Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor said presidents have historically obeyed judicial rulings with a few exceptions as she advocated for the court to move cautiously to maintain a system of checks and balances, but without directly referencing President Donald Trump’s efforts to test the limits of the executive power.
“By and large, we have been a country who has understood that the rule of law has helped us maintain our democracy,” she said Tuesday. “But it’s also because the court has proceeded cautiously, and has proceeded understanding that it has to proceed slowly.”
Sotomayor, a member of the court’s liberal minority, did not mention Trump. But her remarks come as top Trump administration officials are questioning the judiciary’s authority to halt the Republican leader’s changes over the past few weeks.
The response from the courts is related to Trump’s efforts to reorganize government agencies and reduce the size of the federal workforce. Judges have blocked Trump from moving forward with mass federal resignations and from implementing an executive order that seeks to end birthright citizenship for anyone born in the U.S
Sotomayor spoke about the 1803 case Marbury v. Madison, saying it gives the courts the final say on the constitutionality of laws.
The justice, who was nominated to the Supreme Court by President Barack Obama in 2009, said there have been a few exceptions for presidents not respecting the court's rulings. President Andrew Jackson ignored an 1832 Supreme Court decision that sided with the Cherokee against his forcibly removing them from their land and sending federal troops to evict them.
Last week, Sotomayor had already criticized how the conservative-led court has upended decades-old precedents. On Tuesday, Sotomayor told a Miami audience that doing so makes people feel discomfort with the court.
“We must be cognizant that every time we upset precedent, we upset people’s expectations and the stability of law. It rocks the boat in a way that makes people uneasy about whether they’re protected or not protected by the law.”
The court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, ending nationwide protections for abortion rights, a decision influenced by the three conservative justices appointed by Trump during his first term. The court also struck down affirmative action in college admissions.
Sotomayor said she was an advocate for the court to move more slowly.
“And if you’re going to undo precedent, do it in small measures. Let the society absorb the steps,” she said.
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