Cross-ideological benefits

SCOTUS granted cert in First Choice Women's Resource Ctrs. v. Platkin to resolve "'[w]hether, when the subject of a state investigatory demand has established a reasonably objective chill of its First Amendment rights, a federal court in a first-filed action is deprived of jurisdiction because those rights must be adjudicated in state court." That is, can the target of an investigator subpoena challenge the subpoena in federal court or must it wait until the state seeks to enforce the subpoena, at which point Younger and preclusion kick-in.

The petitioner is a crisis pregnancy center seeking to challenge a subpoena from the New Jersey AG seeking donor information as part of a fraud investigation. Support for the petition cam entirely from conservative organizations. Mark Joseph Stern describes this as "a spite grant: The conservative justices are mad that New Jersey has dared to investigate a "crisis pregnancy center," so it will once again contort the law to shield CPCs from legal scrutiny. The biggest losers will be "patients" scammed out of obtaining actual health care services."

But it seems to me a decision making it easier for subpoena targets to win the race to to the federal courthouse (which Stern believes will be the likely outcome) will benefit liberal groups targeted by MAGA state governments. Consider Ken Paxton's crusades against Media Matters (also seeking donor and similar First Amendment-protected information) or Pre-Musk Twitter, similarly alleging fraud or consumer deception). Stern and other liberals reject the underlying premise of the lawsuit--that crisis pregnancy centers  have First Amendment rights to engage in what these people regard as medical fraud. Fair enough on the merits. But the immediate precedent procedural/jurisdictional issue the Court will decide is not unique to conservative, religious, or anti-choice organizations.

Unless I am missing something. I am surprised at the one-sidedness of the response thus far. I look forward to seeing what the merits briefing looks like and how the U.S. positions itself in this case.