U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson sternly spoke out against the attacks on judges from President Donald Trump and his allies, saying they seem “designed to intimidate the judiciary,” NBC News reports.
Federal judges have pushed back against the Trump administration as it has failed to comply with court orders on key concerns such as foreign aid, federal spending, and government worker termination. However, the administration claims the opposite, stating they haven’t defied judges, while being openly critical of orders and judges that blocked their actions. “The attacks are not random. They seem designed to intimidate those of us who serve in this critical capacity,” Brown Jackson said at a judges’ conference in Puerto Rico.
“The threats and harassment are attacks on our democracy, on our system of government. And they ultimately risk undermining our Constitution and the rule of law.”
Without mentioning Trump or his MAGA allies by name, Brown Jackson, the first African American woman to be appointed to the high court, said she was addressing “the elephant in the room” and encouraged her judicial colleagues to have the “raw courage” to be outspoken without fear of retaliation. “I urge you to keep going, keep doing what is right for our country, and I do believe that history will vindicate your service,” the Biden appointee said, being met with a standing ovation, according to Politico.
In early 2025, Chief Justice John Roberts pushed back on Trump after calling on U.S. District Judge James Boasberg to be impeached, calling him a “radical left lunatic” after ruling against his deportation orders. In a statement, Roberts described impeachment as not being an “appropriate response” to disagreements about court judgments. Allies like top domestic adviser Stephen Miller said statements such as the one from Roberts are power-hungry and said “communist” judges put the country at risk.
Elon Musk has also repeatedly called for judicial impeachments on X.
With the Supreme Court having a 6-3 conservative majority, the seemingly combative culture created by the Trump administration has raised concerns from some legal experts on the risks of a constitutional crisis. However, while expressing the loneliness that comes with speaking out, Brown Jackson highlighted how the country has been in this space before, using examples of attacks sustained during the Civil Rights Movement and the Watergate scandal.
She pressured her colleagues to draw inspiration from those examples. “I do know that loneliness. It is very stressful to have to decide difficult cases in the spotlight and under pressure. It can sometimes take raw courage to remain steadfast in doing what the law requires,” she said.
“Other judges have faced challenges like the ones we face today and have prevailed,” she said.
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