To my way of thinking, one of the least important questions from this past week’s news cycle is who leaked the Supreme Court draft decision. Once Chief Justice Roberts confirmed that the draft was authentic, the questions of who leaked it and why became basically irrelevant.
Of course, there may be some concerns in the legal community over the propriety of the leak and the need to preserve the confidentiality of the Court’s process but those strike me as of little concern to the rest of us.
As a journalist, I thought the leak was a good thing on many levels. And having been part of many such leaks in the past, I assume that the parties involved both at the Court and at Politico, which broke the story, did what we do in such cases to obscure their points of contact.
Encrypted apps, burner phones, dumb computer terminals and third parties may all have been involved.
In any event, the reason I think the leak is good, probably for everyone actually, is we need more transparency when it comes to the Court. The days that it can remain a black box while taking controversial, life-changing decisions are gone.
No other branch of government, not even the intelligence sector of the executive branch, wields so much power in secret.
In addition, if any of the justices were having second thoughts about how the decision would play out in public, now they know, and presumably still have time to reverse, modify, or narrow their decision.
For that reason, this leak probably was a trial balloon sent up by one of the anti-abortion justices.
In any event, congratulations to Politico for a rare good day for journalism and democracy.
TODAY’s NEWS:
Turning Tables on Russia With West’s Arms, Ukraine Goes on Offense (NYT)
Ukraine lays out demands for peace talks as West braces for escalation (WP)
Women and children evacuated from Mariupol plant; Ukrainian forces pursue counteroffensive around Kharkiv (CNBC)
As war grinds on, the definition of victory remains murky (WP)
Facing heavy casualties, Ukraine and Russia race to resupply (WP)
One Village at a Time: The Grinding Artillery War in Ukraine (NYT)
Pentagon will buy Ukraine laser-guided rockets, surveillance drones (WP)
Intel leaks show US success in Ukraine — but come with risks (The Hill)
In battered Kharkiv, zcold, dark basements are the last safe refuge (WP)
St. Louis seeking to boost population with Afghan refugees (AP)
Taliban decree orders women in Afghanistan to cover their faces (CNN)
Afghanistan’s Taliban order women to cover up head to toe (AP)
A Fight Over America’s Energy Future Erupts on the Canadian Border (NYT)
Coronavirus wave this fall could infect 100 million, administration warns (WP)
Liberty No More — If Roe v. Wade is overturned, the very definition of what it means to be American will change for women and girls in the United States. (Atlantic)
Midwest Abortion Providers Scramble to Prepare for a Post-Roe World
With federal protections imperiled, advocates expect a dramatic influx of interstate “refugees” seeking care. (New Yorker)
CNN poll: The Supreme Court’s draft opinion on Roe v. Wade hasn’t shaken the midterm landscape (CNN)
G.O.P. Lawmakers Recast Abortion Stance, Wary of Voter Backlash (NYT)
Supreme Court leaks are good, actually. Let’s have more of them (SFC)
Battle Over Abortion Threatens to Deepen America’s Divide (NYT)
Google’s cloud group forms Web3 team to capitalize on booming popularity of crypto (CNBC)
Scientists Follow a 'Yellow Brick Road' in a Never-Before-Seen Spot of The Pacific Ocean (ScienceAlert)
The two largest reservoirs in California are already at ‘critically low levels’ and the dry season is just starting (CNN)
‘Record after record’: Brazil’s Amazon deforestation hits April high, nearly double previous peak (Guardian)
A surging glow in a distant galaxy could change the way we look at black holes (Phys.org)
Sick Man Slowly Becoming Enthroned In Used Tissues (The Onion)
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