A Supreme Court Justice sent shockwaves on Monday after she blasted a new unsigned order handed down by her conservative colleagues in a blistering dissent.
The Supreme Court issued a stay on a lower court's order allowing New York lawmakers to redraw the state's 11th Congressional District to make it more favorable to Democrats. Though the order is unsigned, Justice Samuel Alito wrote a concurrence, arguing that the redrawn 11th District "discriminates on the basis of race."
Justice Sonia Sotomayor, joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, argued in their dissent that the ruling "can be summarized in just 7 [words]: 'Rules for thee, but not for me.'"
"Time and again, this Court has said that federal courts have limited jurisdiction," the dissent reads. "Time and again, this Court has said that federal courts should not interfere with state-court litigation. Time and again, this Court has said that federal courts should not meddle with state election laws ahead of an election. Today, the Court says: except for this one, except for this one, and except for this one."
In January, the Manhattan Supreme Court found that the state's 11th Congressional District violated the state constitution by diluting minority voters' votes. Alito described that ruling in his concurrence as "unadorned racial discrimination."
Sotomayor said the Court was taking an "unprecedented step" by inserting itself in a case concerning state election law "without giving the State’s highest court a chance to act."
