I didn't see the article as heartening... in fact, I was pretty disheartened by it. If all we can hope for is Congress to not give away it's power and rein in the trump administration, or judges to back up their rulings with some kind of enforcement (which is the executive), then we're screwed as far as I'm concerned.
Not one repuglican in office today is going to go against trump, no matter what. In addition, Congress has been giving away their powers to the executive for decades now... even the power to declare war! We have the least effective Congress that I can remember in my lifetime. Not only does it not do much of anything in a congressional term; but what it DOES do actually HARMS the U.S. and is NOT representative of the majority.
There are some excellent judges out there. But if they rule against trump, no matter who they are or who appointed them, they automatically become leftist activists. And tho it will get no where, one is trying to be made an example of right now by trying to impeach him for going against trump. He may not be impeached, but it sends a chilling effect through the rest of the judiciary.
And then you find judges like Loose Cannon, or the judge down in Texas who just rubber stamps anything and everything trump wants. And I include the SCOTUS in this column, as well. I wouldn't trust this SCOTUS to come out and state categorically that Americans have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. (It's not in the constitution, after all... just the declaration)