Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, chair of the House Judiciary Committee, told Newsmax on Tuesday that he believes Congress has the will to use its constitutional power to prevent what he considers judicial overreach used at the district court level to usurp President Donald Trump's authority.
Since Trump began his second term Jan. 20, lower court judges reportedly have issued 15 injunctions against his policies. One case involved a temporary injunction by U.S. District Judge James Boasberg in Washington, D.C., against deporting illegal immigrants who are alleged members of the ruthless Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act. Boasberg ordered deportation flights headed to El Salvador to return to the U.S., but the Trump administration ignored that order, which was recently upheld by the District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals.
"With the judges situation, we've got Darrell Issa's bill, which would say, 'For these district judges to issue an injunction, it only applies to the parties in the case in that jurisdiction, doesn't apply nationwide,'" Jordan told "Rob Schmitt Tonight." referring to the No Rogue Rulings Act sponsored by Issa, a California Republican, which advanced out of the Judiciary Committee earlier this month.
Congress under Article III, Section I of the Constitution has substantial authority to regulate how the federal courts exercise judicial power.
"And then we've got to look at everything else," Jordan said. "We've got to look at the appropriations process and, frankly, draw attention to this issue.
"I think that in and of itself causes these judges to think about what they're doing. This Judge Boasberg as an example, who said, 'Turn the plane around, bring the bad guys back. Illegal migrants, part of a terrorist organization. Part of this Tren de Aragua gang. Bring them back.' That makes no sense."
The Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, Artificial Intelligence, and the Internet held a hearing earlier Tuesday on the issue, with testimony from former Speaker Newt Gingrich and Cindy Romero, a victim of criminal activity by Tren de Aragua in Aurora, Colorado. The Trump administration has designated Tren de Aragua as a foreign terrorist organization.
"We felt like today's hearing was really good, especially with Speaker Gingrich and the victim, the lady who had those gang members in Aurora, Colorado, drive her from her home," Jordan said. "She was, I thought, a really compelling witness today, as well."
During her testimony, Romero said, in part, "There are no government programs to grant citizens Temporary Protected Status from imported gangs in our own country." Temporary Protected Status was expanded during the Biden administration to include Afghanistan, Cameroon, Haiti, Ukraine, Venezuela, and other countries. The Venezuela TPS program was the largest, covering roughly 600,000 people.
"[Former President] Joe Biden and [former Homeland Security Secretary] Alejandro Mayorkas let in all these individuals, gave them this Temporary Protective Status," Jordan said. "And I thought Miss Romero, when she said, you know, we didn't get [that], I thought that was the takeaway line from her testimony. She was particularly powerful in pointing out this fundamental fact.
"And here's really, in my mind, the big issue. It all comes down to who gets to decide. Is it the president who puts his name on a ballot and goes out and campaigns and gets 77 million people to vote for him? Or is it some district judge who can say, 'No, no, bring these guys back.' We're going to decide, we're going to stop this. That's the key question about this hearing today."
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Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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