During his opening, Durbin emphasized President Trump’s dangerous rhetoric toward district court judges, Republicans’ inability to stand up for the federal judiciary
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today delivered an opening statement during a Senate Judiciary Joint Subcommittee hearing entitled “The Supposedly ‘Least Dangerous Branch’: District Judges v. Trump.” During his opening, Durbin emphasized how President Trump’s rhetoric has sought to intimidate federal judges and how Senate Republicans refuse to stand up for the judicial branch in fear of retribution from the President.
Key Durbin Quotes:
“The title of this hearing says a lot. Here it is in full: ‘The Supposedly “Least Dangerous Branch”: District Judges v. Trump.’ The idea being pushed by my Republican colleagues is not only that the judicial branch and district judges are dangerous, but that they are dangerous for the plain and simple reason that some judges have had the audacity to rule against President Trump… By framing the hearing as they have, my Republican colleagues have shown their hand. This hearing is not really about policy or legal issues. Instead, it is about challenging the authority and legitimacy of the judiciary. They are showing their undying loyalty to their leader, the President.”
“This hearing is merely the latest episode in an ongoing effort by President Trump and his allies to undermine the judiciary and intimidate judges who dare to rule against [the Trump Administration]. In March, the President demanded the impeachment of a federal judge simply because he ruled against the Administration, calling him ‘a Radical Left Lunatic, a troublemaker and agitator.’”
“In May, President Trump referred to judges who ruled against his Administration as ‘communist, radical left judges.’ Two days ago, the President posted: ‘If the Courts somehow rule against us on Tariffs, which is not expected, that would allow other Countries to hold our Nation hostage with their anti-American Tariffs that they would use against us. This would mean the Economic ruination of the United States of America!’”
“These statements that I’ve just read are not normal. It is difficult to imagine President Bush, President Obama, or President Biden using such unhinged, bombastic, and childish language or calling for the impeachment of a judge simply because that judge ruled against their administrations. The reason it’s difficult is because [President] Obama and [President] Biden never did anything like this. But imagine if they had—and how Congressional Republicans would have responded.”
“They would have shouted about it from the rooftops and posted furiously on social media. And the only person they would have considered impeaching would have been the President himself. But because this President is a Republican, and because the President and his allies go after anyone who dares to speak up—because fear of political retribution is at the core of this MAGA world—my Republican colleagues have been silent… Instead of rushing to defend the judiciary and our system of government, they are rushing to defend the President.”
“While my colleagues on the other side may try to make it appear as though the decisions of district courts against the President are somehow dangerous, in reality, it is the attacks on the judiciary itself that are dangerous to both the rule of law and to our judges themselves.”
“People are welcome to debate the merits of any particular judicial decision. But we cannot condone personal attacks and threats against judges who rule against this Administration. And we cannot allow partisan politics or the latest outrage from the President to undermine the judicial branch and our constitutional order.”
Video of Durbin’s opening statement is available here.
Audio of Durbin’s opening statement is available here.
Footage of Durbin’s opening statement is available here for TV Stations.
Since President Trump took office, threats against federal judges have increased dramatically. An especially significant spike occurred over a six-week period from early March through mid-April—right around the time President Trump called for the impeachment of a federal judge on March 18.
Last month, Durbin sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General (AG) Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel urging them to investigate the ongoing and increasing threats against federal judges. Recently, federal judges and their family members have received anonymous deliveries to their homes intended to show that those seeking to intimidate the targeted judge know the judge’s address or their family members’ addresses. The targeted individuals reportedly include Supreme Court justices, judges handling legal cases involving the Trump Administration, and the children of judges. Some of these deliveries were made using the name of Judge Esther Salas’s son, Daniel Anderl, who was murdered at the family’s home by a former litigant who posed as a deliveryman. To better understand these threats and how DOJ and the FBI are responding, Durbin asked Bondi and Patel to answer several outstanding questions and provide a briefing to the Committee by May 20. He has yet to receive a response.
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