JUDICIAL ACTIVISM. The Roberts Court handed down a set of pro-big business, anti-free speech, anti-environment decisions today. The court ruled taxpayers can't challenge the federal government's funding of faith-based organizations. Businesses don't have to worry much about the Endangered Species Act. Schools can punish students for speech with a perceived "pro-drug" message. And interest groups can run TV and radio ads endorsing a candidate, right up until the election. As Brad points out, four of the five majority opinions were penned by Alito or Roberts, with the four liberal-leaning justices dissenting. Might be a good time to re-read Simon Lazarus's piece on how disastrous the Robert court is -- and will continue to be. --Ann Friedman
