{
  "id": 10945050,
  "title": "Only Trump Gets to Criticize the Supreme Court",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/30/only-trump-gets-to-criticize-the-supreme-court",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-30T12:45:34.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Atlantic",
    "slug": "the-atlantic",
    "url": "https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/09/trump-supreme-court-justices/688830/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Only former President Donald Trump believes it is illegal for anyone to criticize the Supreme Court. In 2024, Trump claimed on the campaign trail that those who criticize the justices are \"playing the ref\" and their actions should be punishable by serious fines. However, when Trump himself criticizes the Supreme Court, as he did after the majority of justices rejected his attempt to restrict voting by mail, it is not considered illegal.\n\nTrump's criticism of the Court, following its rejection of his voting laws, is a projection of his fear that public pressure can sway the justices. He projects his own fears onto the Supreme Court, assuming they are being \"bullied and cajoled by the Radical Left\" and incorrectly assumes that the justices are siding with his opponents.\n\nTrump's view of law is similar to how he views other matters. When he or his allies want to do something, like using taxpayer money for their benefit, it is considered legal. Conversely, when his opponents want to act, it is deemed illegal. The conservative legal movement, which Trump supports, has not focused its efforts to have a few justices go rogue, but to shape the judiciary to align with their ideology.\n\nDespite Trump's claims, his plan to direct the U.S. Postal Service to determine mail-in ballot eligibility based on incomplete federal voter-registration lists was lawless and would have disenfranchised many voters. The real damage, according to election-law experts, is the potential disenfranchisement of millions of voters, including those who rely on mail-in voting.\n\nThe two justices who dissented in Trump's recent voting-by-mail case, Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas, are often seen as the only justices more aligned with Trump's agenda. Despite recent losses for Trump at the Supreme Court, the Court has generally followed his lead in most cases. Trump's complaints about the Court's decisions often reveal his dissatisfaction with the court's overall record, which includes controversial rulings on matters like voting rights, presidential immunity, and the Voting Rights Act.",
  "summary": "“These are not the people I interviewed to serve.”",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}