Most Americans believe SCOTUS avoids rulings Trump might refuse to obey: Poll

WASHINGTON, DC: A new survey reveals that most Americans think the Supreme Court will go out of its way to avoid pronouncing judgments against President Donald Trump.

Although the Supreme Court in February invalidated most of Trump’s tariff terms on trade partner countries in a 6-3 ruling, it did little to change what Americans think about the Supreme Court's independence when it comes to Trump.

A latest survey by the Marquette Law School Poll carried out in April reveals that 57% of participants think the Supreme Court wants to avoid rulings that Trump might refuse to obey. The same share of participants expressed similar thoughts in the January survey.

However, two-thirds of respondents said that they supported the court’s decision that Trump lacked the authority to impose sweeping tariffs.

Trump thinks contrary to what Americans said

However, the president thinks otherwise. After the court invalidated tariffs imposed by Trump on America’s trade partner countries, Trump thinks the court will not allow him to end birthright citizenship enshrined in the Fourteenth Amendment for babies born in the US. 

Following his return to office in January 2025, Trump signed an executive order to stop automatically granting citizenship to those born in the US under specific scenarios.

“No Country can be successful with such an anchor wrapped firmly around its neck," Trump wrote on social media on Tuesday, April 21, about birthright citizenship, “but based on the questioning by Republican Nominated Justices that I watched firsthand in the Court, we lose.”

Trump says certain conservative justices are allowing themselves to be pressured by Democrats

Trump, who appointed three of the court’s six conservative justices, said those nominated by Republican presidents were allowing themselves to be pressured by Democrats. "No, certain ‘Republican’ Justices have just gone weak, stupid, and bad, completely violating what they ‘supposedly’ stood for,” he said. 

Trump also attended part of the April 1 oral arguments on birthright citizenship, becoming the first sitting US president to observe the court’s proceedings.

During the argument, justices asserted that Trump can not change the rules of birthright citizenship through executive order. 

In the Marquette Law School Poll survey carried out after the argument, seven of the 10 adults said that the court should rule that the executive order signed by Trump was unconstitutional.

In the Lisa Cook case, the participants want the court to rule against Trump.