February 8, 2025

Courts take on Trump

Jen Psaki, MSNBC - President Donald Trump’s second term has been defined by a flood of executive orders — many of them legally questionable. And for now, the courts are emerging as one of the few institutions able to potentially check his most extreme policies.

This week, a second federal court issued a preliminary injunction blocking Trump’s executive order to end birthright citizenship, a rebuke of his immigration agenda. Notably, the ruling came from U.S. District Judge John Coughenour, a President Ronald Reagan appointee, who didn’t mince words:

"It has become ever more apparent that to our president, the rule of law is but an impediment to his policy goals. The rule of law is, according to him, something to navigate around or simply ignore, whether that be for political or personal gain."

The courts will not be able to stop every Trump policy. But with Democrats in the minority in both chambers of Congress, lawsuits are one clear way to challenge Trump’s agenda.

Where the courts have already blocked Trump:

Two federal judges have temporarily blocked Trump’s push to end birthright citizenship — one Democratic and one Republican appointee.
Another judge, appointed by Reagan, temporarily halted Trump’s effort to transfer trans women to men’s prisons.
A federal judge in Boston temporarily blocked Trump’s federal employee buyout program to allow time for a hearing on federal labor unions’ request to block the program.
A federal judge in the District of Columbia temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s freeze on federal grants and loans.
Another federal judge in the District of Columbia temporarily barred the Justice Department from disclosing information about FBI agents involved in Jan. 6 investigations.

Major incoming lawsuits:

The AFL-CIO has sued to block Elon Musk’s DOGE employees from accessing sensitive personal data of seniors stored by the Department of Labor.
Higher education groups are suing the Trump administration over its executive orders to eliminate DEI positions.

The legal battles against Trump are beginning, and while not every case will go in Democrats’ favor, the judiciary is currently one of the few checks on Trump’s power — and one worth watching closely. Read more exclusive insights from Jen Psaki here.

19 States Sue Trump To Block Musk's DOGE From Accessing Personal Data

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The Review is edited by Sam Smith, who covered Washington under nine presidents, has edited the Progressive Review and its predecessors since 1964, wrote four books, been published in five anthologies, helped to start five organizations (including the DC Humanities Council and the DC Statehood Party), was a plaintiff in three successful class action suits, served as a Coast Guard officer, and played in jazz bands for four decades.

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