From day one, Trump and top administration officials have launched an all-out assault on the federal judiciary, targeting judges who have blocked or scrutinized his executive actions and orders, and trying to politicize the courts when they don’t rule in his favor.
Trump and his allies’ rhetoric has become increasingly dangerous and corrosive to the rule of law, marking an unprecedented escalation in attacks that undermine court authority, weaponize the Department of Justice, and eradicate checks and balances—ultimately threatening all Americans’ freedom.
Here are some of the most egregious threats Trump and his administration have made against judges and the courts.
The Threats Start From The Top—Trump Has Relentlessly Attacked Judges And the Courts Since Taking Office:
- Trump has repeatedly accused judges of being influenced or “intimidated by the Radical Left” and in a lengthy Memorial Day post called judges who have ruled against him “monsters” who hate the United States.
- Trump has described the longstanding practice of nationwide injunctions by judges as a threat to the country’s existence, calling judges who issue them “lunatics,” and accusing them of trying to usurp presidential powers.
- Trump has singled out individual judges, such as Chief Judge James Boasberg of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, labeling them “crooked,” “lunatic,” and calling for their impeachment, asserting they are acting out of political motives rather than legal reasoning.
JD Vance Parrots Trump’s Dangerous Rhetoric:
- Vance has amplified Trump’s rhetoric, stating that the administration must “do battle” with “crazy far-left judges” and accusing the courts of trying “to take upon themselves powers that belong to the president of the United States.”
- Vance has dismissed concerns about a constitutional crisis and instead framed the crisis as judges attempting to govern the country and alleging the courts are trying to “control the executive’s legitimate power.”
Administration Officials Pile On:
- Attorney General Pam Bondi has called judges “deranged” and argued that many should be removed for obstructing Trump’s agenda. She has threatened to prosecute judges she accuses of “hiding” illegal aliens and criticized judges for “meddling” in government affairs. Moreover, in cases and questions about due process, Bondi claims that judges have “no right to ask those questions” about immigration policies.
- Bondi has also publicly identified judges by name, promising to hold them “accountable” for rulings she claims hinder Trump’s policies.
- In a memorandum sent to the heads of executive branch agencies and departments after a judge blocked a majority of Trump’s executive order punishing the law firm Jenner & Block, Bondi mocked the court’s order by referring to the judge as “an unelected” judge who “invaded the policy-making and free speech prerogatives of the executive branch.”
- Elon Musk has characterized the judiciary’s actions as a “judicial coup,” repeatedly advocating for the impeachment of judges who block Trump’s orders, and financially supporting politicians who endorse such measures.
- Musk’s public statements suggest that if judges can block any presidential order, it constitutes “tyranny of the judiciary.”
- Stephen Miller has accused “unelected rogue judges” of “indefensible judicial tyranny” and “stealing years” from Trump’s term and called for the abolition and defunding of certain federal courts, particularly those that have ruled against the administration’s draconian immigration efforts.
- Border “Czar” Tom Homan expressed indifference to a co-equal branch of government, saying “I don’t care what judges think” and “I’m sick of these radical judges.”
- White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt accused Judge Boasberg of being “a Democrat activist” and “trying to usurp the president’s authority.”
- Leavitt refused to rule out the arrest of Supreme Court justices who rule against the administration and laid the groundwork to justify the arrests as “anyone who is breaking the law or obstructing federal law enforcement officials from doing their jobs is putting theirselvses at risk of being prosecuted”