Learning Library

Full Text

# SCOTUStoday for Thursday, January 8 **Source:** [SCOTUSblog](https://www.scotusblog.com/2026/01/scotustoday-for-thursday-january-8/) **Author:** Kelsey Dallas **Published:** 2026-01-08 **Jurisdiction:** Federal - Supreme Court ## Summary - A Senate Judiciary subcommittee held a hearing titled “Impevement: Holding Rogue Judges Accountable,” underscoring congressional willingness to use impeachment as a tool to check the federal judiciary. At the same time, the Supreme Court is poised to release new opinions, consider petitions for review, and schedule arguments on high‑profile issues such as transgender athletes, gun‑rights jurisprudence, and a challenge to a Federal Reserve board member, reflecting a busy docket with significant constitutional implications. Additional news items illustrate how Supreme Court decisions intersect with political actions on tariffs, redistricting, and labor disputes. - The “Impeachment: Holding Rogue Judges Accountable” hearing highlights legislative scrutiny of judicial conduct and the potential revival of impeachment as a mechanism to address alleged judicial overreach. - The Supreme Court’s imminent opinion releases and petition reviews signal possible shifts in legal precedent, especially in areas of civil rights, gun rights, and administrative law. - Upcoming oral arguments (transgender athletes, gun‑rights, and the removal of a Fed Reserve governor) provide law students and practitioners with concrete examples of constitutional questions currently before the Court. - Political developments (Trump’s tariff comments, DeSantis’s redistricting push pending a pending VRA case) demonstrate how pending Supreme Court rulings can influence legislative strategy and electoral considerations. - The Pittsburgh Post‑Gazette closure after the Court denied a stay on a labor‑agreement order illustrates the real‑world impact of appellate and Supreme Court decisions on employment and labor law disputes. ## Content SCOTUStoday for Thursday, January 8 As tension continues to rise over the federal judiciary’s relationship to the Trump administration, the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights held a hearing called “Impeachment: Holding Rogue Judges Accountable.” A recording of the hearing is available to watch online. SCOTUS Quick Hits - The Supreme Court has indicated that it may announce opinions on Friday at 10 a.m. EST. SCOTUSblog will have an opinion day live blog Friday morning beginning at 9:30. - Also on Friday, the justices will meet to consider petitions for review. We may know as soon as that afternoon if the court has added any new cases to the oral argument docket. - The court’s January argument session will begin on Monday, Jan. 12. The court will hear seven arguments over two weeks, including on transgender athletes; the latest chapter in the court’s gun rights jurisprudence; and President Donald Trump’s bid to remove Lisa Cook, a member of the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors. Morning Reads - Trump talks up his tariffs with Supreme Court decision looming (Cory Smith, The National News Desk) — President Donald Trump continued to talk up his tariffs on Tuesday after news broke that the Supreme Court may release opinions on Friday. “We’re getting rich because of tariffs, by the way,” the president said at a retreat with House Republicans, according to The National News Desk. “I hope everyone understands that. … We’ll have over $650 billion poured into our country, or coming in shortly, because of tariffs.” - DeSantis calls for special session on Florida 2026 redistricting (Jim Rosica and James Call, USA Today) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is calling for a special session of the Florida Legislature to be held in April as the state plans a redistricting push ahead of the 2026 elections that would make it “the latest in a series of GOP-led states heeding a push from President Donald Trump to try to create a more favorable electoral climate for his party,” according to USA Today. “DeSantis … said the state needs to wait for a pending U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the Voting Rights Act before moving forward with new maps.” It can’t wait too long, however, unless lawmakers vote “to delay the candidate qualifying period for congressional races, currently scheduled for late April.” - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says it will close down, citing losses and labor rules (Laura Wagner and Scott Nover, The Washington Post)(Paywall) — After 240 years and a lengthy labor battle, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is shutting down. “The newspaper will print its final edition May 3, according to a statement it issued Wednesday hours after the U.S. Supreme Court denied its request to stay a federal appeals court’s November order that the newspaper adhere to the terms of an earlier labor agreement with its union,” according to The Washington Post. “Recent court decisions would require the Post-Gazette to operate under a 2014 labor contract that imposes on the Post-Gazette outdated and inflexible operational practices unsuited for today’s local journalism,” the newspaper’s owner, Block Communications, wrote in the statement. - Seventh Circuit shuts down Satanic Temple challenge to Indiana abortion law (Caitlyn Rosen, Courthouse News Service) — The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit on Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit from the Satanic Temple, “a nonreligious group that advocates for benevolence and empathy,” that aimed to force changes to Indiana’s 10-week abortion ban, which was enacted “in 2022, shortly after … Roe v. Wade was overturned,” according to Courthouse News Service. The Satanic Temple had contended that Indiana’s abortion law “unfairly blocks the organization from providing telemedicine abortion care” and subjects its members to “a stigmatic injury” because they are “perceived as evil” due to their support for abortion. The 7th Circuit panel held that these injuries were not concrete enough to give the Satanic Temple “standing to sue the state.” - NFL, three teams appeal to Supreme Court in coach Brian Flores’s discrimination suit (Zach Schonfeld, The Hill) — The NFL and three NFL teams have asked the Supreme Court to weigh in on a lawsuit filed by coach Brian Flores, now the defensive coordinator for the Minnesota Vikings, who contends that he participated in “sham” interviews for head coach openings in the past and that the league and teams are engaged in racial discrimination, according to The Hill. “In a petition docketed Tuesday, the NFL and the teams — the Denver Broncos, Houston Texans and New York Giants — urged the justices to reverse a ruling that would allow the case to proceed before a jury. The league says it should proceed in arbitration.” - U.S. Appeals Court Won’t Take Up Case to Resurrect 9/11 Plea Deal (Carol Rosenberg, The New York Times)(Paywall) — The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit announced on Tuesday that it... --- *Legal Topics: constitutional, civil-procedure, administrative* *Difficulty: beginner* *Via SCOTUSblog*