Bowe v. United States · ¶52

To begin, the Government contends that there is textual support in §2244(b)(3)(E) for the understanding that the certiorari bar applies to federal prisoners through the cross- reference. On this score, the Government points to how §§2244(b)(3)(A)–(E) each use the term “second or successive application” instead of referring to §2254 specifically or state prisoners more generally. This stands in contrast to nearly all the other provisions in §2244. In the Government’s view, this textual variation means that Congress intended for §2255(h)’s cross-reference to incorporate any provision in §2244 that uses the term “second or successive application” and the breadth of the cross-reference therefore must be understood on those terms.

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