ANTICIPATED DECISIONS ON ABORTION AND PRESIDENTIAL IMMUNITY, AND TWO RULINGS THAT COULD HAVE OUTSIZED POLITICAL IMPACT, OF COURSE, AS THE 2024 CAMPAIGN KICKS INTO HIGH GEAR. WE HAVE NBC'S RYAN REILLY OUTSIDE THE SUPREME COURT, ALONG WITH OUR EXPERT PANEL MSNBC CORRESPONDENT LISA RUBIN, FORMER ACTING U.S. SOLICITOR GENERAL NEAL KATIA AND LAW PROFESSOR LEAH LITMAN. FIRST TO RYAN. 14 CASES LEFT, RYAN, WHAT DO WE KNOW SO FAR THIS MORNING? >> Reporter: THERE'S ONE BOX OF OPINIONS COMING, WHICH TYPICALLY MEANS ONE OR TWO DECISIONS, POSSIBLY THREE, PROBABLY MORE ONE OR TWO. THE BIG CASE THAT EVERYONE IS LOOKING FOR IS THE QUESTION OF PRESIDENTIAL IMMUNITY. THERE'S ALSO THE JOSEPH FISHER CASE, A JANUARY 6th CASE WHICH COULD HAVE AN IMPACT ON DONALD TRUMP'S CASE ON TWO OF THE CHARGES AGAINST HIM. THE BIG QUESTION IS IMMUNITY AND WHAT EXACTLY THE SUPREME COURT WILL DECIDE AND WHETHER OR NOT DONALD TRUMP IS ABLE TO STARVE OFF THESE CHARGES THAT HAVE BEEN BROUGHT AGAINST HIM IN D.C. IN CONNECTION WITH THE ATTACK ON THE U.S. CAPITOL JUST ACROSS THE STREET FROM ME HERE. THAT'S THE ONE THAT'S GOING TO IMPACT THE RACE HERE, WHAT EVERYONE IS SORT OF WAITING ON. WE SHOULD BE HEARING SOON WHAT DECISIONS EXACTLY THE COURT IS GOING TO BE COMING BACK WITH. AS YOU HEAR BEHIND ME A LOT OF INTERESTED PARTIES ME PROTESTING OUTSIDE THE COURT, ANA. >> RYAN, JUSTICE ALITO, THE CENTER OF CONTROVERSY RECENTLY, HE WAS ABSENT FROM COURT A COUPLE DAYS LAST WEEK. ANY INSIGHT INTO THAT OR HIS STATUS TODAY? >> Reporter: WE DON'T HAVE ANY INSIGHT INTO EXACTLY WHY IN REGARDS TO THE ABSENCE, WE ARE NOT SURE EXACTLY, BUT OBVIOUSLY SAMUEL ALITO HAS BEEN CAUGHT UP IN CONTROVERSIES RECENTLY, A LOT OF REPORTING ABOUT THE UPSIDE DOWN FLAG OUTSIDE OF HIS HOME, HE HAS REFUSED TO RECUSE FROM ANY OF THE CASES INVOLVING JANUARY 6 EVEN THOUGH THAT FLAG WAS SOMETHING THAT PROTESTERS CARRIED OUTSIDE OF THE CAPITOL ON JANUARY 6, AN UPSIDE DOWN FLAG. THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT YOU SEE IN A NUMBER OF THESE JANUARY 6 CASES AND THAT FLAG WAS IN JANUARY OF 2021 DURING THIS PERIOD WHERE DONALD TRUMP WAS TRYING TO STOP THE PEACEFUL TRANSFER OF POWER FLOWN UPSIDE DOWN OUTSIDE OF JUSTICE ALITO'S HOME. >> STAND BY WITH US, RYAN. WE HEAR THE PROTESTERS THERE AT THE SUPREME COURT ANTICIPATING THESE BIG DECISIONS. LISA, I UNDERSTAND WE DID GET ONE DECISION SO FAR TODAY, NOT ONE OF THOSE REALLY BIG ONES, BUT THIS ONE IS INTERESTING DEALING WITH SOCIAL MEDIA AND MISINFORMATION, RIGHT? >> YEAH, AND IT DEALS WITH STANDING AS WELL WHICH IS WHAT DOOMED THE FACE ON MIFEPRISTONE. THE COURT FINDING HERE THAT STATES AND FIVE INDIVIDUAL SOCIAL MEDIA USERS