0 tax.     John Roberts: Individual mandate is constitutional even with $0 tax.     Nancy Pelosi: Individual mandate is constitutional even with $0 tax.     Neil Gorsuch: Individual mandate is unconstitutional even with $0 tax.     Samuel Alito: Individual mandate is unconstitutional even with $0 tax.     Sonia Sotomayor: Individual mandate is constitutional even with $0 tax.     Stephen Breyer: Individual mandate is constitutional even with $0 tax.

Homeland Security     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Defended accused terrorist while her brother was in Iraq.

Immigration     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Trump administration set asylum seeking standards too high.     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Due process for immigrants regardless of legal status.     Neil Gorsuch: Allow access to relief in deportation proceedings.     Antonin Scalia: DACA phase-out legally correct under administrative law.     Barack Obama: DACA recipients make America's shared ideals.     Brett Kavanaugh: DACA phase-out legally correct under administrative law.     Clarence Thomas: DACA phase-out legally correct under administrative law.     Donald Trump: DACA phase-out legally correct but politically controversial.     Elena Kagan: DACA protect childhood immigrants from deportation.     Jeff Sessions: DACA program was created without proper authority.     Joe Biden: Make DACA permanent; much work remains to be done.     John Roberts: DACA protect childhood immigrants from deportation.     Kirstjen Nielsen: DACA program undermines confidence in rule of law.     Ruth Bader Ginsburg: DACA protect childhood immigrants from deportation.     Samuel Alito: DACA phase-out legally correct; politics is not our business.     Sonia Sotomayor: DACA protect childhood immigrants from deportation.     Stephen Breyer: DACA protect childhood immigrants from deportation.

Jobs     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Follows precedent in workplace racial discrimination cases.     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Lengthy discovery needed in employment discrimination cases.     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Reversed narrowing of federal collective bargaining rules.     ACLU: No discrimination for sexual orientation or gender identity.

Principles & Values     Ketanji Brown Jackson: OpEd: does affirmative action apply to qualified nominees?     Ketanji Brown Jackson: I do not have a judicial philosophy per se.     Amy Coney Barrett: Neutral laws may impact religious groups.     Brett Kavanaugh: Neutral laws may impact religious groups.     Amy Coney Barrett: Member of the conservative People of Praise faith community.

Tax Reform     Amy Coney Barrett: A faithful adherence to the Internal Revenue Code.

Technology     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Don't blame car sound systems for illegal music copying.     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Wheelchair anti-discrimination laws do apply to Uber.

Welfare & Poverty     Ketanji Brown Jackson: Continue pandemic-related eviction moratorium.

Click for quotations from other sources by: ACLU Amy Coney Barrett Republican appointee to Supreme Court Antonin Scalia Republican Appointee to Supreme Court (deceased 2016) Barack Obama Democratic President (elected 2008) Brett Kavanaugh Nominee for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas Republican Appointee to Supreme Court Democratic Party Donald Trump Republican Presidential incumbent Elena Kagan Democratic Appointee to Supreme Court Jeff Sessions Alabama Attorney General 2017-2018 Joe Biden Democratic V.P. John Roberts Republican Appointee to Supreme Court Ketanji Brown Jackson Democratic Supreme Court nominee Kirstjen Nielsen Secretary of Homeland Security Mark Brnovich Republican Challenger Arizona Nancy Pelosi Democrat U.S. Rep California-12 Neil Gorsuch Republican Appointee to Supreme Court Ruth Bader Ginsburg Former Democratic Appointee to Supreme Court Samuel Alito Republican Appointee to Supreme Court Sonia Sotomayor Democratic Appointee to Supreme Court Stephen Breyer Democratic Appointee to Supreme Court