SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) – Federal and district judges have been threatened with impeachment after ruling against a swath of Trump’s executive order since he took office. A local law expert says the threats are unusual and unique, but not unprecedented.
On Monday, Texas Rep. Brandon Gill said he’s pushing to impeach the federal judge who ordered the Trump Administration to halt the deportation of Venezuelan gang members. Trump also said the judge should be impeached.
In February, Wisconsin Rep. Derrick Van Orden filed impeachment articles against district judge Paul Engelmayer after he limited Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) access to sensitive data in the Department of Treasury.
Earlier that month, Elon Musk called for the impeachment of another district judge who ordered federal health agencies to restore online data scrubbed by the Trump Administration.
“Discussion of impeachment is pretty unique, political pushback generally may be less unprecedented,” said Neil Fulton, dean of the Knudson School of Law at the University of South Dakota. “This degree of discussion of impeachment based on the content of rulings would be unusual.”
Fulton stressed the importance of judiciary independence, which ensures the judicial branch can make decisions without the influence or retaliation from other branches of government.
“An independent judiciary is central to the constitutional order in the United States,” he said. “We should all recognize that it protects our individual rights. It protects the effective operation of government, and it’s important that all citizens, both our elected leaders and all of us just out here in the world, recognize that and put our muscle behind supporting that.”
Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts issued a rare statement Tuesday defending federal judges who have issued decisions against the Trump Administration.
“For more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision,” Roberts said.
Fulton did point to instances in history of vocal judicial disagreement, like Franklin D Roosevelt opposing the Supreme Court decision to strike down parts of the New Deal or billboards across the south calling for the impeachment of Chief Justice Earl Warren in the 60s.
However, these were instances of Supreme Court disapproval, different from federal or district judges that are facing threats right now.
Fulton hopes the threats or public perception of the judicial branch won’t have a trickle-down effect on lower courts in South Dakota.
“The (South Dakota) federal judges I’ve encountered are people of great integrity, of great intellectual and political independence, who make their decisions based on what the law provides and what the correct outcome is in the case, not based on their political or personal preferences.”
He added, “I am hopeful that long tradition in South Dakota continues.”
The law school dean also hopes the current atmosphere around judicial independence and impeaching judges doesn’t impact current students in law school or “chill their willingness to enter public service.”
“I am very hopeful that students will continue to step forward into leadership and service positions in the judiciary, as prosecutors, defenders, as elected officials, because they know it’s important even if it’s not easy,” Fulton said.
