With contempt for the Constitution - Trump, Elon, and MAGA push to impeach judges (1 Viewer)

[superchuck500]

Trump has demanded judges who rule against his administration be impeached. Elon has agreed. MAGA in Congress has introduced articles of impeachment. Of course, this is blatantly unconstitutional and it's also wildly pathetic. Instead of being strong and law-abiding but taking their case to the higher courts, the fascists want to just impeach the judges. This has prompted the chief justice to make public comment that no, we don't do that.

 

[superchuck500]

 

[superchuck500]

What an absolute clown

Speaker Mike Johnson floats eliminating federal courts as GOP ramps up attacks on judges

Republican lawmakers are setting their sights on the judiciary following court rulings that have halted Trump's agenda.

www.nbcnews.com

 

[MT15]

What an absolute clown

Speaker Mike Johnson floats eliminating federal courts as GOP ramps up attacks on judges

Republican lawmakers are setting their sights on the judiciary following court rulings that have halted Trump's agenda.

www.nbcnews.com

Are they not established by the Constitution? Seriously?

Edit: I see that the Supreme Court is established by the Constitution, with provision for lower federal courts as Congress sees fit.

Well, if the GOP loses control of Congress, I say Dems should go all out. Expand the courts and pack them, including the Supreme Court. The GOP has shown it cannot be trusted at all.

 

[superchuck500]

Are they not established by the Constitution? Seriously?

The district and appeals courts were established by the Judiciary Act of 1789. It's possible (though wildly idiotic and destructive) that Congress could eliminate them.

 

[MT15]

The district and appeals courts were established by the Judiciary Act of 1789. It's possible (though wildly idiotic and destructive) that Congress could eliminate them.

Yeah, I was looking it up right after I posted, lol.

 

[UriUT]

All this...is so familiar....oh right, pis did this very thing in Poland. After the judiciary refused to play along, they were systematically destroyed..forced retirement and replacement. Tusk is now facing charges of employing illiberal means as his government tries to dismantle pis's destructive attacks on democratic institutions and the media. It only took russia's army in its neighbor's land and a crappy economy to jolt that population to its senses.

Biden tried to play it within the law and couldn't remove dejoy from the postoffice. Even if we escape this, there is a huge hole to climb out....even via illiberal means may be necessary, unfortunately.

 

[MT15]

They know they have no reason for impeachment so they seem to be ratcheting up the threat to disband entire federal courts. I think this is a hollow threat, meant to intimidate those judges who are standing up to this destruction of the country. They cannot allow the rule of law to prevail. I plan to write again to all my congressional representatives (again) to let them know I consider this an abdication of their responsibilities. Oh and I snort derisively toward all conservatives who claimed “you cannot vote for democrats because they will expand the Supreme Court and pack it”. Well, your party is far, far worse than anything democrats have ever done.

 

[Optimus Prime]

Senator Chuck Grassley is introducing a bill to stop judges from issuing nationwide injunctions, which experts say are an essential part of the judicial branch’s ability to check the power of the executive branch.

Grassley, a 91-year-old Republican from Iowaand president pro tempore of the Senate, is introducing a bill to end nationwide injunctions because they “have become a favorite tool for those seeking to obstruct [President Donald Trump’s] agenda,” according to an op-ed he wrote for the Wall Street Journal.
Grassley says his bill will ensure “lower courts could no longer block legitimate executive action by issuing orders to nonparties to the lawsuit.”

Federal judges have issued at least a dozen nationwide injunctions against Trump’s policies since he took office in January, temporarily blocking a range of orders, including those seeking to ban transgender people from military service and end the Constitutional right to birthright citizenship

Grassley’s bill would also make temporary restraining orders against the government immediately appealable “to make sure that prudence wins out over rash decisions handed down in the heat of a political moment.”……

Sen. Grassley plans bill to stop judges from carrying out checks-and-balances powers

Judges have issued at least a dozen nationwide injunctions against the Trump administration since the president took office in January

www.independent.co.uk

 

[fooferdoggie]

Senator Chuck Grassley is introducing a bill to stop judges from issuing nationwide injunctions, which experts say are an essential part of the judicial branch’s ability to check the power of the executive branch.

