WASHINGTON (AP) - The Latest on the final day of the Supreme Court term (all times local):
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11:30 a.m.
The Supreme Court is ordering new arguments in two cases involving immigrants or foreigners that will give new Justice Neil Gorsuch the tie-breaking vote.
The cases were both argued before Gorsuch came to the court in April and apparently left the other eight justices evenly divided. Chief Justice John Roberts announced on Monday that the cases would be re-argued. That will happen after the Supreme Court returns to hearing arguments in the fall.
The cases include the rights of immigrants to court hearings while they face long periods of detention and the validity of a provision of immigration law that makes deportations easier.
Both cases began in the Obama administration, and the Trump administration has maintained the same position.
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11 a.m.
The last day of the Supreme Court’s term was notable not only for what was announced but also for what wasn’t.
There had been speculation that Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy could reveal his retirement from the court Monday. But the court recessed without any announcement. Kennedy could still announce his retirement at any time, though the last day of the term was seen as an opportune moment.
Kennedy had given no public sign that he would step down this year and give President Donald Trump his second high court pick.
But Kennedy turns 81 next month and has been on the court for nearly 30 years. Several of his former law clerks have said they think he is contemplating stepping down in the next year or so. In addition, Kennedy and his clerks gathered over the weekend for a reunion pushed up a year earlier than normal. The decision to hold an early reunion helped spark talk he might be leaving the court.
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10:33 a.m.
The Supreme Court is letting the Trump administration mostly enforce its 90-day ban on travelers from six mostly Muslim countries, overturning lower court orders that blocked it.
The action Monday is a victory for President Donald Trump in the biggest legal controversy of his young presidency.
The court did leave one category of foreigners protected, those “with a credible claim of a bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the United States,” the court said in an unsigned opinion.
The justices will hear arguments in the case in October.
Trump said last week that the ban would take effect 72 hours after being cleared by courts.
The ban would apply to citizens of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.
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3:15 a.m.
Before the Supreme Court justices begin their long summer break, they’re poised to act on the Trump administration’s travel ban and a separation of church and state dispute involving a Missouri church playground.
But something could overshadow rulings in those high-profile cases: If Justice Anthony Kennedy were to use the court’s last public session on Monday to announce his retirement.
Kennedy has given no public sign that he would step down this year, but he turns 81 next month and has been on the court for nearly 30 years. Kennedy’s departure would allow conservatives to take firm control of the court.
Meanwhile, the court is considering whether to allow the administration to immediately enforce a 90-day ban on visitors from six mostly Muslim countries.
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