President Obama might have been surprised on Monday night when a federal district court in Texas blocked his executive action on immigration. Those familiar with his administration’s legal acumen should not be.

Obama’s team has suffered numerous major court defeats in cases it treated publicly as obvious slam-dunk victories. A dozen of Obama’s defeats before the Supreme Court have been unanimous — on topics as diverse as religious liberty, property rights and presidential appointment powers. Each time that happens, it signifies that no knowledgeable person could have reasonably embraced Obama’s legal position.