Free Republic

President Trump has rightly demanded accountability from Attorney General Pam Bondi for her “safety dance” tenure at the Department of Justice. That same spirit of accountability, however, must also apply to the president himself — and one of his judicial nominees simply will not do. Rebecca Taibleson, nominated for the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, donated to ActBlue, Joe Biden’s 2020 campaign, and Kamala Harris’ 2015 Senate run. She is 42 years old. If confirmed, she could shape precedent against conservatives for decades. So why is he nominating her? This pick occurred before Charlie Kirk’s assassination. In its aftermath, it...

A Biden-appointed federal judge on Monday blocked the Trump administration from terminating federal grants to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). The Trump administration has terminated more than $500 million in federal funding from the school, claiming it failed to address antisemitism after allowing a “Jew Exclusion Zone” to persist on campus and is continuing to engage in racially discriminatory admissions practices. The preliminary injunction granted by Judge Rita F. Lin, an appointee of President Joe Biden, said the administration likely did not follow the proper procedure in canceling the grants. All grants that were terminated by the administration...

The high court will also hear arguments about overturning a 90-year-old precedent that allowed Congress to create independent agencies.The Supreme Court on Monday cleared the way for President Donald Trump to fire the sole remaining Democrat on the Federal Trade Commission, the latest victory in his aggressive push to exert greater control over the federal bureaucracy. The justices overturned a lower-court injunction that reinstated Rebecca Slaughter to her position with the agency that oversees antitrust and consumer protection issues while litigation over her removal works its way through the courts. The ruling — while provisional — is significant because the...

President Donald Trump's $15 billion lawsuit against The New York Times has been tossed, for now. Calling the president's 85-page lawsuit "decidedly improper and impermissible," a federal judge in Tampa threw it out on Friday and gave him 28 days to file a new complaint that had to be under 40 pages. U.S. District Judge Steven D. Merryday blasted the Trump suit for alleging only two acts of defamation, yet "Count I appears on page eighty, and Count II appears on page eighty-three." He also criticized the suit's flowery descriptions about Trump and overly political language, writing a complaint is...

A federal judge on Tuesday night blocked President Donald Trump from firing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook as her lawsuit challenging her termination plays out in court. Judge Jia Cobb’s issuance of a temporary restraining order in the case came nearly two weeks after Cook sued Trump to prevent him from removing her from the central bank. "The public interest in Federal Reserve independence weighs in favor of Cook’s reinstatement,” Cobb wrote in an opinion on her decision Tuesday. Cobb’s order enjoins Fed Chairman Jerome Powell and the Board of Governors “from effectuating in any manner” Cook’s removal because of...

That's right. A Kenyan migrant broke into a Twin Cities home in 2016 and raped a woman who was in bed sleeping. For some reason, he was only sentenced to two years in jail. He was then set to be deported, since America is no place for foreigners who rape women, but U.S. District Judge David S. Doty stayed the order in 2018 (because of course) and then the rapist managed to get two taxpayer-funded jobs at two state agencies (because of course).

Teresa Stokes, the last judge to release Decarlos Brown Jr. (a homeless, violent schizophrenic with a lengthy criminal rap sheet) earlier this year, is a woman of many hats. Not only is she an activist judge who makes decisions based on a progressive perspective of criminality, uses her gavel to mete out “reparative” and “equitable” justice—as evidenced by the no-cash bail release for a perp like Decarlos in January—but she’s also apparently the Director of Operations for a mental health and addiction clinic in her very own community. 🚨 NEW: Magistrate Judge Teresa Stokes, who RELEASED 14-time criminal DeCarlos Brown...

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A federal judge on Friday blocked the Trump administration from ending temporary legal protections that have granted more than 1 million people from Haiti and Venezuela the right to live and work in the United States. The ruling by U.S. District Judge Edward Chen of San Francisco for the plaintiffs means 600,000 Venezuelans whose temporary protections expired in April or whose protections were about to expire Sept. 10 have status to stay and work in the United States. It also keeps protections for about 500,000 Haitians. Chen scolded Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem for revoking protections...

A dozen federal judges across the political spectrum have spoken out against the Supreme Court’s handling of cases involving President Trump amid intense public scrutiny of lower court rulings. The 12 judges spoke to NBC News on condition that they not be identified out of fear of retaliation, so it’s unclear who they are or where they located. NBC reported the slate includes judges “appointed by Democratic and Republican presidents, including Trump, and serving around the country.” They pushed back on what they described as a pattern of emergency rulings from the conservative-leaning high court in response to lower court...

