Meanwhile, there's a very good chance that, later today, #SCOTUS will grant the Solicitor General's petition for "certiorari before judgment" in the #2020Census case—and set the (expedited) case for an expedited merits hearing.

It'll be the first such grant since August 2, 2004.

"Cert. before judgment" (bypassing a court of appeals) is only appropriate "upon a showing that the case is of such imperative public importance as to justify deviation from normal appellate practice and to require immediate determination in this Court."

law.cornell.edu/rules/supct/ru…

Here, the "imperative public importance" is the timing of finalizing the Census by June. That said, a grant of cert. before judgment is not necessarily a sign that the Solicitor General is going to win; it's just an (appropriate) sign that the Justices understand the urgency.