John Roberts, In Rare Statement, Hits Back After Trump Calls For Impeaching Judges

Chief Justice John Roberts is pushing back against President Donald Trump and his allies’ calls to impeach judges who’ve ruled against the administration.

"For more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision. The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose,” Roberts said Tuesday in a rare and brief statement issued just hours after Trump publicly joined demands by his supporters to remove judges he called “crooked.”

It’s the most intense public conflict between Trump and Roberts since 2018, when the chief justice came to the defense of federal judges who’d ruled against Trump policies.

Trump’s call to remove judges from the bench came after his allies amplified attacks on U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, following an order the judge issued Saturday instructing the administration to turn around aircraft deporting alleged gang members to Venezuela. The planes continued to their destinations, but the administration has insisted it did not defy the judge’s directive.

“This judge, like many of the Crooked Judges’ I am forced to appear before, should be IMPEACHED!!!” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post Tuesday.

A Supreme Court spokesperson said Roberts issued the statement in response to reporters’ inquiries about Trump’s endorsement of growing calls from his supporters for impeachment of judges seen as impeding Trump’s agenda. In recent weeks, judges have issued orders blocking Trump’s attempt to mass fire federal workers, freeze grants and contracts issued by many federal agencies and end DEI programs inside and outside the U.S. government.

The chief justice seemed to forecast the current clash last December when he publicly warned against politicians seeking to delegitimize the judiciary.

“Every Administration suffers defeats in the court system — sometimes in cases with major ramifications for executive or legislative power or other consequential topics. Nevertheless, for the past several decades, the decisions of the courts, popular or not, have been followed,” Roberts wrote in his year-end report. “Within the past few years, however, elected officials from across the political spectrum have raised the specter of open disregard for federal court rulings. These dangerous suggestions, however sporadic, must be soundly rejected.”

Roberts’ statement appeared aimed at tamping down a rising fury on Capitol Hill among Republicans after Trump’s post ignited a fresh round of impeachment calls.

Close Trump allies, who had already proposed impeaching judges who blocked Trump’s birthright citizenship order and spending cuts overseen by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, took Trump’s post as a cue to ramp up their rhetoric.

“I just introduced Articles of Impeachment against radical activist Judge James Boasberg,” Rep. Brandon Gill (R-Texas) posted Tuesday morning in response to Trump’s message. “He is guilty of high crimes and misdemeanors and should be removed from office.”

The measure already has five co-sponsors, according to an announcement from his office: Reps. Eli Crane (R-Ariz.), Buddy Carter (R-Ga.), Mike Collins, (R-Ga.), Barry Moore (R-Ala.) and Andrew Clyde (R-Ga.). And Musk reposted Gill’s call to his 200 million followers.

Other Trump allies on the hill issued similar messages endorsing the impeachment of Boasberg, who was appointed by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the Senate, 96-0, in 2011.

House leaders have not previously endorsed impeachment calls. But on Tuesday, a spokesperson for House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan — whose panel would initiate any serious judicial impeachment proceedings — declined to close the door on the process.

“Everything is on the table,” spokesperson Russell Dye said.

Speaker Mike Johnson has been under increasing pressure from his own right flank to launch probes against a slew of judges who have issued unfavorable rulings against Trump.

Johnson has so far resisted. But he is heavily reliant on Trump to maintain his precarious hold over his fractious GOP conference — and often abides by the president’s demands.

What’s also unclear is whether any of Trump’s closest allies on the hill will introduce so-called “privileged” impeachment resolutions, which would sidestep the committee process and force uncomfortable votes for Republicans wary of escalating the battle with the judiciary.

Democrats frustrated with conservative judges’ rulings have not gone as far as seeking impeachment over those decisions. However, in recent years some progressive members of Congress have sought the impeachment of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas over alleged ethics violations and conflicts of interest, as well as Justice Samuel Alito over alleged conflicts of interest.

Democratic lawmakers were highly critical of U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, who presided over and eventually dismissed Trump’s classified documents case, but they stopped short of seeking her impeachment.

Hailey Fuchs contributed to this report.