25 June—As of this writing, the U.S. Supreme Court hasn’t published its eagerly awaited decision on Trump v. United States, the case that’s supposed to determine whether—and to what extent—a sitting or former president may be held immune from criminal prosecution.

The Biden-Trump freak show, a farcical entertainment touted as a presidential campaign debate, is to be televised on CNN Thursday night. So count on SCOTUS—which is every bit as adept at theatricality as Donald Trump—announcing its decision Thursday morning.

But also count on the Trump decision not being truly momentous or precedent-setting, not being a decision of first impression nor a denouement. Because a majority of the Supremes will have equivocated, dodged the actual issue, hedged their bets by punting the case back to the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, which had agreed with the trial court (District Judge Tanya Chutkan) that ex-President Trump could indeed be held criminally liable for his official acts even after leaving office.

We all know that Supreme Court justices, like all judges, decide cases purely on constitutional and legal grounds, ignoring or overcoming personal, political, and religious biases. And gratitude. And a squadron of pigs was just seen flying in formation over Litchfield.

The avowedly liberal justices won’t give Trump an inch. Of course. Just how cleverly and subtly the conservative justices will manage to soften the paperback book they throw at Trump is open to question. But both sides will finesse their decisions with consummate artistry and juridical sophistry, as they always do.

That’s the one thing we can count on . . .