Trump overshadows Supreme Court as ruling season begins

WASHINGTON — The beginning of June marks the start of the traditional monthlong ruling season at the Supreme Court, when the justices hand down decisions in their biggest and most contentious cases.

WASHINGTON — The beginning of June marks the start of the traditional monthlong ruling season at the Supreme Court, when the justices hand down decisions in their biggest and most contentious cases.

But this year is different.

President Donald Trump’s second term has disrupted the court calendar, with the nine justices now spending as much time, if not more, juggling consequential emergency cases that need to be handled quickly as they do on the regular docket of cases that have gotten months of attention and deliberation.

“It underscores the degree to which Donald Trump and the Trump administration are sucking all of the oxygen out of the room,” said Leah Litman, a professor at the University of Michigan Law School and the author of a new book about the court, “Lawless.”

This can affect the public’s knowledge and understanding of what the court is doing in part because media organizations are used to devoting additional resources to coverage during June that are not necessarily available at other times of the year, she added.