Federal judges ruling against President Donald Trump’s recent executive actions have been almost entirely appointees of his two Democrat predecessors.
Some were previously activists, others were steeped in Democrat politics, and one is a former clerk for then-Judge Sonia Sotomayor. These judges have issued rulings to block Trump’s policies on immigration, federal spending, the Department of Government Efficiency, and other matters.
Plaintiffs have been “forum shopping” to attain more favorable rulings, said Curt Levey, president of the Committee for Justice. Forum shopping means they search for specific parts of the country where judges are more likely to be liberal and sympathetic to their case.
“They are trying to flood the zone and make it hard for the Trump administration to pursue its agenda,” Levey told The Daily Signal. “They are likely to win at the district level. And liberal districts are often in liberal circuits. So, in some cases, they can win at the circuit level and give the appearance that the Trump administration is under siege. Another advantage to flooding the zone is that the Supreme Court is limited. It only hears about 75 cases per year.”
Some of the judges ruling against Trump include:
A one-time major Democrat donor, U.S. District Judge John McConnell Jr. of Rhode Island, recently sided with a group of Democrat state attorneys general in a lawsuit to block Trump’s attempted funding freeze for numerous federal grants to nongovernmental organizations.
From 2000 until when President Barack Obama nominated him to the federal bench in 2010, McConnell contributed about $60,000 to Democrat candidates. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce opposed his nomination, noting his long career as a lawyer who sued over lead paint and tobacco, Forbes reported.
McConnell was a former treasurer of the Rhode Island Democratic Committee and chaired the campaign of Providence Mayor David Cicilline, according to the Providence Journal. Cicilline was later elected to the U.S. House.
Notably, the judge previously rejected a lawsuit to remove candidate Trump from Rhode Island’s 2024 ballot.
In a separate case targeting the order on the funding freeze, U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan of the District of Columbia, an appointee of President Joe Biden, imposed a restraining order on the freeze. AliKhan was previously on the District of Columbia Court of Appeals and the D.C. solicitor general.
U.S. District Judge Amir Ali of the District of Columbia, a Biden appointee, enforced a restraining order to prevent the spending freeze on foreign aid disbursed by the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development. In 2020, Ali contributed $1,500 to Biden’s presidential campaign, according to OpenSecrets.org. He also made modest contributions to numerous other Democrat candidates.
Before his nomination, Ali was the executive director of the MacArthur Justice Center, an organization initially founded to oppose the death penalty but that has since expanded to other criminal justice issues.
U.S. District Judge Theodore Chuang of the District of Maryland, an Obama appointee, blocked the Trump administration from conducting immigration raids and arrests at certain houses of worship.
During much of Obama’s time in office, Chuang was the deputy general counsel for the Department of Homeland Security. Before that, from 2007 to 2009, he was the deputy chief investigative counsel for the Democrat majority on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. He was also a past contributor to several Democrat candidates, including giving $750 to Obama’s 2008 campaign and $1,250 to the 2004 presidential bid of Democrat John Kerry.
U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas of the Southern District of New York recently halted DOGE’s access to Department of Treasury records.
Biden nominated Vargas, a former New York federal prosecutor, last year. Vargas contributed $2,000 to Biden’s 2020 campaign, and before that, gave $750 to Democrat Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign. Before working in the Justice Department, Vargas clerked for then-U.S. 2nd Circuit Appeals Court Judge Sotomayor from 2001 to 2002.
U.S. District Judge Jamal Whitehead of the Western District of Washington state blocked Trump’s executive order suspending refugee admissions. Biden nominated Whitehead in 2023. During the Obama administration, Whitehead was the senior trial attorney at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman of the District of Maryland sided with the American Federation of Teachers, a union, to block DOGE from accessing information from the Office of Personnel Management and the Department of Education regarding student loans.
Biden nominated Boardman, a former federal public defender, in 2021. She has been a moderate donor to numerous Democrat campaigns, including giving $500 to Obama’s 2008 campaign and $500 to Clinton in the same campaign cycle.
U.S. District Judge Lauren King of the Western District of Washington, a Biden appointee, temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s restrictions on federal funding for “sex change” treatments for minors.
U.S. District Judge George O’Toole of the District of Massachusetts, an appointee of President Bill Clinton, issued a similar ruling to block the Trump administration’s restriction on sex change funding. He was recommended for the seat by then-Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass.
U.S. District Judge Adam Abelson of Maryland, Biden appointee, blocked Trump’s executive order ending federal support of “diversity, equity, and inclusion” programs, or DEI. A very modest donor to Democrat candidates, he was previously a magistrate judge and in private practice in Maryland.
Some notable exceptions to the Democrat-appointed judges handing Trump court losses: There have been at least four court rulings on Trump’s order scrapping birthright citizenship, with two of those rulings coming from Republican appointees—Judges John Coughenour of Washington state and Joseph Laplante of New Hampshire. They were nominated by Presidents Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush, respectively.
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 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.
