U.S. President Donald Trump’s escalating conflict with the judiciary turned into open confrontation on Tuesday when Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts issued a rare public rebuke over Trump’s call to impeach a federal judge.
“For more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision,” Roberts stated, emphasizing that legal disputes should be resolved through the appellate review process.
Trump’s remarks targeted District Judge James Boasberg, who ordered the suspension of deportation flights for alleged illegal migrants over the weekend. “This judge, like many of the Crooked Judges I am forced to appear before, should be IMPEACHED,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Following Trump’s statement, Republican lawmaker Brandon Gill from Texas introduced articles of impeachment against Boasberg, calling him a “radical activist judge.”
Federal judges hold lifetime appointments and can only be removed through impeachment by the House of Representatives and conviction by the Senate, a process rarely undertaken. The last judicial impeachment occurred in 2010.
Boasberg’s ruling blocked the Biden administration’s use of wartime-era legislation, the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, as legal justification for deporting more than 200 Venezuelan migrants—allegedly members of the Tren de Aragua gang—to El Salvador. However, no public evidence confirmed their gang affiliation or illegal status.
Despite the ruling, the Justice Department argued that the migrants had already left U.S. airspace before the court’s order took effect, meaning Boasberg no longer had jurisdiction over the case. Meanwhile, the White House petitioned an appeals court to remove Boasberg from the case, accusing him of interfering with presidential foreign policy.
Roberts’ intervention is considered highly unusual, recalling a similar statement he made during Trump’s first term when he rejected claims that federal judges were politically biased.
Trump, the first convicted felon to serve in the White House, has a history of attacking judges overseeing his civil and criminal cases. In his Truth Social post, he called Boasberg a “Radical Left Lunatic,” adding, “I WON FOR MANY REASONS, IN AN OVERWHELMING MANDATE, BUT FIGHTING ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION MAY HAVE BEEN THE NUMBER ONE REASON FOR THIS HISTORIC VICTORY.”
Boasberg, a Yale graduate, was initially appointed to the DC Superior Court by Republican President George W. Bush and later to the U.S. District Court by Democratic President Barack Obama.
Trump’s increasing efforts to expand executive power and challenge judicial authority have heightened fears of a constitutional crisis, as his administration continues to push back against court rulings that thwart his policies.
