Donald Trump accuses US judges of "usurping" presidential power

Photo : AFP

The White House on Wednesday blamed US judges for "taking away" the president's power. This came after several court rulings went against Donald Trump’s government, including one that stopped the deportation of Venezuelan migrants. The decision made Trump angry, and he accused the judges of crossing their limits.

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt spoke at a daily meeting and said that "far-left groups" were placing judges who were acting as "political activists" instead of being fair. She claimed that by blocking the president’s orders, these judges were not only going against Trump but also ignoring the will of the American people.

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Leavitt strongly criticized District Judge James Boasberg, who recently ordered the US government to stop sending Venezuelan migrants back home. The Trump administration had been deporting these migrants under an old wartime law, saying they were criminals and gang members.

Leavitt called Boasberg an "activist judge" trying to "take the president’s power." She also accused him of being a "Democrat activist" who was making decisions based on politics, not the law.

Trump also attacked Boasberg directly. On Tuesday, he demanded the judge be removed from his position. The president called him a "Radical Left Lunatic of a Judge" and blamed former President Barack Obama for appointing him.

Trump’s comments led to a rare response from Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts. In a public statement, Roberts defended the independence of judges. He said that being unhappy with a court’s decision was not a reason to remove a judge from their job. Roberts reminded everyone that for more than 200 years, the US has followed this rule.

Even after Roberts’ message, Trump did not stop. On Wednesday, he again attacked Boasberg on his Truth Social platform. Although he did not repeat his call for the judge’s removal, he warned that the ruling could put the country in danger. Trump wrote that if a president cannot deport "murderers and criminals" because of a "Radical Left Lunatic Judge," then the US was in "serious trouble."

The Venezuelan deportation case was not the only recent legal defeat for Trump’s government. On Tuesday, another judge ordered the US government to stop shutting down the US Agency for International Development (USAID). This shutdown was being carried out by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The court ruling was a major blow to Trump’s effort to change the federal system.

On the same day, another judge blocked Trump’s ban on transgender people serving in the military. The judge said the ban was unfair and against the principle of equality, dealing another legal loss to Trump’s policies.

Elon Musk, who supports Trump’s government, also criticized the courts. On his social media platform X, Musk accused the judges of carrying out a "judicial coup" against the government’s power.

Trump, who is the first US president to serve as a convicted criminal, has a history of attacking judges. However, the latest legal battles show that his government is now openly challenging the courts. The White House seems determined to fight back against the judges, pushing hard to hold on to Trump’s power.