The Supreme Court of the United States authorized Friday, for the first time, certain businesses to exclude LGBTQIA + customers then invalidated a flagship measure by Joe Biden on student debt, two decisions which confirm its anchoring on the right.
The day before, the high court, deeply overhauled by Donald Trump, had already abolished affirmative action policies at the university, one of the achievements of the civil rights struggle of the 1960s intended to increase diversity on campuses.
As a year ago, during its historic volte-face on abortion, these three judgments were delivered with the support of the six conservative magistrates, against the advice of the three progressive judges.
Republicans warmly applauded each of his decisions, while Democrats – Joe Biden in the lead – expressed their strong disagreement. On Friday, the American president said to himself in particular ” very worried “ increased risk of discrimination against sexual minorities.
Setback on student debt
But it was on student debt that he suffered the most painful setback: the Supreme Court ruled that his government had exceeded its powers by adopting a costly program without authorization from Congress. This decision deprives Joe Biden, who is counting on the support of the working classes to win a new mandate in 2024, of a crucial piece in his balance sheet.
The leader of the Republican senators, Mitch McConnell, was also delighted that the Court did not let him “fill the pockets of his wealthy constituents and take working-class families for suckers”.
Higher education costs a fortune in the United States, and nearly 43 million people have federal student loans to repay, for a total amount of 1,630 billion dollars (1,494 billion euros).
At the start of the pandemic, Donald Trump’s government froze the repayment of these loans under a 2003 law allowing ” relieve “ student debt holders in case of“national emergency”. This measure will end on August 31.
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Anticipating this deadline, President Biden announced in August 2022 that he wanted to erase up to 20,000 dollars (just over 18,000 euros) from the slate of middle-income borrowers. The candidates had rushed and 26 million applications were filed, at a cost of more than 400 billion dollars (nearly 367 billion euros), according to the White House.
Conservative states had lodged a complaint accusing the government of committing taxpayers’ money without a green light from Congress. According to them, the 2003 law, invoked by the administration, covers the freezing of the debt and not its cancellation. “We agree with them”Judge John Roberts wrote on Friday, with the support of the five other conservative magistrates.
It is the Court that “exceeds its role” in “replacing Congress and the executive to make a domestic policy decision”retorted their progressive sisters.
The Supreme Court rules in favor of a website creator who refuses to make them for gay marriages
They also objected to the decision “deeply unfair” of their colleagues to agree with a creator of websites who refuses, in the name of her Christian faith, to design sites for gay marriages.
Companies whose services have creative value can invoke their freedom of expression not to provide a service that goes against their values, the majority justified.
The ruling is the culmination of a legal campaign launched by the religious right after the landmark 2015 Supreme Court decision to legalize same-sex marriage.
A first file had been brought by a Christian pastry chef who refused to make a wedding cake for a gay couple. In 2018, the High Court agreed with him on additional grounds, without enacting major principles.
The question was soon to come back to court, this time by a web designer, Lorie Smith, who challenged a Colorado law prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation under penalty of a fine of up to at 500 dollars (458 euros).
She rejoiced on Friday at her ” victoire “. “The government should never force anyone to say things they don’t mean”she commented in a video posted online by the organization for the defense of religious freedoms Alliance Defending Freedom, which represented her.
The Court’s decision “will hurt and stigmatize LGBTQ families”regretted Sarah Kate Ellis, president of the GLAAD association which defends this community. “This is yet another example of a court that is out of touch with the vast majority of Americans. »