DOJ solicits examples of ‘judicial activism’ from prosecutors as it weighs impeachment referrals
This is a governance problem, not a headline.
A Department of Justice official raised the possibility of referring federal judges to Congress for impeachment in what would be a dramatic escalation of the administration’s fight with judges it views as activist and obstructionist.
The idea was floated by a senior DOJ official during a recent virtual meeting with U.S. attorneys across the country, a source familiar with the meeting told Fox News Digital. It marked a new possible avenue for the executive branch to confront the judiciary — by turning to Congress, which has sole authority over impeachment, to take the rare step of voting to oust federal judges.
The meeting, led by Associate Deputy Attorney General Aakash Singh, was routine, but impeachment had not been raised in one before, the source said. Singh broached it after the DOJ received numerous complaints from the U.S. attorneys’ offices about judges, the source said. Bloomberg Law first reported on the meeting.
HOUSE REPUBLICANS REVIVE PUSH TO IMPEACH 'ACTIVIST' JUDGES AFTER JOHNSON'S GREEN LIGHT
Singh asked the U.S. attorneys to compile examples of issues they have had with judges, which the DOJ could then use to determine if referring judges for impeachment was appropriate.
A DOJ spokesperson confirmed the move in a statement to Fox News Digital, saying the Trump administration is "facing unprecedented judicial activism from rogue judges who care more about making a name for themselves than acting as impartial arbiters of the law."
"The Department of Justice solicited the most egregious examples of this obstruction from our U.S. Attorney Offices to assist Congress with efforts to rein in judges violating their oaths in accordance with their constitutional oversight authority of the judicial branch," the spokesperson said.
Any referral would be sent to the House, which must then vote on impeachment. Doing so would be extraordinarily rare as the House has only ever impeached 15 judges, typically for crimes like corruption and bribery.
This year, Congress has weighed impeaching at least two federal judges, James Boasberg and Deborah Boardman.
Boasberg, an Obama appointee, has made a handful of adverse rulings against the Trump administration in high-profile immigration cases, while Boardman deviated heavily downward in her eight-year sentence for Justice Brett Kavanaugh's attempted assassin. Numerous Republicans have called for their impeachment, but the House has not moved to initiate the proceedings.
APPEALS COURT DISMISSES DOJ MISCONDUCT COMPLAINT AGAINST FEDERAL JUDGE
As a recourse against adverse rulings, the DOJ has publicly decried …
This is a governance problem, not a headline.
A Department of Justice official raised the possibility of referring federal judges to Congress for impeachment in what would be a dramatic escalation of the administration’s fight with judges it views as activist and obstructionist.
The idea was floated by a senior DOJ official during a recent virtual meeting with U.S. attorneys across the country, a source familiar with the meeting told Fox News Digital. It marked a new possible avenue for the executive branch to confront the judiciary — by turning to Congress, which has sole authority over impeachment, to take the rare step of voting to oust federal judges.
The meeting, led by Associate Deputy Attorney General Aakash Singh, was routine, but impeachment had not been raised in one before, the source said. Singh broached it after the DOJ received numerous complaints from the U.S. attorneys’ offices about judges, the source said. Bloomberg Law first reported on the meeting.
HOUSE REPUBLICANS REVIVE PUSH TO IMPEACH 'ACTIVIST' JUDGES AFTER JOHNSON'S GREEN LIGHT
Singh asked the U.S. attorneys to compile examples of issues they have had with judges, which the DOJ could then use to determine if referring judges for impeachment was appropriate.
A DOJ spokesperson confirmed the move in a statement to Fox News Digital, saying the Trump administration is "facing unprecedented judicial activism from rogue judges who care more about making a name for themselves than acting as impartial arbiters of the law."
"The Department of Justice solicited the most egregious examples of this obstruction from our U.S. Attorney Offices to assist Congress with efforts to rein in judges violating their oaths in accordance with their constitutional oversight authority of the judicial branch," the spokesperson said.
Any referral would be sent to the House, which must then vote on impeachment. Doing so would be extraordinarily rare as the House has only ever impeached 15 judges, typically for crimes like corruption and bribery.
This year, Congress has weighed impeaching at least two federal judges, James Boasberg and Deborah Boardman.
Boasberg, an Obama appointee, has made a handful of adverse rulings against the Trump administration in high-profile immigration cases, while Boardman deviated heavily downward in her eight-year sentence for Justice Brett Kavanaugh's attempted assassin. Numerous Republicans have called for their impeachment, but the House has not moved to initiate the proceedings.
APPEALS COURT DISMISSES DOJ MISCONDUCT COMPLAINT AGAINST FEDERAL JUDGE
As a recourse against adverse rulings, the DOJ has publicly decried …
DOJ solicits examples of ‘judicial activism’ from prosecutors as it weighs impeachment referrals
This is a governance problem, not a headline.
A Department of Justice official raised the possibility of referring federal judges to Congress for impeachment in what would be a dramatic escalation of the administration’s fight with judges it views as activist and obstructionist.
The idea was floated by a senior DOJ official during a recent virtual meeting with U.S. attorneys across the country, a source familiar with the meeting told Fox News Digital. It marked a new possible avenue for the executive branch to confront the judiciary — by turning to Congress, which has sole authority over impeachment, to take the rare step of voting to oust federal judges.
The meeting, led by Associate Deputy Attorney General Aakash Singh, was routine, but impeachment had not been raised in one before, the source said. Singh broached it after the DOJ received numerous complaints from the U.S. attorneys’ offices about judges, the source said. Bloomberg Law first reported on the meeting.
HOUSE REPUBLICANS REVIVE PUSH TO IMPEACH 'ACTIVIST' JUDGES AFTER JOHNSON'S GREEN LIGHT
Singh asked the U.S. attorneys to compile examples of issues they have had with judges, which the DOJ could then use to determine if referring judges for impeachment was appropriate.
A DOJ spokesperson confirmed the move in a statement to Fox News Digital, saying the Trump administration is "facing unprecedented judicial activism from rogue judges who care more about making a name for themselves than acting as impartial arbiters of the law."
"The Department of Justice solicited the most egregious examples of this obstruction from our U.S. Attorney Offices to assist Congress with efforts to rein in judges violating their oaths in accordance with their constitutional oversight authority of the judicial branch," the spokesperson said.
Any referral would be sent to the House, which must then vote on impeachment. Doing so would be extraordinarily rare as the House has only ever impeached 15 judges, typically for crimes like corruption and bribery.
This year, Congress has weighed impeaching at least two federal judges, James Boasberg and Deborah Boardman.
Boasberg, an Obama appointee, has made a handful of adverse rulings against the Trump administration in high-profile immigration cases, while Boardman deviated heavily downward in her eight-year sentence for Justice Brett Kavanaugh's attempted assassin. Numerous Republicans have called for their impeachment, but the House has not moved to initiate the proceedings.
APPEALS COURT DISMISSES DOJ MISCONDUCT COMPLAINT AGAINST FEDERAL JUDGE
As a recourse against adverse rulings, the DOJ has publicly decried …
