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- cross-posted to:
- [email protected]
Summary:
Facing pressure from his right flank to take on judges who have ruled against President Donald Trump, Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., on Tuesday floated the possibility of Congress eliminating some federal courts.
It’s the latest attack from Republicans on the federal judiciary, as courts have blocked a series of actions taken by the Trump administration. In addition to funding threats, Trump and his conservative allies have called for the impeachment of certain federal judges who have ruled against him, most notably U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, who attempted to halt Trump from using the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelan migrants.
“We do have the authority over the federal courts, as you know. We can eliminate an entire district court. We have power of funding over the courts and all these other things,” Johnson told reporters on Tuesday. “But desperate times call for desperate measures, and Congress is going to act.”
Johnson, a former constitutional attorney, later clarified that he was making a point about Congress’ “broad authority” over the “creation, maintenance and the governance” of the courts. Article III of the Constitution established the Supreme Court but gave Congress the power to “ordain and establish” lower federal courts.
Congress has eliminated courts in the past. In 1913, for example, Congress abolished the Commerce Court and its judges were redistributed to the federal appeals court, according to Congress.gov. And in 1982, Congress passed legislation abolishing the Article III Court of Claims and U.S. Court of Customs and Patent Appeals, and established the Article I Court of Federal Claims and the Article III U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
This is one of the most terrifying possibilities. The idea that Congress itself could be used as a weapon against the courts on behalf of the President. Absolute insanity and a complete betrayal of what the checks and balances are supposed to be about.
Mike Johnson, you need to resign.
That doesn’t sound like an abuse of checks and balances to me, to be honest. This is exactly how the system is designed. They still need a majority to pass anything.
Flip the script for a moment; imagine we had ultra right wing judges who make insane judgements. Is it not the whole point of checks and balances for the legislative and executive branches to be able to exert some control over the judiciary branch provided they have an appropriate majority?
I don’t agree with Johnson, he’s a cunt, but this doesn’t seem like abuse per se, rather exactly how the system was designed. I’m not worried about it because they don’t have the votes.
If you have ultra right wing judges making insane judgements you impeach them, not dismantle an entire branch of government. This is not “how the system was designed” and if you think that, reread the constitution. Even if they don’t have the votes, the fact that its being suggested should be setting off red alert alarms about the next stage that the Rs are aiming to put into motion.
That’s not what’s going on here. The courts are standing up for the law. The President is trying to use the congress as a weapon to ensure the courts cannot force him to follow the law. It’s tyranny and we must not accept it.
What insane judgements? I don’t think this is a very good example given his orders have ignored laws outright. The rendition thing is basic due process. Its from right wing judges enforcing law. It is by no means ultra left wing judges making insane judgements. I just don’t think this example you are giving is apt to the current condition.
“gestures at the 5th circuit”
again its not apt to the situation in that its not ultra leftist making judgements against trump its right wing judges. at least in the case of the renditions. All the same if we are just talking completely unrelated and issue with the courts overall being to bias its not a proper way to deal with it by defunding the whole court system any more than you remove congress or the office of presidency to deal with something. There is processes to remove individuals from any of the branches and that is a within the system, appropriate process. Removing the system is anti system so would be appropriate for a revolutionary this is more usurper activity. That is the idea of taking power from within by removing it. Maybe there is a better word.
sry if I wasn’t clear. what Johnson is trying to do is insane. I was just pointing to the 5th circuit that had been throwing out insane rulings and the judge every crazy gop team shops for.