Grassley, a 91-year-old Republican from Iowaand president pro tempore of the Senate, is introducing a bill to end nationwide injunctions because they “have become a favorite tool for those seeking

shows wisdom does not always come with age.

 

[Optimus Prime]

As Donald Trump and Elon Musk widen their radical attacks on US judges who have stalled some of Trump’s executive orders and Musk’s slashing of federal agencies, they’re gaining backing from top House Republicans and other politicians, including some to whom the tech billionaire made big campaign donations.

House speaker Mike Johnson and judiciary panel chairman Jim Jordan have echoed some of Trump’s attacks on judges, and a judiciary subcommittee hearing on April 1 explored “judicial overreach” and ways to curb judges who have stymied some Trump orders or Musk’s “department of government efficiency” (Doge) and its draconian cuts to the federal government.

Veteran Republican consultants say the hefty campaign-spending muscle of Musk, the world’s richest man, who spent about $300m helping Trump win last year, is likely to boost many Republican candidates in 2026 races, increasing pressures on members from Trump and Musk to accelerate efforts to rein in dissident judges.


“Republicans on Capitol Hill expect Musk to make a lot of donations to them in 2026,” said longtime Republican consultant Charlie Black. “But it’s likely that such donations will be coordinated with the president’s preferences.”……..

To ratchet up pressures on judges, after judge Beryl Howell issued a decision in March to temporarily block Trump from penalizing the law firm Perkins Coie, the justice department, in a rare move, tried to have Howell removed from the case, alleging she was biased.


In a blistering response, Howell wrote: “This strategy is designed to impugn the integrity of the federal judicial system and blame any loss on the decision-maker rather than fallacies in the substantive legal arguments presented.”……

Alarm as Republicans in Congress back Trump and Musk’s attacks on US judges

Mike Johnson and Jim Jordan echo president and key ally as experts express fears for ‘bedrock constitutional principles’

www.theguardian.com

 

[Optimus Prime]

Guess this can go here

Becoming a global issue
===================

The three-word message, launched minutes after the verdict came in, was succinct in its solidarity. “Je suis Marine!” Hungary’s Viktor Orbán posted on social media after France’s far-right leader, Marine Le Pen, was found guilty of embezzling European parliament funds and barred immediately from running for public office.

Messages soon came tumbling in from Brazil to Belgium, hinting at how rightwing nationalist and populist leaders had seized on the ruling to push their own narrative.

Most of them paid little heed to the judges’ finding of the key role Le Pen and more than two dozen others had playedin a scam that prosecutors alleged had diverted more than €4m (£3.4m) of European parliament funds to benefit the party.


On Thursday, Donald Trump became the latest to weigh in, railing against the court’s sentencing of Le Pen to four years in prison, of which two years were suspended and the other two set to be served outside jail with an electronic bracelet.

“The Witch Hunt against Marine Le Pen is another example of European Leftists using Lawfare to silence Free Speech, and censor their Political Opponent, this time going so far as to put that Opponent in prison,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social, describing the charge as “minor”. He added: “FREE MARINE LE PEN.”

As France reeled from the political upheaval, opponents of liberal democracy jumped at the chance to peddle their claims that some justice systems are being used as a blunt tool to silence the will of the people.

“When the radical left can’t win via democratic vote, they abuse the legal system to jail their opponents,” wrote Elon Musk. “This is their standard playbook throughout the world.”……

Legal experts pushed back against the claims. “The decision is extremely well reasoned, the court handed down a judgment that seems to me implacable on its merits and without any real possible dispute,” said Mathieu Carpentier, a law professor at Toulouse Capitole University, citing the more than 150-page ruling delivered by the three judges. “If Madame Le Pen had not broken the law, she would not have been convicted.”

It was a point that leaders in countries such as the US, Russia and Hungary – all of whom have facedaccusations of undermining their country’s judiciary – were seemingly content to overlook.…….

