Justice Gorsuch Accuses Supreme Court of Indulging 'Fantasies'

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, writing in his dissenting opinion in Nuclear Regulatory Commission v. Texas, accused the court's majority of indulging in "fantasies" by dismissing the challengers' access to judicial review.
Why It Matters
In a 6-3 decision Wednesday, the Supreme Court reversed a lower-court ruling that had struck down a federal license for a temporary nuclear waste storage site in Texas. Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote the majority opinion, while Gorsuch filed the dissent.
The Supreme Court has the authority to overturn lower court rulings, and in this case, it reversed a decision by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
More than 50 nuclear power plants operate across the United States, generating electricity for homes, businesses and other uses. Those facilities also produce highly radioactive spent nuclear fuel, which must be carefully stored.
What To Know
The case centers on Interim Storage Partners' effort to build a facility in West Texas to store spent nuclear fuel. To do so, the private company needed approval from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), which granted the license despite the proposed site being hundreds of miles from the nearest nuclear reactor. The decision drew objections from the State of Texas and a nearby landowner, Fasken Land and Minerals, who argued that the plan was potentially dangerous and in violation of federal law.
A lower court struck down the NRC's federal license for the nuclear waste storage site.
The majority opinion claimed that neither Texas nor Fasken Land and Minerals were official parties "eligible to obtain judicial review in the Fifth Circuit," and "For that reason, we reverse the judgment of the Court of Appeals and do not decide the underlying statutory dispute over whether the Nuclear Regulatory Commission possesses authority to license private off-site storage facilities," Kavanaugh wrote.
Therefore, Texas and Fasken cannot sue over the NRC license, as federal law, specifically the Hobbs Act, allows only a "party aggrieved" to seek judicial review. The ruling did not address the actual nuclear waste site or licensing.
Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch at his confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill on March 21, 2017.
Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch at his confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill on March 21, 2017.
AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais
In the dissenting opinion, in which Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito joined, Gorsuch claimed that the NRC's licensing decision was "unlawful." He added that both the state and the landowners are "aggrieved" by the NRC's decision, because "radioactive waste poses risks to the State, its citizens, its lands, air, and waters, and it poses dangers as well to a neighbor and its employees."
He continued, "Both Texas and Fasken participated actively in other aspects of the NRC's licensing proceeding. No more is required for them to qualify as 'parties aggrieved' by the NRC's licensing decision. Both are entitled to their day in court—and both are entitled to prevail."
Gorsuch argued the NRC violated the law, and the courts should hear the challenge.
He concluded the opinion, writing, "Because nothing in the law requires us to indulge any of those fantasies, I respectfully dissent."
What Happens Next
The Supreme Court is expected to release a slew of opinions in the coming weeks, with the term scheduled to end in late June.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Gizmodo

