Lisa Graves on how John Roberts enabled Trump’s irreparable harm to the…

Lisa Graves talks to Nicole Sandler about her book, Without Precedent: How Chief Justice Roberts And His Accomplices Rewrote The Constitution And Dismantled Our Rights on 10-2-2025 the week it was first published. You can purchase a copy here via an independent book store and Nicole’s affiliate link
https://bookshop.org/a/1630/9781645030676

Lisa Graves:
In some areas, Roberts has been very patient and methodical about the erosion and, you know, abrasion of our rights. And in some areas, he’s been very assertive. But that immunity decision signaled a whole new, a whole new chapter of aggressiveness in defending Trump in advancing the Trumpest,, MAGA agenda. And in my view, Roberts decision, the decision he orchestrated giving Donald Trump immunity from criminal prosecution, which prevented a trial from happening last summer and prevented him from being held accountable in criminal court at all. That decision paved the way for Trump’s return. And since Trump’s return, this Roberts court has been going out of its way to clear away well reasoned decisions of lower courts, decisions based on fact findings and longstanding precedents and the statutes and Constitution versions. This court has been wiping those temporary restraining orders away to allow Trump to do what he wants while the cases are being litigated. Even though the standard for a TRO is the likelihood of irreparable harm, substantial likelihood of success on the merits is another standard too. But those are the core standards, and those rulings are well-founded rulings by the lower courts that this court is disregarding and flipping on its head. It’s basically saying Trump can engage in these acts that are causing irreparable harm until the courts decide that maybe it is a violation. And then if it does, that will be appealed to us and we’ll see what happens next.