The mail system took on new prominence during the Civil War by enabling soldiers to vote from afar. On Monday, the Supreme Court blocked President Trump’s effort to give it a new role in elections.
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White House vows to comply with ruling it calls a 'big loss' that will 'lead to cheating'
“They call it "compliance" the same day they call the ruling that forces the compliance a "big loss" that will "lead to cheating" — pick a lane. It's not confusion, it's a two-track message: tell the courts you'll behave, tell the base the count that beats you is rigged, so nobody trusts the ballot either way. Somebody's mail-in vote is the football in that game, and it's not the man in the briefing room who eats it if it doesn't get counted.”
“Look, "of course we'll comply" and "this will lead to cheating" aren't contradictory, they're — okay, hearing it back that does sound bad. What the President means is he can respect the ruling AND believe the ruling is garbage, that's called having opinions about the process you're bound by, that's not— did I just defend saying the rule he's following invites fraud? That's not landing the way I wanted it to.”
The receipts
Attorney General Todd Blanche conducted the White House press briefing on Tuesday, commenting on the Supreme Court's ruling that blocks President Trump's new postal service rules for mail ballots. CBS News' Ed O'Keefe has more.
President Trump called the Supreme Court's refusal to enforce stricter mail-in voting rules a "big loss" for Republicans and Americans on Tuesday, claiming it will lead to cheating. A Brookings Institute analysis found just four cases of mail voter fraud for every 10 million ballots cast in 2016, 2018, 2020 and 2022. CBS News' Aaron…
Attorney General Todd Blanche told CBS News' Ed O'Keefe on Tuesday "of course" the White House will comply with a Supreme Court decision that keeps in place a lower court ruling that blocked the U.S. Postal Service from enforcing new regulations for mail voting.
The Supreme Court on Monday blocked the Postal Service from enforcing new mail voting rules ahead of the midterm elections.
The Supreme Court has struck down tighter mail-in voting regulations championed by President Trump ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. CBS News' legal contributor Jessica Levinson breaks it down.
· Appeals Court Rejects 'Likely Unlawful' Trump Push to Undermine Mail-In Voting as Supreme Court Looms from the morgue, 10 Sep 2026
· Trump asks Supreme Court to lift block on USPS mail ballot rule from the morgue, 3 Sep 2026
· Trump's Contested Order to Restrict Mail-In Voting Could Disenfranchise Millions: Ari Berman from the morgue, 26 Aug 2026
· Trump's War on Mail-in Voting is Hitting a Brick Wall—But the Danger is Far From Over from the morgue, 6 Sep 2026
· Democrats, Groups Fight Back After Supreme Court Clears Way for Trump Attack on Mail Voting from the morgue, 25 Aug 2026
This page is a back-issue: the story as it ran, receipts as they were. The current edition is at the front. The byline is a pen name for a column drafted by a machine and checked by the editor: how this is made.