فاس نيوز ميديا جريدة الكترونية جهوية تعنى بشؤون و أخبار جهة فاس مكناس – متجددة على مدار الساعة
The U.S. Supreme Court issued a statement on Tuesday reminding President Donald Trump that he does not have the authority to demand the removal of a federal judge. This came after Trump called for the dismissal of a federal judge who had ordered the suspension of a migrant deportation operation on Saturday.
In a rare statement, Chief Justice John Roberts said, “For more than two centuries, it has been established that removal is not an appropriate response to a disagreement over a judicial decision.” He added, “There are ordinary appeal procedures for this purpose,” without directly mentioning Trump.
Trump had launched a direct attack on the judiciary through his platform, Truth Social, demanding the removal of Judge James Boasberg, whom he described as a “corrupt judge.” Trump stated, “I am only doing what the voters asked,” claiming that “combating illegal immigration was perhaps the primary reason for his victory in the presidential election.”
Trump responded to the judge by saying, “He was not elected president,” and described him as a “radical leftist, disturbed troublemaker appointed by Barack Obama.”
Rare Response from the Supreme Court
Although such statements are rare, this is not the first time the Chief Justice has reminded Trump. In 2018, during Trump’s first term, John Roberts broke his silence to respond to Trump’s accusations of judicial bias, stating, “There are no Obama judges or Trump judges, Bush judges, or Clinton judges.”
Suspension of Migrant Deportations
Judge Boasberg had ordered on Saturday the suspension of migrant deportations for 14 days, based on an exceptional law from 1798 that allows the arrest and deportation of “foreign enemies” during wartime. However, Trump invoked this law for the first time during peacetime.
The judge demanded the halt of the deportation of approximately 200 suspected members of a Venezuelan gang to El Salvador. The Trump administration confirmed that the planes had already taken off and left U.S. airspace before the ruling was issued, meaning they did not violate the order. However, the judge expressed skepticism during a hearing on Monday and requested explanations from the government.
Complex Procedures for Removing Judges
Federal judges are appointed for life by the president, and their removal requires complex procedures, including an impeachment by the House of Representatives, followed by a trial in the Senate requiring a two-thirds majority vote. These procedures are difficult to execute under current political circumstances.
Nevertheless, Trump’s calls were quickly addressed, as Republican Representative Brandon Gill announced on platform “X” that he had initiated impeachment proceedings against Judge Boasberg in the House of Representatives, describing him as a “radical activist.”
The removal of federal judges is rare, with the last such removal occurring in 2010.
