We Still Have An Imperial Judiciary, Yet Trump Continues To Exercise Extreme Restraint

The Federalist ^ | June 30, 2025 | Margo Cleveland

[E. Pluribus Unum]

What the judges have yet to appreciate is that their own lawlessness is destroying the reputation of the courts.

Everyone, from the President on down, is bound by law.’ That goes for judges too,” the Supreme Court declared last week in holding several lower court judges erred in entering nationwide injunctions in the lawsuits challenging Donald Trump’s birthright citizenship executive order. The Supreme Court’s Friday decision in Trump v. CASA, Inc. represents the high court’s most recent check on what it branded an “imperial judiciary.” Yet, there appears no end in sight to the lower courts’ entry of lawless injunctions against the Trump Administration.

The Supreme Court — or more specifically, Chief Justice John Roberts — holds much blame for enabling this coup by court. Early on during the second Trump Administration, when single district court judges began crowning themselves Kings (or Queens) of the Constitution, rather than forcefully halt the lawlessness of the lower courts, Justice Roberts led the high court in providing gentle corrections. 

Consider, for instance, the injunction entered Department of State v. AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition. In that case, several American businesses and nonprofits which received grants from the State Department and USAID sued the Trump Administration, claiming the temporary pause of funding was unlawful. A district court judge entered an injunction ordering the Trump Administration to halt its pause. Then, when payments didn’t restart fast enough for the judge’s liking, he ordered the government to pay out approximately $2 billion in taxpayer funds within 36 hours.

The Trump Administration sought a stay from the Supreme Court, arguing the lower court lacked jurisdiction to order the government to pay grants. Chief Justice Roberts entered an administrative stay, but then after the 36-hour deadline to pay the grants expired, rather than make...

[sopo]

Emmett Sullivan demonstrated in a protracted crime spree during Michael Flynn case that lower court judges can get away with whatever they want to under Roberts .

[Albion Wilde]

From the article:

However, several low court judges have proven themselves incorrigible, ignoring appellate court decisions and continuing to enjoin the Trump Administration even after the president has prevailed on appeal. For instance, a federal district court judge in Maryland ordered the reinstatement of three Commissioners of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), whom President Trump had fired. The Maryland federal judge ordered their reinstatement even though the Supreme Court recently stayed similar orders reinstating the Members of the Merits Systems Protections Board (MSPB) and the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), whom the president had fired.

The Trump Administration is now seeking a stay of the CPSC Commissioners’ reinstatement, but in the meantime, the commissioners the President fired are wreaking havoc on the CPSC by terminating newly hired employees and reversing the decisions the Trump-appointed replacements had instituted.

The degree of arrogance and narcissism is stunning. Glad the DOJ is suing the Maryland judiciary. I blame the law schools, which have stopped teaching the Constitution in favor of "win-at-any-cost-including-lying" case law.

[bigbob]

Trump knows there are political ramifications to responding to lawlessness with more lawlessness. He is being wisely advised to take a measured legalistic approach.

[llevrok]

Next round? Class action suits

[Midwesterner53]

The first words out of Trump’s mouth after the court ruling on district court rulings should have been: We now consider every district court ruling that tried to cover the whole country to be null and void and we will proceed accordingly.

[sauropod]

Bkmk

[A strike]

-fJRoberts-

[ridesthemiles]

GIVE THEM ENOUGH ROPE TO HANG THEMSELVES??????