🚨 Trump suffers MASSIVE LOSS at US Supreme Court

This is Democracy Watch. Mark, we have. major news from the US Supreme Court. thanks to you and your law firm. Can you. explain what that news is? Yeah, the US. Supreme Court rejected the effort by. Republicans to overturn the. congressional. redistricting map in California. So, this is a big victory for the people of. California, a big victory for Gavin. Newsom, and a big victory for democracy. Because this means that that map will be. in place. There are no more legal. challenges, no more ways for Republicans.

to try to screw this up. That will be. the map in place for the 2026 elections. Was there anything surprising or. unorthodox about the decision from the. Supreme Court? There really wasn't. You know, the. Supreme Court rejected it. There were no. noted dissents. And so, if there was. anything that was surprising, although. it would have been kind of surprising or. noteworthy either way, is that there was. no one who sided with the Republicans. You know, for all of their big talk, for. all of the Department of Justice's big. talk, cuz remember they brought this. case also,

uh they wound up going 0 for 9 in this. Supreme Court. Why do you presume that. was? That even when we have a Supreme. Court that is so. quick to defer to Donald Trump, and. especially when you have people like. Samuel Alito or Clarence Thomas who just. kind of. throw everything to the wind if it means. they can heap more advantage, more. benefit, more deference to Donald Trump. Why do you think it is that even those. people decided that this case was not. going to be it for them? Yeah, look, I think that the Supreme. Court made a decision in the Texas case.

that it was simply not going to halt any. of these new legislative efforts. uh before the 2026 midterm elections. And it was not going to halt them where. they were clearly drawn for partisan. reasons. You know, we had won a case at. the trial court in Texas, thought we. were on the right side of that, thought. we had the better argument, still think. I do. Uh but the Supreme Court said, "Nope, we're going to let the Texas map. go into place because it's a partisan. gerrymander notwithstanding the fact. that we pointed evidence that it was. race-based. And and in that decision,

they actually pointed to California as. also partisan. So, by the time the case. actually got from California to the. Supreme Court, you know, they had kind. of locked themselves in because they. were trying to run interference on the. Texas map. And I think that's just kind. of like where we are, you know, right. now, we have, you know, partisan. gerrymandering going on in a number of. states, and the Supreme Court's just. going to take hands-off. But, you know, Brian, I think the larger news in all of. this is that with the recent election.

results, that victory in California is. much more valuable than the victory in. Texas, right? Because the victory in. California really is five seats. Like, it is five seats, put it in ink in the. book. And the five seats in Texas, well, there's a lot of puckering going on now. in the state of Texas after the recent. special election. So, you know, we may. wind up in that back and forth exchange. just there, actually netting Democratic. seats, which is not where people thought.

we'd be, certainly not where Donald. Trump thought we'd be, and that probably. explains why he has become incredibly. erratic in the last few days, even more. erratic than normal and more panicked. than normal. And I want to talk about. the implications of this latest uh Texas. Senate District 9. Uh what did what implications do you. think that's going to have on the. broader electorate, especially in light. of the fact that they've stretched these. these districts even thinner? But, first, I just want to give a quick note. uh to folks who are watching right now.

Mark and his team are the ones who. litigated this case in in California, just like they're the ones who litigated. all of these voting rights cases, these. gerrymandering cases across the country, just like they're the ones who are. litigating right now 24 different cases. in 24 different states in Washington, D.C. to protect everybody's voter data. from going to the federal government. And that includes information like your. social security number, uh whether. you're a registered Democrat or. Republican. Um they are the only ones. standing between the government getting. that data and it staying at the state. level where it belongs. So, a small step.

that we can all take to support the work. that he and his team are doing in the. courts, on the front lines, is to sign. up for Democracy Docket, which is the. news outlet Mark founded to focus on. everything voting elections. I'm going. to put that link right here on the. screen and also in the post description. of this video. So, if you've not yet. signed up, please show some support for. Mark and his team and sign up. So, Mark, again to that earlier question, the. implications um of the gerrymander, given the swings that we're seeing uh in. the off-year elections. Yeah, I mean, if I had told you last.