“We’re living in a period which is extremely problematic, where judges are being pitted against democracy despite the fact that they are only applying the laws that have been passed by the representatives of the people,” said Carpentier. “It’s a sort of constant manipulation, or instrumentalisation that’s really harmful.”

As far-right figures lined up behind Le Pen, the three-time presidential hopeful didn’t shy away from stoking the fire. “The system has launched a nuclear bomb,” she told supporters as she vowed to appeal against the sentence. “If they are using such a powerful weapon against us, it’s obviously because we’re about to win elections.”…….

Marine Le Pen ruling is fuel for the global right’s attacks on court authority

Rightwing and populist leaders are seizing on conviction to push narrative they are being silenced – but legal experts disagree

www.theguardian.com

 

[RobF]

Guess this can go here

Becoming a global issue
===================

The three-word message, launched minutes after the verdict came in, was succinct in its solidarity. “Je suis Marine!” Hungary’s Viktor Orbán posted on social media after France’s far-right leader, Marine Le Pen, was found guilty of embezzling European parliament funds and barred immediately from running for public office.

Messages soon came tumbling in from Brazil to Belgium, hinting at how rightwing nationalist and populist leaders had seized on the ruling to push their own narrative.

Most of them paid little heed to the judges’ finding of the key role Le Pen and more than two dozen others had playedin a scam that prosecutors alleged had diverted more than €4m (£3.4m) of European parliament funds to benefit the party.


On Thursday, Donald Trump became the latest to weigh in, railing against the court’s sentencing of Le Pen to four years in prison, of which two years were suspended and the other two set to be served outside jail with an electronic bracelet.

“The Witch Hunt against Marine Le Pen is another example of European Leftists using Lawfare to silence Free Speech, and censor their Political Opponent, this time going so far as to put that Opponent in prison,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social, describing the charge as “minor”. He added: “FREE MARINE LE PEN.”

As France reeled from the political upheaval, opponents of liberal democracy jumped at the chance to peddle their claims that some justice systems are being used as a blunt tool to silence the will of the people.

“When the radical left can’t win via democratic vote, they abuse the legal system to jail their opponents,” wrote Elon Musk. “This is their standard playbook throughout the world.”……

Legal experts pushed back against the claims. “The decision is extremely well reasoned, the court handed down a judgment that seems to me implacable on its merits and without any real possible dispute,” said Mathieu Carpentier, a law professor at Toulouse Capitole University, citing the more than 150-page ruling delivered by the three judges. “If Madame Le Pen had not broken the law, she would not have been convicted.”

It was a point that leaders in countries such as the US, Russia and Hungary – all of whom have facedaccusations of undermining their country’s judiciary – were seemingly content to overlook.…….

“We’re living in a period which is extremely problematic, where judges are being pitted against democracy despite the fact that they are only applying the laws that have been passed by the representatives of the people,” said Carpentier. “It’s a sort of constant manipulation, or instrumentalisation that’s really harmful.”

As far-right figures lined up behind Le Pen, the three-time presidential hopeful didn’t shy away from stoking the fire. “The system has launched a nuclear bomb,” she told supporters as she vowed to appeal against the sentence. “If they are using such a powerful weapon against us, it’s obviously because we’re about to win elections.”…….

Marine Le Pen ruling is fuel for the global right’s attacks on court authority

Rightwing and populist leaders are seizing on conviction to push narrative they are being silenced – but legal experts disagree

www.theguardian.com

We had this in the UK with Brexit as well, with a national newspaper headlining "Enemies of the People" with a photo of three judges who'd had the temerity to rule that Parliament would have to consent to begin the process exiting the EU.

The premise that the law should take a back seat and simply disregard what the law is, and essentially allow criminal acts, whenever "the will of the people at the ballot box" is invoked, is plainly absurd; in principle it'd allow anyone to evade the law by simply saying, "I'm running for office, so any application of consequences for my own criminal actions is denying the right of the people to decide," or, "The people voted for this so I can break laws if I say it's necessary to do it," which, obviously, isn't how any of that works. And in practice of course, most people wouldn't get anywhere doing that. But with a loud, vocal, movement and a media that's at best reluctant to take a strong definitive position and at worst actively compliant, some individuals clearly can push this argument for their own benefit.

