Earlier this month, supporters of voting rights cheered when a federal district judge struck down restrictions on early voting in Ohio. That ruling was upheld by the Sixth Circuit. But today, the five conservative members of the Supreme Court ordered that the ruling be stayed until the high court can act on a formal appeal by the state (which hasn't been filed yet).
There was no written opinion, just an order, along with a sentence saying that the four moderate Justices dissented.
It is a great day for those in Ohio who seek to make it harder for certain Americans to vote. But it is worth recalling the quote from a 1964 Supreme Court ruling cited by district court Judge Peter Economus earlier this month:
The right to vote is a fundamental right. "No right is more precious in a free country than that of having a voice in the election of those who make the laws under which, as good citizens, we must live. Other rights, even the most basic, are illusory if the right to vote is undermined."
Today, the Roberts Court seems to have said:
Never you mind all that pretty talk from the ‘60s about the right to vote.
This, just a few days before the official beginning of the 2014 Term. It is not an auspicious sign of things to come.