Of the lower court judges who have blocked President Donald Trump’s executive orders and other administration actions since he returned to office in January, Democrat appointees have outnumbered Republican appointees by about 3-1. The ratio is evidence of a common practice called “forum shopping” that is done with highly politicized litigation.
Forum shopping is where plaintiffs in a lawsuit seek to have their cases heard by certain judges in certain judicial districts who they believe will be more friendly to their arguments and more likely to rule in their favor.
Federal district judges have blocked Trump’s executive actions on immigration policy, election integrity, transgender policy, and federal employees, as well as initiatives by the cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency.
Of 61 lower court judges who have ruled against Trump—in some cases more than once—49 were appointed by Democrats. Of those, former President Barack Obama appointed 21, former President Joe Biden appointed 19, former President Bill Clinton appointed nine, and President Jimmy Carter appointed one.
The others were appointed by Republican presidents, including Trump, who appointed five of the judges who ruled against his policies.
These numbers are based on published reports and an artificial intelligence analysis.
Notably, some Democrat appointees who halted Trump’s policies in one case sided with his administration in another case.
For example, Obama-appointed D.C. District Judge Tanya Chutkan became known before Trump won a second term for presiding over the criminal case against him for challenging the 2020 election outcome.
Chutkan ruled against Trump in two separate cases over his clawing back of federal climate grants from nongovernmental organizations yet left in effect Trump’s policy in cases involving the U.S. Agency for International Development and DOGE, according to data from The Associated Press.
In another example, Biden-appointed Judge Deborah Boardman of the federal District Court of the District of Maryland blocked Trump’s executive order to end birthright citizenship; however, in a separate case of federal employee unions trying to block DOGE actions, she left a Trump policy in effect, according to an AP tracker of Trump litigation.
As of Tuesday, federal courts have blocked or partially blocked 88 Trump initiatives but allowed 49 to stand, according to The Associated Press. Another 78 cases are pending.
Since Trump took office in January, there have been 40 nationwide injunctions against his policies in cases that started in a federal district court.
Nationwide injunctions are the “ideal temptation for forum shopping,” said Curt Levey, president of the Committee for Justice, a conservative legal group.
“Forum shopping is nothing new, but the numbers demonstrate, (a) it has been taken to new heights, and (b) the [left-leaning advocacy groups] are very effective at it,” Levey told The Daily Signal. “You can find a plaintiff anywhere, so there is an open field for forum shopping. And, ‘Trump Derangement Syndrome’ is real. Judges are people with emotions, and a number of judges will rule against Trump no matter what.”
Trump was recently critical of Judge Timothy Reif, whom he appointed in his first term to the U.S. Court of International Trade. Reif joined an Obama appointee and a Ronald Reagan appointee to strike down most of Trump’s tariffs.
Forum shopping is incentivised in part by the Senate tradition of what is known as blue slips, said John Malcolm, director of the Meese Center for Legal and Judicial Studies at The Heritage Foundation.
A blue slip is where both senators from a state, regardless of party, are asked to initially approve or disapprove of a president’s judicial nominee from that state. A senator who approves of the nominee returns the blue slip to the Senate Judiciary Committee. If a senator does not approve, he withholds his blue slip, and the nominee may not be considered by the committee. While it’s not legally binding, senators have for the most part honored the tradition.
“Blue slips are honored as vetoes for district judges, there is debate whether blue slips should apply to appellate court judges,” Malcolm told The Daily Signal. “Both parties honor this system.”
Conservative-leaning groups also forum shop when suing a Democrat administration, Malcolm said. But, he added, Democrat-appointed judges are more likely to impose nationwide injunctions rather than injunctions that are limited to only the litigants involved in the case the judge is presiding over or only to the geographical district in which the judge presides, which has traditionally been the practice for injunctions.
Among the most famous judges involved in these cases stopping Trump’s policies has been James Boasberg, an Obama appointee to the federal District Court of the District of Columbia, who issued orders prohibiting certain deportations.