US District Judge Amir Ali, a Biden appointee, blocked President Trump from cutting billions of dollars in USAID and foreign aid that Congress authorized. Trump will immediately appeal Judge Ali’s ruling. “President Trump has the executive authority to ensure that all foreign aid is accountable to taxpayers and aligns with the America First priorities people voted for,” White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said in a statement to Reuters. Reuters reported:

President Donald Trump asked the Supreme Court to allow him to fire Federal Trade Commission commissioner Rebecca Slaughter, who had been reinstated to that post after he had terminated her. Trump in March removed two Democratic commissioners from their posts at the FTC — Slaughter and Alvaro Bedoya — as part of his sprawling effort to exert his influence over federal agencies.The question of “cause” for termination is also at the crux of Trump’s bid to remove Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa Cook from her role. President Donald Trump on Thursday asked the Supreme Court to allow him to fire...

A far-left federal judge erupted during a hearing on Thursday after the DOJ dismissed a case against a DC man who threatening to kill President Trump. Earlier this week a DC grand jury declined to indict Edward Dana after he was arrested damaging a light fixture at a DC restaurant. Dana also allegedly threatened to kill President Trump and the DC Metro officer who arrested him. .... Snip.... Federal Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui on Thursday screamed from the bench and blasted DOJ lawyers during a hearing to dismiss the case. The judge also apologized to the defendant who threatened kill...

NBC News reported shocking interviews with a dozen federal court judges who hid behind anonymity to attack the Supreme Court for overturning their anti-Trump decisions, accusing the conservative dominated Supreme Court of undermining the judiciary. This is the latest in an ongoing battle this year between anti-Trump Resistance judges on the federal bench using their rulings to enact their preferred policies and the Supreme Court trying to rein them in under constitutional order. With Republicans holding the White House and both houses of Congress, Democrat activists are using their allies on the federal bench to obstruct and delay actions by...

A federal judge on Wednesday ruled that the Trump Administration violated the law when it blocked Harvard University from $2 billion in federal grants because of the school’s handling of antisemitism on campus. US District Allison Burroughs, an Obama appointee, said Trump violated Harvard’s First Amendment rights when it froze $ 2 billion in federal grants earlier this year. Judge Burroughs said the Trump Administration used antisemitism on Harvard’s campus as a “smokescreen for targeted, ideologically-motivated assault” on the country’s premier university.

A federal appeals court late Tuesday ruled President Trump can’t invoke a wartime law to swiftly deport alleged Venezuelan gang members, a key legal tool the administration has used to implement its immigration crackdown. Trump first invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act in March to remove Venezuelans the administration accuses of being members of the Tren de Aragua gang. Tuesday’s ruling blocks Trump from using the law against migrants detained in northern parts of Texas, and the battle could now return to the Supreme Court. The divided 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel found no “invasion” or “predatory incursion”...

A federal judge ruled Tuesday that Google can keep its Chrome browser but will be barred from exclusive contracts and must share search data. Alphabet shares popped 6% in extended trading. U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta ruled against the most severe consequences that were proposed by the U.S. Department of Justice, including selling off its Chrome browser, which provides data that helps its advertising business deliver targeted ads. “Google will not be required to divest Chrome; nor will the court include a contingent divestiture of the Android operating system in the final judgment,” the decision states. “Plaintiffs overreached in seeking...

Trump can’t use National Guard, military in California to enforce laws, Judge Breyer rules

An appeals court has overturned a federal judge’s ruling blocking the Environmental Protection Agency from terminating $20 billion in grants for several climate groups. A three-judge U.S. Court of Appeals panel on Tuesday issued a 2-1 ruling in favor of the Trump EPA’s efforts to slash billions of dollars in grant money to green groups obligated during former President Joe Biden‘s administration. The District of Columbia Circuit Court judges were Gregory Katsas, Neomi Rao, and Cornelia Pillard, who dissented. The district court “abused its discretion” by issuing the injunction preventing the EPA from rescinding the funds, the judges wrote. They...

A federal judge ruled Tuesday that the Trump administration violated federal law in the use of National Guard troops amid Southern California immigration enforcement operations and accompanying protests. Judge Charles Breyer found President Donald Trump’s administration violated federal law by sending troops to the Los Angeles area. The judge in San Francisco did not require the remaining troops to be withdrawn, however. He set his order to go into effect on Friday. The order comes after California sued. *** Lawyers for the Republican administration have argued the Posse Comitatus Act doesn’t apply because the troops were protecting federal officers, not...

Kari Lake’s effort to fire Voice of America Director Michael Abramowitz has been blocked by a federal judge. Lake has been trying to oust Abramowitz as she reduces the staff of the agency, but Abramowitz has fought back, saying the only way to fire him is to go through an advisory board that requires Senate confirmation, according to The Washington Post. He has been on paid leave since March. President Donald Trump removed everyone on the board in January. Replacements are not yet in place. Trump chose Lake to oversee the U.S. Agency for Global Media, which includes VOA, but...