Good to see some honest financial forensic reporting being done. Good article that relied on verifiable facts to show the bias that exists in a lot of the federal district court judgeships. Yes, Judge shopping is indeed very real and the inherent bias of a lot of Democrat appointed Judges is real. By the way, the same sort of bias could be found in the two NY State Judges that oversaw Trump’s trials in NYC before the election.
We don’t have judges in this country who are neutral and rule according to the law. No the judges are all bribed and ordered to rule how the progressives want them to rule. If they can shop for a judge that is beholden to the dems where can anyone find Justice. President Trump is undercut at every turn. No Justice is available to him how much do you think the average citizen can count on. That is what is wrong in America. This was created under Obama and fostered forward under Biden. Zelensky thought today he could do the same only he failed to understand Trump doesn’t think like Biden. He is the real deal. He is not your patsy we taxpayers are not your ATM machines. You made a big mistake by your disrespect for the office of the President and dismissing the American people by your ungrateful attitude. May I suggest all the European politician with you put on the uniform and finish this war. We Americans are no longer spending our hard earned money on this war. We want peace and save the people from being killed. PEACE
It sure shows that at least half of the country is corrupt and they need to be in prison. Especially the judges.
We see way too few activist judges investigated, impeached, and indicted! Their job is to follow, and enforce the law not to make law, and violate the U.S. Constitution whenever they can get away with it. Removal for “bad behavior” as stated by the founders is in today’s reality “removal for partisan hack activism”! Let’s make it happen already!
Time for these judges to be judged and booted off the bench!!!!
Just as I suspected. Part of the Trump Derangement Syndrome. How does Trump get rid of them? Pam Bondi has started filing judicial misconduct charges against some. They need to be disbarred and charged with insurrection at the least. The deep state in action. They are usurping the authority of the President of the United States and undermining the basis of out Representative Republic (which the democrats think is a democracy). I suspect George Soros was the dollar source of all of their appointments
These judges don’t have the authority to block Trump. He is the elected President, doing his job. If he can’t do the job he was elected to do, what is the purpose of having elections? Also judge Ali has only been a citizen since 2019, how did he become a judge so fast?
We are sick to death of these “political activist” judges! If they are unable to use established, constitutional laws from the bench honorably and faithfully, they should permanently lose their law licenses and appointments. Laws must NEVER be twisted and wielded as political weapons.
We knew all along that allowing Joe Biden’s puppeteers and Chuck Schumer to fill the federal judiciary with anti-American activists would pollute our lives with lawfare garbage like this for decades. Each of these disgraceful, treasonous decisions will have to be crushed in higher courts. Ideally, SCOTUS would eventually tire of this and forbid district judges from issuing nationwide injunctions agains the administration about anything, ever, but it’s hard to see John Roberts being brave enough to do that.
The USA is riddled with activist judges who have no problem suspending the ethics they might have to advance the leftist agenda. I am hoping and I believe that when the critical issues are more under the control of the new administration, removing these activist judges gets under way.
If they defend the Socialist Democratic policies, then they are non American and should be deported immediately
You only can ride one horse at a time, how could political activists serve as judges and be objective? Why are they still in their positions?
The citizens overwhelmingly gave this President a mandate on Nov. 5, 2024. Now, a legal method must be devised to quickly and systematically rid the courts of “activist judges,” who try to block everything in the people’s mandate. These judges ought to lose their law licenses and careers, never to be allowed inside a courtroom again. They have become a disgrace to a once-admired profession.
Since when did judges in this country rule this country they want to act as presidents they stop everything that President Trump wants done but there hatred for the president they will block everything he wants done so they rule this country time for them to go.
These political activists masquerading in black robes have NO jurisdiction over the Executive Branch. It’s clearly stated as such in the Constitution! All these Leftist weenies need to be impeached and disbarred. Do they even teach the Constitution in these Leftist Law Schools? If Roberts wasn’t such a pansy, he’d tell ALL these poseurs to shut up and quit bothering the ELECTED President.
This just HAS to be at least unethical, or even illegal? To NOT disclose this stuff…and they gave Alita a hassle about a flag at his house? Obviously they think they can slow down Trump train until midterms in 2026, but I think the Dems are in for a really big surprise by then. This is the Republican time to shine and we have GOT to keep up the hard work and pressure and call out the dem lies, consistently.
Isn’t there a way to force a case to be heard in its defined area? Also, isn’t there a way to stop the “shopping” for a favorable judge? That is why Biden’s lawfare was against Trump = all shopped judges who were intense Democrats.
All Trump’s administration has to do is ignore the judges rulings.
All we need to know about the judge in R.I. is that he worked on the David Ciccleine team. Cicceline, the son of the Patriaca family mob lawyer, learned his craft diligently from his dad and the wise guys that he hung around with in providence. The corruption in Proviidence goes hnd in hand with the longtime mafia rule in the city where “Don Patriaca” ruled his crime family for many years including while he was imprisoned. He di, after all, have cable TV in his cell at a time when very few people had cable at all. So it’s no surprise that the judge-ship is for sale to those who line up behind the Ciccleine corruption enterprise ideologies. Providence is a “pay for play” city where jobs, offices, contracts and high positions are all available for loyalty and a price. Trump needs to de-fang these so-called activist judges who are in lock step against the interestts of the American people.