Among the other judges involved in these cases are Biden appointee Judge Brendan Hurson of the District of Maryland. He blocked Trump’s order banning so-called sex-change surgeries for minors. Judge Brian Murphy, also a Biden appointee of the District of Maryland, ordered the return to the United States of a Guatemalan illegal immigrant the administration had deported.
Fred Lucas is chief news correspondent and manager of the Investigative Reporting Project for The Daily Signal. He is the author of “The Myth of Voter Suppression: The Left’s Assault on Clean Elections.”
Reprinted with Permission from The Daily Signal – By Fred Lucas
The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of AMAC or AMAC Action.
Any U. S. citizen not protecting the United States from terrorists and terrorism is a traitor! That especially begins with public employees. If you’re on the government payroll and aren’t pro-American, you’re on the side of our enemies and should be charged with treason.
Every one of those judges needs to be kicked off the bench and disbarred. They have abused the entire judicial system with their unabridged bias and political behavior. Our judges are to be impartial in politics and judge according to the Constitution and
the actual law, not how they want it to be. Their opinion is irrelevant.
What continues to amaze me is the support and affection that so many have for Obama who I’ve always believed to be a sleazy, dishonest, self-serving and yes, dangerous, guy.. He came out of nowhere with almost zero experience (in the Senate about 180 days?!) and paid his way into office to defeat the much better known Hillary Clinton. Given: Hillary is not likable nor ha she any accomplishments outside those she gathered up under her husbands’s coattails. But still, an unknown racially mixed, unaccomplished politician from Chicago of dubious origins and unproven ability? A guy few remember knowing in college or law school, etc? How does such a person continue to hold sway over OUR country? (I add, same for Michelle,who never accomplished a thing by herself before, during or after her stint in the WH.)
I’m sick and tired of seeing news reports like this on a daily basis. I’d prefer seeing these anti-American, Soros-funded judges, district attorneys and attorneys general shipped to Iran. Wishful thinking….
What does America expect from Judges appointed by two Anti-America Presidents.
This is nothing more than a smoke and mirrors game and it will not stop until Trump, Republican politicians, and his Administration either remove all deep state personnel and oligarchs who are pushing their agenda. It’s either that or we unite and destroy the aforementioned. The power is in the people if they will stand up for their rights. Judges do not run this nation and it’s time to put them in their proper place or forever be enslaved.
This is why we need to vote in our local cities, counties and states. Get rid of these leftist crazies.
These two and the liberal Judges are trying to destroy America!
The Republican congress has a great opportunity to change this. One idea, that I like, would require nationwide injunctions to be approved by a panel of three judges, which would be directly appealable to the Supreme Court.
Damn District system is corrupt as all DC Is
ALL DC is corrupt
Could it be called Buy and sell?
If the judges can block everything, as they have, then Why do we have/need a President?? The Judges need to be brought into line as most of them Do Not have the citizens best interests at heart.
Two of the worst things that has happened to this country……Biden and Obama.
These judges are supposed to be randomly selected. How is it that Boasberg got 4 cases? So much for random selection.
Dishonor in the court! Dishonor in the court!
Americans are to distracted by mainstream media lies to make informed decisions. Instead of researching for the truth they accept what’s being spoon fed to them. On top of the fact everyone wants to be rich, famous, & popular. Integrity, morals, manners, respect, have been lost. It’s become a very sad reality. I pray Americans go back to faith truth & morals before everything is gone.
Under any other president these actions would be loudly decried as what they are, a political coup against the sitting president of America!
I’m sick of this crap!
If these District judges are legally over stepping their bounds (authority), Then why doesn’t our President, the Executive, state to the nation that these judges have over stepped and announce to the people that he, Trump, will no longer obey their ruling and that he is going to get on with the people’s business?
Stop the presses !!
Plaintiffs are forum shopping. We’ve never heard that one before.
It’s high time we do everything possible to get rid of the crooked judges!
This is a bunch of bs, I’m sick of this!