
SCOTUS Squabbles Go Public
From Strict Scrutiny by Strict Scrutiny
April 20, 2026 · 1h 38m · Season 7 · Episode 29
About this episode
The hosts discuss various conflicts involving Supreme Court justices and recent legal news.
Melissa, Kate, and Leah break down an absolute boatload of beefs: Trump vs. Pope Leo, Sonia Sotomayor vs. Coach Brett Kavanaugh, Clarence Thomas vs. progressives, and Ketanji Brown Jackson vs. the shadow docket, before covering some of the week’s other legal news, including the Harvard Crimson’s reporting on conservative judges’ ideological litmus tests for clerkships. Then, they break down the Court’s opinion in Chevron v. Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, before previewing some upcoming oral arguments at One First Street, including the “crimmigration” case, Blanche v. Lau . Favorite things: Leah: RFK Jr. and the raccoon penis ; Her talk with Steve Vladeck in DC on her upcoming paper, The Passive Vices , on Monday, April 20 at 12:45pm - RSVP here . Melissa: Lady Tremaine , Rachel Hochhauser; Lily Allen’s West End Girl tour ; Rumours , Fleetwood Mac Kate: What I Want , MUNA; Playground , Richard Powers; Labor Dept. Investigates Texts Among Secretary’s Family and Staff , Rebecca Davis O’Brien (NYT) Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2026! 6/20/26 – New York City Learn more: http://crooked.com/events Preorder Melissa’s book, The U.S. Constitution: A…
People in this episode
Hosts: Melissa, Kate, Leah
Topics covered
- Supreme Court
- legal news
- ideological litmus tests
- Chevron v. Plaquemines Parish
- upcoming oral arguments
- crimmigration
Keywords
- Supreme Court
- legal news
- Chevron
- litmus tests
- crimmigration
- Ketanji Brown Jackson
- Clarence Thomas
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Harvard Crimson, Fleetwood Mac, Labor Dept.
Books & works: The Passive Vices, Lawless
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- How SCOTUS is Waging Electoral Warfare · May 18, 2026 · 1h 44m
- The Constitution (Melissa's Version) · May 11, 2026 · 1h 43m
- Supreme Court Declares Racism Over · May 4, 2026 · 1h 32m
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