Why Was John Mulaney at the Supreme Court Tariffs Hearing?
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court heard arguments in a case pertaining to President Donald Trump’s authority to issue tariffs. A who’s who of D.C. power players attended, including senators Amy Klobuchar and Mike Lee, Treasury secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce secretary Howard Lutnick, and Meta’s president of global affairs, Joel Kaplan, who were all in the public gallery. Trump did not attend, despite previously threatening to show up, but for some reason, a different Saturday Night Live host joined the group: John Mulaney.
Mulaney confirmed his presence on Wednesday by sharing a drawing from C-SPAN’s Howard Mortman of the courtroom layout, which showed the political heavy hitters seated in the front row, while Mulaney sat all the way in the back. He wrote on X, under the photo, “Cheap seats but a great show.”
Cheap seats but a great show pic.twitter.com/IGqIDewqcK
— John Mulaney (@mulaney) November 5, 2025
So, why was Mulaney there at all? Is he just very invested in keeping his holiday shipping budget low? Actually, it turns out he loves the Supreme Court. Mulaney is friends with Neal Katyal, the prolific attorney representing the small businesses impacted by the tariffs. (It always helps to know a guy if you’re trying to get a hot ticket.) In 2023, Mulaney appeared on Katyal’s Courtside podcast to discuss Morrison v. Olson — a case that deals with how the government can prosecute government officials — and the lawyer described the comic as a “constitutional law nerd” who likes to “text all sorts of questions about random Supreme Court cases.” According to Katyal, they are “damn good questions.”
Katyal also appeared on Mulaney’s Netflix talk show earlier this year and told the crowd at the Aspen Ideas Festival that they are developing a TV show together. “I’m actually writing a television show about the Supreme Court; it’s kind of a West Wing for the Supreme Court,” Katyal said. “I’m writing with John Mulaney, and it’ll be out in a couple of years.” So I guess more walking and talking, but this time in robes.
Basically, it seems like Mulaney was at the Supreme Court because he’s an A-list fan with the right connections. To translate, this is kind of like the older millennial history buff’s version of being the “Apple” girl at a Charli XCX concert. We should keep an eye out for Lin-Manuel Miranda at the next SCOTUS hearing.
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