I'm Elizabeth Slattery and welcome to SCOTUS 101, where we break down what's happening at the

Supreme Court, what the justices are up to, and other things related to our favorite branch of

government. Happy Thanksgiving, SCOTUS 101 listeners. This week we have something very special in

store, but first, there are a few SCOTUS headlines that I want to hit.

First up, Sonia Sotomayor says that Brett Kavanaugh is part of the SCOTS family now.

In an interview with David Axelrod of CNN, she said, the nine of us are a family, and we all have

our own burdens and our own obligations to each other, but this is our work family, and it's just

as important as our

personal families. It's nice to hear that Justice Kavanaugh has received such a warm welcome

from his new colleagues. The court granted cert in a couple of cases last week, including

In-Ray Department of Commerce. This is a dispute arising out of a challenge to the Trump administration's

decision to include a question about citizenship on the 2020 census form.

One of the biggest issues is whether Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross can be deposed.

The oral argument will take place on February 19th.

And then finally, the dispute over President Trump's ability to select Matthew Whitaker as the acting attorney general has reached the Supreme Court.

The challenge comes in an ongoing lawsuit over the constitutionality of the federal ban on possession of firearms by convicted felons.

Barry Michaels, who is a convicted felon, filed a cert petition in his challenge to the federal ban.

And last week, he filed a motion to substitute Rod Rosenstein for Jeff Sessions in the case,

arguing that Whitaker's appointment violates Article 2 of the Constitution.

A spokesperson for DOJ says Trump's designation of Whitaker complies with the Constitution and federal law, and there are

more than 160 instances throughout American history of non-Senate-confirmed people temporarily

performing the duties of a Senate-confirmed position. With that business out of the way, now for the

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