Trump earlier called for the impeachment of a judge who blocked the president’s proclamation seeking to deport alleged members of a Venezuelan gang.
Chief Justice John Roberts issued a rare public statement on March 18, appearing to counter President Donald Trump’s call to impeach a federal judge who blocked the president’s proclamation seeking to deport members of a Venezuelan gang.
“For more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision,” Roberts said in a statement provided to The Epoch Times. “The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose.”
The statement from Roberts followed Trump’s post on Truth Social that U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, who was nominated by President Barack Obama, should be impeached.
Trump said that the judge “was not elected President.”
“We don’t want vicious, violent, and demented criminals, many of them deranged murderers, in our country,” the president wrote, in capital letters.
Roberts’ statement underscored tension between the executive and judicial branches of the federal government as the administration fends off dozens of lawsuits in federal courts. In many of those cases, district court judges have responded with injunctions—sometimes nationwide in scope—provoking criticism from the administration.
Elon Musk, who directs the Department of Government Efficiency, has been critical of judicial decision-making that blocked or slowed the enforcement of the administration’s policies. On Feb. 25, Musk stated on his social media platform X that “the only way to restore rule of the people in America is to impeach judges.”
The only way to restore rule of the people in America is to impeach judges. No one is above the law, including judges.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 25, 2025
That is what it took to fix El Salvador. Same applies to America. https://t.co/HtPINo6ngU
Trump’s Truth Social post followed Boasberg’s March 17 hearing in which he requested more information related to the administration’s deportations and whether they complied with his prior order.
By Sam Dorman
