U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts issued a rare public statement after President Donald Trump called for the impeachment of a judge.
“For more than two centuries,” the chief justice said, according to The New York Times, “it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision. The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose.”
The judge Trump criticized, James Boasberg, had sought to pause the deportation of over 200 migrants to El Salvador over due process concerns. The administration had been attempting to remove the migrants using a 1798 law.
Trump called the judge a “radical left lunatic” in a social media post and said he should be impeached, The Times said.
“HE DIDN’T WIN ANYTHING! I WON FOR MANY REASONS, IN AN OVERWHELMING MANDATE, BUT FIGHTING ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION MAY HAVE BEEN THE NUMBER ONE REASON FOR THIS HISTORIC VICTORY,” Trump wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social, according to The Associated Press. “I’m just doing what the VOTERS wanted me to do. This judge, like many of the Crooked Judges’ I am forced to appear before, should be IMPEACHED!!!”
Trump and some of his supporters have been increasingly calling for the impeachment of judges who rule against the administration in court cases. The White House has faced repeated setbacks in court on multiple fronts, including deportations and efforts to fire federal workers.
Impeaching a judge is a rare step. It is usually undertaken only in cases of serious ethical or criminal misconduct, AP noted.
Some of Trump’s supporters hit back at Roberts after his statement.
“When there are rapists and murderers invading our country, maybe a guy in a robe in D.C. can follow all the protocols, but Trump is the effing president of the United States who protects 300 million plus people,” Gutfeld said on Tuesday’s episode of “The Five” on Fox News, according to The Hill. “He is a leader who does not have the luxury of opening up his little books to read.”
The comedian and cable news host told Roberts to “shut the F up.”
