This will be quick.

If you read the news, which is usually a bad idea, the Supreme Court just ruled that the Trump administration can’t deport any Venezuelans using the Alien Enemies Act, which is a devastating rebuke and a sign of how the reckless orange monster is at war with the courts.

The Supreme Court absolutely did not say that. if you skip the coverage and skim the actual Supreme Court order, which is only eight pages long, you’ll see this, and keep reading past the page break:

See that clearly:

We do not address the underlying merits regarding the legality of removals under the AEA.

The Supreme Court hasn’t ruled that the government can use the Alien Enemies Act to deport anyone, and it hasn’t ruled that the government can’t use the Alien Enemies Act for deportations. The entire order is that the government has to tell people that hey, we’re going to deport you as an enemy alien, with enough notice that people have some chance to challenge the government’s designation in case the government has made a mistake. A lower court is now tasked with the duty of figuring out what constitutes sufficient notice.

Catastrophizing hyperbole from the left is that the court has blasted Trump for his authoritarian abuse of power, and bravely blocked his ability to act. Catastrophizing hyperbole from the right is that an overstepping court has dangerously declared it illegal to ever deport people using the Alien Enemies Act. It’s none of that. It’s a not-huge procedural ruling, producing nothing final. The majority notes that the administration says it can’t get Kilmar Abrego Garcia back from El Salvador, so screwing up and accidentally deporting someone who shouldn’t be deported, if that happens, can be consequential. That’s true enough, and it’s fine to slow down and think about it. The Supreme Court is being more careful than some of the headlines imply.

I largely agree with depictions of a judicial insurrection, and I think judicial injunctions are being abusively overused to a degree that merits anger and condemnation. But it’s not necessary to blackpill about every setback, some of which are pretty mild. This decision is a small one.

It’s quite interesting to compare headlines, and look closely at the different framing in the first three:

Some headlines just say that the Supreme Court has blocked Trump from deporting Venezuelans. But some do much better, even from news sources that mostly suck, noting that the block is temporary, or a “pause.” That’s what it is. We’ll see what comes next.