Trump Embraces Defiance Of Supreme Court Order While House Committee Continues Efforts To Hamstring The Courts

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

April 30, 2025

CONTACT: [email protected]

Washington, DC – Today MAGA Republicans in the House Judiciary Committee will hold a markup on proposed reconciliation language which includes a provision on the last page that would prevent the courts from enforcing contempt citations. This comes a day after President Trump made a new admission, saying multiple times that he “could” have Kilmar Abrego Garcia returned if he wanted, but that his administration will not do that, despite the Supreme Court’s order that he facilitate the return of the illegally deported Maryland man. 

This also comes on the heels of Chief Judge James Boasberg’s announcement that there is probable cause to hold federal officials in criminal contempt for willfully ignoring his order to turn around planes carrying individuals to an El Salvador prison.

In response, Demand Justice Interim Executive Director Maggie Jo Buchanan released the following statement: 

“Flouting any federal court ruling, let alone one from the Supreme Court, puts our nation on a dangerous path for the future. Trump’s actions in regard to Mr. Abrego Garcia have not only been cruel–they’ve demonstrated his administration’s willingness to rip apart the checks and balances that are the foundation of our democracy. 

“Meanwhile, MAGA Republicans in the House are trying to bolster Trump’s defiance, most recently pushing a hidden provision in a reconciliation bill that would kneecap the enforcement power of the courts after they already passed legislation on a party-line vote to take away a tool of the courts to limit the damage from executive overreach.

“Trump, his administration, and his MAGA allies in Congress, are waging a war on the legal system–from our courts to the legal profession itself–in the hopes that there will be no one left to hold them accountable by the end of it.” 

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