HAD NO STANDING TO SUE THE U.S. SURGEON GENERAL AND OTHERS FOR ALLEGEDLY COERCING SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANIES TO TAMP DOWN ON POSTS THAT THEY FOUND TO BE DISINFORMATION WITH RESPECT TO COVID AND OTHER POLICIES. >> OKAY. SO THAT IS WHAT'S COME SO FAR TODAY. WE ARE EXPECTING AT LEAST ONE MORE TODAY BECAUSE THEY HAVEN'T SAID THAT'S IT, SO, NEAL, WE ARE GETTING SOME SIGNALS PERHAPS DECISIONS COULD EXTEND INTO NEXT WEEK, ESPECIALLY GIVEN THE SHEAR NUMBER OF CASES. WOULD IT BE UNUSUAL FOR THE COURT TO EXTEND THE TERM AND IS IT LIKELY DO YOU THINK? >> IT WOULD BE VERY UNUSUAL. THE COURT REALLY DOES TAKE THEIR SUMMER RECESSES VERY SERIOUSLY AND END BY JUNE 30th. IN RECENT YEARS IT HASN'T GONE PAST THAT. OF COURSE, IN RECENT YEARS IT HASN'T HAD 14 OPINIONS OUTSTANDING WITH ONLY A COUPLE DAYS TO GO IN JUNE. SO IT'S CERTAINLY POSSIBLE BUT AT THIS POINT I DON'T THINK IT'S LIKELY. WE BASICALLY KNOW THE PROTOCOL FOR THE COURT. THE COURT ON THE PENULTIMATE DAY THE CHIEF JUSTICE WILL SAY THE NEXT DAY IS THE LAST DAY, SO WE MAY KNOW AS SOON AS TOMORROW WHETHER FRIDAY IS THE LAST DAY. I DO WANT TO SAY A WORD ABOUT THIS DECISION THAT WAS JUST HANDED DOWN, IT'S A 6-3 DECISION IN A CASE CALLED MURTHY, I ACTUALLY ARGUED THE COMPANION CASE CALLED NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION VERSUS VULO. SO I WAS IN THE COURTROOM THAT DAY. IT WAS STRIKING. I DON'T THINK THIS RESULT IS AT ALL UNPREDICTABLE, BASICALLY AS LISA SAYS, SIX JUSTICES LED BY JUSTICE BARRETT ARE SAYING THE CHALLENGERS HAD NO STANDING, NO LEGAL ABILITY TO RAISE THEIR CLAIM BEFORE THE COURT. WHAT IS SURPRISING IS THAT THERE ARE THREE DISSENTERS, ALITO, THOMAS AND GORSUCH, AND THEY FOUND STANDING. THESE ARE THREE JUSTICES WHO GENERALLY HAVE A VERY NARROW VIEW OF STANDING, OF WHO CAN BRING A LAWSUIT, BUT HERE THEY APPEAR TO HAVE BLOWN PAST THEIR PRIOR LIMITS ON STANDING AND THE COURTHOUSE DOORS TO OPEN THEM UP TO ENTERTAIN CHALLENGES SUCH AS THIS. LOOKING AT THIS DISSENT IT'S ONLY BEEN A MINUTE OR SO BUT IT LOOKS LIKE A PRETTY STRIKING OPINION COMING FROM THE FAR CONSERVATIVE WING SO-CALLED OF THE SUPREME COURT. >> AND WE KNOW AT LEAST I LEARNED THAT WHEN IT'S DISMISSED ON STANDING OR PUT DOWN BECAUSE OF STANDING, THAT STILL LEAVES OPEN THE DOOR FOR ANOTHER DECISION OR CHALLENGE SIMILAR TO THIS ONE TO COME BACK THROUGH THE COURT SYSTEM. LEAH, CLEARLY THE ELECTORAL CALENDAR IS NOT FACTORED INTO THE COURT'S TIMING, YOU'VE BEEN CRITICAL OF THE SLOW PACE, BUT PROPONENTS MIGHT SAY MAYBE IT'S A GOOD THING THEY AREN'T CATERING TO OUTSIDE PRESSURE. WHEN TO COMES TO CASES, THOUGH, THAT COULD IMPACT THE ELECTION LIKE ABORTION