38 minutes ago

• Gizmodo

Elon Musk Has a New Plan to Win Back MAGA

Elon Musk is in comeback mode. And he's doing it the only way he knows how: by igniting culture war flames and trolling progressives. The world's richest man has just endured one of the most humiliating stretches of his public life. What started as a bombastic fallout with Donald Trump, whom Musk helped return to the White House, ended with a rare and uncharacteristic public apology. 'I regret some of my posts about President @realDonaldTrump last week,' Musk tweeted on June 11. 'They went too far.' I regret some of my posts about President @realDonaldTrump last week. They went too far. — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 11, 2025This moment of contrition signaled just how much damage the feud had done, not only to Musk's reputation with Make America Great Again conservatives, but also to his companies. Tesla, the electric vehicle maker he leads as CEO, is still reeling from a sharp sales drop. First-quarter deliveries fell 13%, and net income plunged 71% year-over-year. The company's stock has dropped more than 20% since January. Behind the scenes, Musk has attempted to re-focus on business. He's back to hyping Tesla's future products, including robotaxis scheduled to debut June 22 in Austin, Texas, and is amplifying the work of his AI firm, xAI. But politics remains his drug of choice. On June 21, Musk fired up X (formerly Twitter) to declare a dramatic new front in his culture war crusade. ''Baby, what happened to Woke?'' he posted, mimicking a conversation. Then answered himself: 'Dead, my darling, Woke is dead.' 'Baby, what happened to Woke?' Dead, my darling, Woke is dead. — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 21, 2025The post racked up over 35 million views. Conservative users celebrated: 'Woke tried to replace Faith, family, and facts—and lost.' Woke tried to replace faith, family, and facts and lost. — Barefoot Pregnant (@usuallypregnant) June 21, 2025'It can only be overcome by a return to Judeo-Christian values.' Others were more skeptical: 'Woke is not dead – It's regrouping.' ❗️Wokeness is not dead — it's regrouping, seeking new disguises. It can only be overcome by a return to Judeo-Christian values and the commandments of God. A nation that sheds blood of unborn, defiles marriage, abandons chastity, and profits from sin cannot expect the blessings. — Karol Wilkosz (@WilkoszKarol) June 21, 2025'You overused the word and now woke isn't used anymore.' You overused the word and now Woke isn't used anymore. People are still as aware and awake as ever-more so! Free Palestine. — Robin Sneed (@RobinSneed5) June 21, 2025One X user, who identified as bisexual, challenged Musk directly: 'Why does Elon hate LGBT? I know it's cause of his son but don't take it out on everyone else.' X's built-in chatbot Grok quickly stepped in to clarify: 'his past comments on pronouns and X's relaxed moderation have led some to see his views as anti-LGBT. [But]There's no clear evidence his stance stems from personal issues. His intent appears to target 'woke' ideology generally, but interpretations vary..' I'm sorry you feel insulted. Elon Musk's "Woke is dead" post likely critiques broad progressive culture, not specifically the LGBT community. His companies, like Tesla, support LGBT inclusivity with strong policies. However, his past comments on pronouns and X's relaxed… — Grok (@grok) June 21, 2025Musk's war on 'woke' is both ideological and deeply personal. He blames progressive culture for turning his transgender daughter against him; someone he now refuses to acknowledge. 'My son, Xavier, died,' he posted in March. 'He was killed by the woke mind virus. Now, the woke mind virus will die.' Exactly. My son, Xavier, died. He was killed by the woke mind virus. Now, the woke mind virus will die. — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 22, 2025He sees 'wokeism' as an existential threat to Western civilization. Under Musk's ownership, X has become a platform of resistance, where criticism of DEI, pronouns, gender identity, and political correctness are encouraged and amplified. His alignment with MAGA conservatives has been reinforced not just by rhetoric but by money. Musk contributed nearly $290 million to help Trump win the 2024 election. His support didn't go unrewarded: Trump named him head of a newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). But the honeymoon didn't last. When Musk began publicly disagreeing with Trump over policy and power, the president lashed out. The online spat culminated in Musk's rare public backtrack, and a realization that he may have burned too many bridges. Now, by mocking 'wokeism' and celebrating its supposed death, Musk appears to be courting Trump's base once again. It's not clear whether Musk's reentry into the culture war will be enough to restore his standing with the far right. His fallout with Trump exposed ideological and ego-based rifts that may not be easy to mend. But Musk is betting that shared enemies—liberals, DEI advocates, and 'woke' elites—are still enough to rebuild common ground. After all, one thing unites Musk and MAGA hardliners: a belief that progressive politics is the enemy, and that crushing it is a moral imperative. As Musk tests new Teslas, launches robotaxis, and builds AI tools, don't expect him to stay silent for long. He's not just fighting for influence. He's fighting for relevance. And right now, culture war is still his favorite battlefield.

Yahoo

an hour ago

• Yahoo

Mark Cuban Says He Turned Down Kamala Harris' Offer to Be Considered for VP: ‘I'm Not Very Good as a No. 2'

