The Constitution is Essentially Inoperative

That was the basic thrust of yesterday's pro-Trump decision. The so-called originalists twisted themselves into knots to deny any meaning to the plain text of the Constitution. Until yesterday, nobody took the enabling clause of the 14th Amendment as mandatory.

That langusge, allowing Congress to pass legislation to enforce provisions of the 14th Amendment, is in a number of other amendments. So if the Congress were to repeal any laws enforcing voting rights of young people, states could deny anyone under 21 the right to vote. To my memory, no state thought to deny people 18-20 the right to vote. Ratification of the 26th Amendment was thought to be enough.

Hell, there might not even be any enabling legislation for the 26th Amendment. Nobody probably thought it necessary.

But now, thanks to Johnny and the Supremes, they have laid bare the proof that the Supreme Court will only give effect to the text of the Constitution when it suits their needs.

Also, it used to be a rule that the Supreme Court did as little as possible in its rulings. They didn't answer questions not asked. But if that principle still existed after Citizens United, it's dead, now.

Only the self-styled conservatives on the Court could twist a 9-0 outcome in a way to make themselves seem even more partisan. The majority justices showed, once again, that partisan ideological hacks will not resist a chance to engage in hackery.