Trump Solicitor General Hedges on Always Following Court Orders

President Donald Trump’s top lawyer at the US Supreme Court declined to say that the administration would apply a federal court ruling’s reasoning to other cases in all circumstances.

The federal government will “generally respect circuit precedent, but not necessarily in every case,” Solicitor General John Sauer told the justices during oral arguments Thursday over Trump’s birthright citizenship order.

Several administration officials, and even the president himself, have suggested that the executive doesn’t need to follow what it sees as unlawful judicial actions, raising concerns of a potential constitutional crisis.

Sauer’s comments echoed those he made during his confirmation hearing ...