Who needs checks and balances anyway?
This piece first appeared in our weekly newsletter, The Fallout.
Well that was quick.
We’re not even a month into this presidential administration and it appears we’ve reached the disregarding court orders phase of authoritarianism entrenchment as Donald Trump’s regime tries to move forward with one blatantly-unconstitutional power grab after another.
Over the weekend Vice President JD Vance invoked the spirit of noted segregationist and former President Andrew Jackson by claiming on X that federal courts don’t actually have the ability to block presidential action no matter what you may have learned in your U.S. Government class. On Monday, a federal judge ruled that the Trump administration had failed to comply with a court order to release billions in federal funds already appropriated by Congress. This was the response of the Trump administration. And honestly, with more than 40 lawsuits and counting challenging Trump actions so far, who knows how much this fight will have escalated by the time this newsletter is published.
The administration hasn’t been held in contempt of court just yet, but that’s a formality at this point.
“When it comes to constitutional principles and court orders to enforce them, what we need from the administration is compliance not defiance,” said Paul Gordon, who serves as senior legislative counsel at People For the American Way, in a statement to Rewire News Group.
“When it comes to authoritarianism, we’re past the ‘this could happen’ warning stage. The authoritarianism is already happening. “This is how it looks,” he continued. “Fair courtrooms are crucial to protect our democracy. Authoritarians are targeting them. “Our freedom is at stake.” Elon Musk, JDVance and the Trump regime proved me wrong in a matter days. The post Who Needs Checks and Balances Anyway? appeared first on Rewire News Group.