Why do so many Americans hate America so much?
Scrap the Fed District Court system or Reform
Republicans nominate judges; Democrats install activusts.
After watching Joe Rogan & Elon Musk , Soro’s gets his money from us on a NGO kickback scheme .. That gets funded over & over again BY US THE TAX PAYER . With these funds he has been able to fund corrupt judges , burn down our cities , hire rioters to disrupt our way of life & Government . SICKENING .. P. Trump & Elon will hopefully unravel this whole EVIL system that has been feeding HATE with our $$$$ .
Nothing new here America the nutjobs block , delay anyway they can . The rag free press as their mouthpiece. Good investigated reporting . One way to counter is to out the corruption like this article. Two is to tie up these cases when brought to their selected courts . Have the legal team challenge if it’s a biased court , not in proper district just like jury selection . Third amd most importantly fast track this to a higher court to reverse the ruling .
I expect Justice Sotomayer will be one of the first ones forced to leave the SCOTUS.
Collusion, corruption, continuation. That’s the song for our judicial system today. Both sides do it. Both sides benefit. Both sides do harm. This is the way it’s done. it’s not right. It’s not moral. It’s not even simply honest. There may have been a time when judges held respect in the eyes of all because they worked at being legal, merciful, honorable worthy of that respect…but no more…that kind of judge is as rare as a six toed cat. So, ,maybe our new DOJ head will get some standards in place that can be enforced. That congress will disconnect themselves from being part of the mix and take stands agaist corrupt judges and oust them….and that proven political side taking be cause for termination as readily as bribery or other criminal activities. One way to find out how bad this has become is to dig into the finances of these judges, no, ALL judges and see how a judge pulling down 80,000 annually can afford two homes, a Beemer, summer beach house and membership in the exclusive clubs in town. Or maybe I’m just a sour puss with it comes to judges……or is it just because they are lawyers.
It seems to me, that with all of this data available, and AMAC’s diligence in digging this up, that the SCOTUS should make it a priority to either set aside some cases, or make time in their “BUSY SCHEDULE” to look into these crooked judges. A judge in this country is supposed to be a-political. Not politically aimed in any particular direction, but the Last few years have drawn these worthless judges to the forefront of the news in their complete attempted destruction of PRESIDENT TRUMP! These judges should be removed from the bench, disbarred, and never be allowed back into the legal profession again.
Noooo! Tell me it’s not true! A judge that is corrupt? It’s past time to start draining the judges swamp.
It is time for the provision in the Article 6 of the Constitution thereby requiring Judges in every State to rule in accord to the Constitution, NOT AGAINST IT or its guaranteed rights, to be exercised concerning the Article 3 “standard”, Judges will hold their office in “good behavior”, that good behavior being the Article 6 requirement. Amendment 14 contains Section 3 that addresses any official that has taken an oath to uphold the Constitution, such as EVERY Judge, then “rebels” (rules not in accord to in wanton “poor behavior” violating Article 6) against the same (Constitution) is INELIGIBLE to hold any office, civil or military, under the United States; AND Section 5 where it empowers Congress to legislate appropriately to effect the section 3 provision. This is a method that would be FASTER and MORE EFFECTIVE than the nearly impossible and extremely slow IMPEACHMENT process. Sadly, Congress likely WILL NOT, as the same provisions APPLY TO THEM.
be they be democrats, republicans, or independents judges they should be disallowed and excused from and federal lower level trials. they’ve all proven they cannot give unbiased opinions based solely on the merits of a case!
All of these ‘Judges’ are overstepping their authority, as they are DISTRICT judges, with authority over their ‘district’ only. By engaging on cases that have US authority, they overstep their jurisdiction, this will become a major issue that the SCOTUS will have to rule on. If they rule per the constitution, the process of ‘Judge shopping’ by the left to get a favorable judge will be over!
Wow. Just Wow.
Suspected something like this, but didn’t know it until I read this article.
The Attorney General Needs to indict them on conspiracy and bribery.
These judges are evil tools and should be removed from their toilet seats(benches) . They are thoriating the will of the people . I said it before , we are in a fight over good vs evil and if the evil keeps interfering with the good their will be trouble. We have stayed in line and done everything right but if they keep pushing the feces will hit the oscillating blades. The will of the people is stronger than any corrupt two bit communist f**king judge.
These judges have no autherority to do this, so they should be rounded up and buried in unmarked graves.
Trump needs to just ignore them and run them down
These Judges is why so many are discouraged by the Justice Department and law enforcement. Before it was the CIA and the FBI, that was shown to be questionable and no one has any trust in either of these departments. If the Supreme Court cannot reign them in, with just one case, which is, The President was democratically elected, and he is doing what we hired him to do, these liberal judges cannot over rule the will of “we the people”, IMO