June that we'd be sitting here now, thanks to the legal work that lawyers. like me and my team have done, and. thanks to the tremendous political. leadership by people like Gavin Newsom. in California and elsewhere, if I had. told you that we were going to be. sitting here talking about Democrats. netting seats. Democrats netting seats, that's the reality though. I mean, you. know, this Texas uh this. you know, this Texas uh outcome was a. 31-point swing. Let's just assume it's.

half that. Let's just assume it's a. 16-point swing. Hell, let's assume it's. half of that and it's just an 8-point. swing. You're talking about a number of. those seats that they thought they were. gaining actually becoming Democratic. seats, and the kicker, some of the seats. that they drew voters from in order to. create those seats also being at a risk. to create Democratic. I'm not ready to. call it yet, but I think it is fair to. say that net net, by the time we get to. election day, this whole thing may wind.

up have backfired on Donald Trump and. been a major disaster of his. administration that led to Democrats. retaking control of the house. And and. again, I want to just highlight that. that would not have happened uh if it. does indeed play out that way without. the work that you and your team are. doing. uh uh in all of these cases across the. country. So, to that end, what can you. tell us about the landscape of these. other ongoing lawsuits? I know that. we're looking at lawsuits that are right. now in process in Wisconsin. What what's.

the lay of the land in terms of the. ongoing legal cases? Yeah, so let's just. do some basic math here and you'll see. why I wind up where I do. You know, you. got five seats in in in California. I. think at this point Republicans would be. happy to take four in Texas. So, that. nets Democrats one just on that on that. swap. Then you add to that uh Utah, New York, right? That puts Democrats up. three. Against that, you got uh North Carolina. and Missouri. So, Democrats still net.

one. Now, what's left on the table is. Virginia where uh Democrats just. released a map that is that would gain. four seats in Virginia. You've got Maryland still potentially in. play. You've got Wisconsin still potentially. in play. And on the other side, all. they've got really is Florida. And Florida is probably three seats. So, even there, they wind up netting down. one just versus Virginia. And that's. before you get to those other states.

So, I think there is a very compelling. argument that right now, if everything. froze as it is, and look, nothing ever. freezes as it is in this area of the. law, there's always new cases being. filed, there's always new decisions, there's always the next fight. And. we're, as you point out, my law firm is. in the middle of it, and Democracy. Docket is covering it every step of the. way, as you are, which is why everyone. needs to make sure to subscribe to this. channel. Because Brian and I cover this. in almost real time like no one else's. business. So, make sure you're. subscribed to this channel. But if you. take all of that out, uh Brian, you wind.

up with Democrats netting two seats. after all of that. Now, the big wild. card The big wild card is whether the. Supreme Court decides the Colley case. between now and uh you know, the next. few weeks where Republicans could try to. take advantage of that. But But every. day that goes by, that looks less and. less likely. So, for that Kelo case, because you and I have spoken about this. for months and months and months now, having warned everybody about what it. would mean if Section 2 of the Voting. Rights Act is struck down, and that's. the only thing really keeping in place a.

mandate for these states to enact these. minority-majority districts. So, all. these black opportunity districts, those. go away if they're no longer protected. or mandated by Section 2 of the Voting. Rights Act. So, I guess look, we we kind. of every day is gravy at this point that. we don't hear anything from the Supreme. Court. But at what date would you feel. comfortable. recognizing that it's almost an. inevitability that the Supreme Court is. going to hand down this decision? At. what date do you feel comfortable that. it at least wouldn't apply to the 2026. midterms? I think by the time we get to.

June, it's too late for it to apply. anywhere. Okay. I think between now and. June, it's already too late some places, right? I mean, like it's already too. late in Texas, for example, uh Right. which has very early elections. But. there's going to be a calendar that we. march through. By the time we get to the. beginning of June, it is simply too late. everywhere. Okay. I mean, that that's that's at least some. good news, because like I said, like. we're we're going to every day that we. don't hear from the Supreme Court brings. us one day closer to taking one more. state off that list. But Mike, it's.

worth asking here, are there certain. days that the Supreme Court is going to. be dropping cases or any week of any. month they could just decide to to drop. a decision? So, the Supreme Court really. just turns these decisions out as the. nine justices have their opinions. written. So, you know, towards the end. they will put together a schedule that. says, these are the opinion days. Now, they more or less add them as they go. along. Okay, understood. Now, what other. states, aside from this Kelo case, can. we expect to go to the Supreme Court? Yeah, so look, the Republicans in Utah,

they're fighting mad. I mean, they're. packing their state Supreme Court, uh. they're so angry. But a petition has. been filed or a lawsuit has been filed. in Utah by. some Republican candidates, and they say that they think that this. map violates federal law, and it is. clear they are going to try to. fast-track that to the US Supreme Court. Now, they have to go through a. three-judge panel first, but all. indications are going to try to run that. case quickly. And, you know, the. Republicans in New York, they keep.