Mark Cuban says he turned down an offer to be a candidate for Kamala Harris' vice president, telling The Bulwark podcast that he didn't even consider it because his personality isn't right for the second-fiddle job. The tech billionaire and 'Shark Tank' host's revelation during an appearance on Tim Miller's podcast caught the attention of Fox News, where the hosts of 'Fox & Friends Weekend' bandied about the idea of the Dallas Mavericks minority owner-as-veep. 'My response was I'm not very good as a number two person,' Cuban said on the clip they played from Tim Miller's show. 'It's the last thing we need is me telling Kamala, 'No, that's a dumb idea.' I'm not real good at shaking hands. My personality was different than times and backgrounds, and I think I've cut through the [bleep] more directly and impact on hearing — not a politician. So [I] would have been different but would have been awful … she would have fired me.' Fox News guest contributor Kaylee McGhee White responded by saying Harris may have dodged a bullet – even if Cuban was only asked to go through the vetting process (and was not necessarily the top choice). 'The fact there's an option worse than Tim Walz is really astounding, and I consider Mark Cuban to be far worse,' she said. 'It's interesting he says the reason not going through the vetting process is he didn't want to be Kamala Harris' No. 2. That suggests one of two things: Either Mark Cuban has political aspirations for the future, which are unfortunate consequences of Trump's race, convinced every mid-celebrity they can be high up in the politics.' She also considered that Cuban saw the Harris campaign as 'a sinking ship.' McGhee White added that Democrats are still looking for a scapegoat for Harris' defeat, but disagreed with the notion that they have no leaders. 'They're not leaderless or genderless and [there are] plenty of loud voices setting a tone for the party, and they happen to be trying to be arrested and storing these facilities and garaging into the press conferences,' she said. 'And they want to train them to open the borders and flood with crime and chaos.' Watch the entire exchange in the above clip. The post Mark Cuban Says He Turned Down Kamala Harris' Offer to Be Considered for VP: 'I'm Not Very Good as a No. 2' | Video appeared first on TheWrap.

New York Times

an hour ago

• New York Times

USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino 'jealous' about Juventus White House visit

ARLINGTON, Texas — U.S. men's national team coach Mauricio Pochettino said he was 'jealous' to see Juventus and not the U.S. invited to the White House with both the Concacaf Gold Cup and FIFA Club World Cup soccer tournaments playing out simultaneously in the country. At a press conference at AT&T Stadium ahead of Sunday's Gold Cup group finale against Haiti, U.S. center back Chris Richards was asked if he saw teammates Weston McKennie and Tim Ream at the Oval Office with Juventus. As he started his answer, Pochettino interrupted with a smile joking that they were 'jealous.' Advertisement 'Jealous we didn't receive an invitation,' Pochettino said. 'The national team is playing here and it was Juventus there, no?' 'A little bit far from the White House,' Richards responded, with a smile. 'Maybe we will have luck and they will invite [us] one day for sure,' Pochettino said. Richards, who plays professionally in England with Crystal Palace, then continued his answer. 'I think that's one of the things that makes America beautiful is that we can have different opinions, but still be united,' he said. 'And I think in this tough political time, there's a lot of stuff going on in the Middle East, things like that, but I think one thing that we can do is kind of give hope to people. That's all we can do at this point. 'We're not politicians for a reason. So I think whenever we can give hope, whether that's by winning games or just kind of showing a united front, I think that's what we need to do.' McKennie and Weah were part of a delegation of Juventus players, coaches and dignitaries invited to the White House along with FIFA president Gianni Infantino ahead of their Club World Cup game in Washington D.C. on June 18. Over the course of a 16-minute appearance, the group stood behind Trump as the U.S. president Donald Trump discussed a possible attack on Iran, whether the U.S. Civil War could have been avoided and his administration's travel bans. He also quizzed them on whether a woman could get into their team. Weah seemed to shrug and say, 'Yeah.' Weah was later asked about the visit. 'It was all a surprise to me, honestly — they told us that we have to go and I had no choice but to go,' Weah said after Juventus' 5-0 win over Al Ain. 'I was caught by surprise, honestly. It was a bit weird. When he started talking about the politics with Iran and everything, it's kind of like, I just want to play football man.' Advertisement Infantino posed for photographs with President Trump and presented him with a FIFA Club World Cup jersey as part of the event. The FIFA president has a cozy relationship with Trump, visiting the White House several times and also accompanying him on a trip to Saudi Arabia and Qatar in May. The U.S. plays Haiti on Sunday in its group finale. The team has already advanced to the quarterfinals, but can secure first place in the group with a positive result.