OR IMMUNITY SPECIFICALLY, SHOULD THEY CONSIDER WHETHER THEY'RE LEAVING VOTERS HANGING? DO THEY HAVE THE ABILITY TO REALLY PRIORITIZE OR FAST TRACK CERTAIN THINGS? >> SO WE KNOW THAT THEY ABSOLUTELY DO HAVE THAT ABILITY AND THAT THEY'VE EXERCISED IT BEFORE. WHEN THE SUPREME COURT AGREED TO HEAR THE DECISION OUT OF COLORADO, THE COLORADO SUPREME COURT INITIALLY ORDERED DONALD TRUMP OFF THE BALLOT FINDING THAT THE 14th AMENDMENT DISQUALIFIED HIM, THE SUPREME COURT ACTED QUITE QUICKLY AND OPTED TO RELEASE A DECISION WITHIN 50 SOME DAYS OF WHEN THEY AGREED TO HEAR THE CASE AND THEY ALSO RELEASED THE DECISION BEFORE SUPER TUESDAY SO THAT VOTERS COULD GO TO THE VOTING BOOTH AND KNOW WHETHER ONE OF THE CANDIDATES WAS ACTUALLY DISQUALIFIED FROM OFFICE. WE KNOW YEARS AGO IN BUSH VERSUS GORE THE SUPREME COURT ACTED EXTREMELY QUICKLY AND ISSUED A DECISION BASICALLY ONE DAY AFTER ORAL ARGUMENT IN THE CASE. THE COURT HAS ACTED QUICKLY WHEN AN ELECTORAL TIMELINE HAS SUGGESTED THAT ACTING QUICKLY WOULD BE IN THE NATION'S BEST INTEREST. SO I DO THINK IT'S TELLING THAT THEY HAVE APPARENTLY DECLINED TO DO SO IN THE TRUMP IMMUNITY CASE. >> THAT IS REALLY INTERESTING WHEN YOU JUST LOOK AT HOW QUICKLY, 59 DAYS FROM WHEN THE COURT TOOK UP THE COLORADO BALLOT ISSUE TO WHEN THEY ISSUED A DECISION. IT HAS BEEN 118 DAYS AND COUNTING RIGHT NOW ON THE TRUMP IMMUNITY CASE. YOU WILL RECALL JACK SMITH HAD ASKED THE SUPREME COURT TO EXPEDITE THIS CASE, TO TAKE IT ON WAY BACK IN DECEMBER. SO IT'S BEEN A LONG PROCESS ALL ALONG THE WAY. LISA, ON THE ISSUE OF PRESIDENTIAL IMMUNITY, WHAT ARE THE POTENTIAL OUTCOMES WE COULD SEE HERE? >> A NUMBER OF OUTCOMES THAT WE COULD SEE HERE. ONE IS THAT THE COURT -- AND THIS IS PERHAPS THE LEAST LIKELY OUTCOME -- IS THAT THE COURT SAYS THERE IS NO PRESIDENTIAL IMMUNITY IN CRIMINAL CASES. THAT BASED ON THE ORAL ARGUMENT IS NOT AN OUTSIDE THAT I EXPECT. ANOTHER OUTCOME, THE COURT COULD SEE THERE ARE CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES IN WHICH THE PRESIDENT IS ENTITLED TO IMMUNITY IN CRIMINAL CASES BUT BASED ON THE ALLEGATIONS IN THIS INDICTMENT NONE OF THOSE CIRCUMSTANCES ARE PRESENT THERE. THEY WOULD SEND THE CASE DOWN TO JUDGE CHUTKAN FOR FURTHER PRETRIAL PROCEEDINGS. THE OUTCOME THAT IS THE MOST LIKELY IS THE COURT SAYS, YES, THERE ARE CIRCUMSTANCES IN WHICH A FORMER PRESIDENT CAN BE CRIMINALLY IMMUNE FROM PROSECUTION, BUT THE COURT NEEDS TO DO SOME MORE FACT-FINDING TO DETERMINE WHICH OF THE ALLEGATIONS IN THIS INDICTMENT TALK ABOUT PURELY PRIVATE CONDUCT VERSUS OFFICIAL CONDUCT, AND THAT IS THE OUTCOME THAT WOULD RESULT IN THE GREATEST ELONGATION OF THE CASE BEFORE JUDGE CHUTKAN