making noise that somehow they're going. to try to get that case to the Supreme. Court. I mean, good luck to them there. That case is still has to go through the. New York court system, and it's on it's. on state law. So, I don't even see what. theory they'd have to get the federal. court, but it goes to show you, Brian, that they are desperate right now. They. are losing right now. And anyone who. thinks that like Donald Trump is playing. offense now around the elections, it is. because he is dealing from a position of. weakness. The fact that every day, you. know, he finds another opportunity to.

say that he may try to steal the. election is an indictment of just how. badly this whole redistricting process. went, because this was going to be his. gambit for how he prevented losing the. House, and it has backfired from start. to finish, and that is the big news. And. I want to dig in a little bit to this. Utah situation, because we just found. out that Spencer Cox, the governor of. Utah, the Republican governor, has. decided to pack the Utah Supreme Court. And and I believe it's largely. predicated on this issue, on this idea.

that the existing Supreme Court allowed. this this map to to kind of revert back. to this map, where Democrats would have. one seat. I guess the Salt Lake City. area that they would control. And so, is. that going to be re-litigated once the. Supreme Court is actually packed, or at. least for the 2026 election is the map. solid, firm, and place? I think the map. is solid in place as a matter of the. state court system. Like I said, their. Hail Mary there is trying to go. a quick case up through the federal.

system, and trying to get that to the. Court. I think that's a real long shot. for 2026 just on the timing. Forget. about the fact that I think they don't. they're not right on the merits. But, you know, there Look, look Here's the. thing, Brian. The Republicans think the. Supreme Court of the United States is. the solution to all their problems. And, you know, like look, that's not a that's. not a terrible operating theory from. their standpoint. But, but it is not. proving to be true in a lot of these. voting and redistricting cases. I mean, you know, we we often talks about talk. about the case I've argued before the. Supreme Court and I've argued for that.

have been decided and all of them I won. and they were all redistricting cases. I. mean, Republicans have a history of. losing critical voting and redistricting. cases in the Supreme Court. Doesn't mean. they always lose or even most of the. time lose. Uh but, it is less. predictable for them, but it is still. where they're putting all their eggs in. that basket. I mean, in theory, if the. Supreme Court wasn't willing to touch. California, which is the big prize. because of the precedent how it would. screw with the precedent that they just. tried to set in Texas where they're. saying we're going to take a. laissez-faire approach, we're going to.

take a hands-off approach. In theory, that would also kind of lend itself to. reason that they wouldn't, you know, interfere in what's happening in Utah. for the for that exact same reason. I. think that's right. I think that's true. in Utah. I think it's true in New York. I think that that they, like I said, have decided that they are hands-off for. the 2026 cycle. And, honestly, they're. putting all their energy in Colle, right? I mean, the the idea that the. Supreme Court might overturn the Voting. Rights Act Section 2, which has been on. the books since 1965 and has been used.

oh, you know, in dozens of cases before. the US Supreme Court, hundreds if not. thousands of cases at lower courts. Um and and that that is potentially on. the table. I mean, that's a big piece of. business that they have in front of. them. I don't think they necessarily. want to complicate this by adding in a. one-off in a Utah or in a New York or. some place else. Well, look, I'm going. to say it one more time. There are very. few people who are actually on the front. lines fighting, making a huge. difference. Uh you and your team are. And so, a small step that everybody. who's watching right now can take to.

support Mark's work is to sign up for. Democracy Docket. Again, a very small. step that we can all take for the fact. that he is litigating more than 80 cases. across the country right now and just. protected these five seats in. California. So, there is no one making a. bigger difference right now in democracy. than Mark. And so, a small step again. that we should be taking, sign up for. Democracy Docket. That link is right. here on the screen and also in the post. description of this video. I'm Brian. Tyler Cohen. I'm Mark Elias. This is. Democracy Watch. >> [music].