And when it's couched in conspiracy theory and pseudo-democratic terms - "THEY are doing this to deny YOUR right to vote for who you want to!" - you can see how it can take root, in an environment where that message is repeatedly boosted over the reality that these are people breaking laws - YOUR laws that protect YOU, to put it in the same sort of terms only accurately - and facing the consequences for doing so.

Then up becomes down, instead of the criminals claiming politics gives them an out being the political activists, the judges applying the laws become the political ones, and it's a full-on attack on judges and the rule of law in the guise of the opposite.

I honestly think this, in general, is one of the biggest threats to a functioning democracy and enablers of a slide into authoritarianism.

 

[coldseat]

Guess this can go here

Becoming a global issue
===================

The three-word message, launched minutes after the verdict came in, was succinct in its solidarity. “Je suis Marine!” Hungary’s Viktor Orbán posted on social media after France’s far-right leader, Marine Le Pen, was found guilty of embezzling European parliament funds and barred immediately from running for public office.

Messages soon came tumbling in from Brazil to Belgium, hinting at how rightwing nationalist and populist leaders had seized on the ruling to push their own narrative.

Most of them paid little heed to the judges’ finding of the key role Le Pen and more than two dozen others had playedin a scam that prosecutors alleged had diverted more than €4m (£3.4m) of European parliament funds to benefit the party.


On Thursday, Donald Trump became the latest to weigh in, railing against the court’s sentencing of Le Pen to four years in prison, of which two years were suspended and the other two set to be served outside jail with an electronic bracelet.

“The Witch Hunt against Marine Le Pen is another example of European Leftists using Lawfare to silence Free Speech, and censor their Political Opponent, this time going so far as to put that Opponent in prison,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social, describing the charge as “minor”. He added: “FREE MARINE LE PEN.”

As France reeled from the political upheaval, opponents of liberal democracy jumped at the chance to peddle their claims that some justice systems are being used as a blunt tool to silence the will of the people.

“When the radical left can’t win via democratic vote, they abuse the legal system to jail their opponents,” wrote Elon Musk. “This is their standard playbook throughout the world.”……

Legal experts pushed back against the claims. “The decision is extremely well reasoned, the court handed down a judgment that seems to me implacable on its merits and without any real possible dispute,” said Mathieu Carpentier, a law professor at Toulouse Capitole University, citing the more than 150-page ruling delivered by the three judges. “If Madame Le Pen had not broken the law, she would not have been convicted.”

It was a point that leaders in countries such as the US, Russia and Hungary – all of whom have facedaccusations of undermining their country’s judiciary – were seemingly content to overlook.…….

“We’re living in a period which is extremely problematic, where judges are being pitted against democracy despite the fact that they are only applying the laws that have been passed by the representatives of the people,” said Carpentier. “It’s a sort of constant manipulation, or instrumentalisation that’s really harmful.”

As far-right figures lined up behind Le Pen, the three-time presidential hopeful didn’t shy away from stoking the fire. “The system has launched a nuclear bomb,” she told supporters as she vowed to appeal against the sentence. “If they are using such a powerful weapon against us, it’s obviously because we’re about to win elections.”…….

Marine Le Pen ruling is fuel for the global right’s attacks on court authority

Rightwing and populist leaders are seizing on conviction to push narrative they are being silenced – but legal experts disagree

www.theguardian.com

The right wing where ever it exist, if they're not breaking the law, they're trying to dismantle the legal system because they caught breaking the law. I'm glad that France/EU still have a working judiciary, ours is hanging by a thread.

People need to stop trying to justify the ruling, that never works with right wingers and their cults. Just call out what they're trying to do and repeat it until it makes the simpletons publics ears bleed and they have no choice but to believe the truth.