A group of anonymous federal judges has overturned a previous court ruling and expressed criticism towards President Donald Trump’s administration, according to a report from NBC News on Thursday.
In discussions with twelve federal judges—appointed by both Democratic and Republican presidents, including Trump—NBC highlighted concerns about a pattern of lower court decisions being reversed by the Supreme Court without sufficient justification. Many of these instances involve prominent Trump administration officials attacking lower court judges prior to these reversals.
Out of the twelve judges, ten remarked that the Supreme Court should offer more clarity when it decides to overturn lower court judgments.
“That’s not permissible,” one judge noted regarding the Supreme Court’s actions. “They aren’t looking out for us.”
This same judge remarked on the alarming reality of facing death threats for issuing rulings contrary to Trump’s policies. He observed that Trump and his senior advisors have targeted judges who rule against their agenda.
Judge James Boasberg, attempting to halt a deportation flight to El Salvador, found himself the subject of Trump’s wrath on social media, where Trump suggested he should “perforate each.”
In March, several judges ruled against Trump’s tariff plans, which led White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller to label it a “judicial coup.”
According to NBC, one judge, who spoke about the intimidation tactics coming from Trump’s officials, predicted that “someone would die” if the criticism persisted.
Another judge voiced frustration that the lower court was “thrown under the bus,” while a third remarked on the Supreme Court’s portrayal of the situation as a “judicial coup.”
Yet, a judge appointed by Barack Obama acknowledged that several judges indeed aligned against Trump’s initiatives.
“The whole ‘Trump Mad Syndrome’ is a serious issue. Some judges get frustrated with what Trump is doing and can lose sight of their judicial roles,” the judge stated.
Ultimately, there seems to be a prevailing sentiment among these judges that a deep sense of justice is being overlooked in these cases, contributing to an increasingly strained judicial atmosphere.
The Supreme Court’s Public Relations Office did not immediately respond to requests for comments.
