It’s Tuesday, the traditional day for elections and for our pause-and-consider newsletter on politics and policy. We think of it as a mini-magazine in your inbox.

ALL EYES ON SCOTUS 
By Lisa Desjardins, @LisaDNews
Correspondent
 
Yes, the first 2024 Biden-Trump presidential debate is set for Thursday.

While that has some fascinating and potentially frustrating contours, there is other possible action this week that could have more immediate consequences.
 
The Supreme Court is poised to announce major decisions in the next few days, as the term that began in October winds down.   
 
Here’s what we know.

• Decision days this week: 3. The court has three days scheduled where it will announce decisions, Wednesday through Friday.
• Decisions remaining: 15. 
• How many is that? That is about a quarter of the decisions for this term, per the Associated Press.

Of the remaining decisions, there are five cases our team — PBS News Weekend anchor John Yang and producer Saher Khan — is watching closely. 

Here’s a look at these cases and the issues they address:

Presidential immunity. Trump v. United States tests whether presidents should be immune from prosecution for nearly anything they do while in office. More specifically, it will determine if Trump will face trial in the federal case focused on his attempts to overturn the 2020 election results, including his role on Jan. 6. Here is a look at what happened in April’s oral arguments.
 
Trump and other Jan. 6th defendants. At the heart of Fischer v. United States is a federal obstruction law written to block tampering with official proceedings, including evidence in court cases or congressional hearings. Prosecutors have used it to charge some 350 people in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.  The question is whether that is an appropriate use of the law. The decision will affect all of those cases, one way or the other, including Trump’s. This accounts for half of the charges against him in the 2020 election case. Here’s what plaintiffs, defendants and justices said in April’s oral arguments.
 
Abortion. In Moyle v. United States, justices must decide if an Idaho law banning nearly all abortions can stand in the face of a federal law that requires most emergency rooms to provide stabilizing care for patients. A key question: whether emergency rooms in states with near-total abortion bans must treat people facing emergency pregnancy complications.
 
Environmental, energy, health and other regulations. This involves two cases: Relentless v. Department of Commerce and Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo. Justices will consider whether to completely overturn what is known as the Chevron doctrine — the idea that federal agencies have reasonable power to interpret laws Congress makes, writing rules that specify enforcement. Overturning the rule could rewrite agencies’ ability to write and enforce rules on a wide array of areas, including the environment, energy production, and health care.
 
Air pollution. In another environmental case, Ohio v. Environmental Protection Agency, justices will decide whether Ohio and other states have to abide by the so-called “good neighbor” rule, which limits air pollution from factories and power plants in their states that wafts into Eastern states. Correspondent William Brangham explains the case and hears more about the stakes from New York Times reporter Coral Davenport.


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