Trump blasts his own Supreme Court picks after mail-ballot ruling

President Donald Trump expressed deep frustration with the Supreme Court in a Truth Social post after it blocked new U.S. Postal Service mail ballot rules. His administration had asked the Court to allow the rules to take effect while litigation continues. However, the justices concluded the government was unlikely to succeed in overturning a preliminary injunction that keeps them on hold, according to CNN.

The ruling means the mail ballot rules will not govern the November midterms. Trump’s March executive order directed federal agencies to build state citizenship lists and told the Postal Service to develop nationwide requirements for mail ballots. The administration said these steps were necessary to prevent ineligible voting and improve election security.

By late August, the Postal Service had finalized the mail ballot rules. States would have had to upload lists of mail voters, use approved envelopes, and add unique barcodes. The mail ballot rules would have potentially allowed the Postal Service to refuse ballots that did not meet the new standards, just two months before the midterms.

None of Trump’s own picks publicly sided with him on mail ballots

The legal fight turned on who controls elections, as the Constitution gives states the power to set rules for congressional elections and lets Congress override them. A federal judge in Boston found the mail ballot rules likely unconstitutional and unlawful. The First Circuit kept them blocked, pointing to likely chaos and widespread disenfranchisement with states already deep into election preparations.

The Supreme Court’s order does not decide the legality of the policy itself, but keeps the lower court’s injunction in place while the case continues. Only Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas publicly dissented, while Brett Kavanaugh wrote a separate concurring opinion. He saw a fair prospect the rule falls within the Postal Service’s authority, but agreed to keep it blocked as officials lacked time to implement it before November.

Trump called the ruling a big loss for Republicans and lashed out at his own appointees on the bench. “These are not the people I interviewed to serve on the United States Supreme Court, they are merely a shell of their original selves,” Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social. He also praised Alito and Thomas as “legends” for their dissent.

Supreme Court justices do not answer to the presidents who nominate them. Under the Constitution, they can remain in office during “good behavior,” which in practice means life tenure. Trump previously attacked the justices over tariffs after Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett joined the majority against him.

Mail voting remains common, as Census Bureau data shows 29% of voters cast ballots by mail in 2024. Pew reported that 44% of Democratic voters voted by mail that year, compared with 26% of Republican voters. In a Pew survey this spring, 81% of Democrats backed early or absentee voting without an excuse, compared with 34% of Republicans.

The administration has pushed for tighter controls over fraud concerns. However, research has found documented mail ballot fraud is rare. A 2025 Brookings analysis identified an average of roughly four fraud cases per 10 million mail votes across four recent general elections.

Attorney General Todd Blanche said the administration would comply with the order but did not rule out pursuing new mail voting changes before the 2028 presidential election.