Best Of

Today I finish a three and a half year contract at a very well known and major global institution where I've set up and run a worldwide whistleblowing programme. It's been a blast but I am rather looking forward to a spring and summer without having to read procedures which are never followed or the sorts of emails which should never have been sent.

I have lots of other plans: a 1000 square metre garden to create, finding a publisher for my book, getting my health back after six months of difficulties, planning a trip to the Far East and so on. So if a depression and WW3 could be avoided, that would be great. Otherwise I'll be digging for victory in my potager and orchard and flogging the eggs from my chickens (1000% mark up for Americans).

I remain open to interesting (and, importantly, lucrative) work.

Meanwhile this - https://knowingius.org/p/sex-in-the-supreme-court-762 - is a very clear guide to what the Supreme Court will and, just as importantly, will not be deciding in the For Women Scotland case next week.

The US Supreme Court has instructed the Trump administration to facilitate the return of a Maryland man who was mistakenly deported to a mega-jail in El Salvador.

The Trump administration has conceded that Kilmar Abrego Garcia was deported due to an "administrative error", but appealed against a district court's order to "facilitate and effectuate" his return to the US.

On Thursday, in a 9-0 ruling, the Supreme Court declined to block the lower court's order.

That order "requires the Government to 'facilitate' Abrego Garcia's release from custody in El Salvador and to ensure that his case is handled as it would have been had he not been improperly sent", the justices ruled.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c62gnzzeg34o

I seem to remember reading here that SCOTUS would never oppose Trump.

Has it? Trump said "we have no powers over El Salvador". If he ignores the court they do what? If he pays lip service but the guy stays in jail they do what?

Losing the goodwill of SCOTUS would be a pretty stupid thing to do.

Sensible people use their political capital on things that matter.

Now Trump works on his own scale when it comes to losing goodwill and being sensible.

But the price of ignoring SCOTUS on this will be SCOTUS ruling against him on future, more important cases.

The case has complexities, explored well here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQmqvE01RQE

Trump's choices are:
1) Obey and deliver; 2) Pretend to obey but 'fail' to achieve resolution; 3) Defy unequivocally; 4) Delay and compexify for now, and kick the can down the road.

2 and 4 combined are highly probable. 1 very unlikely, 3 fairly unlikely - they won't pick this case for the proper constitutional crisis. as the government is so clearly 100% in the wrong, and have admitted it in court.

The SCOTUS decision effectively ends rendition. Everybody has a right to a fair hearing of their rights. No ambiguity.

Anybody involved in abusing that process risks being hauled up for contempt.

The idea that the US can send somebody abroad for endless detention and cannot then retrieve them says something about how far it has fallen as a power for good in the world.